Steinhandler Wealth Advisors

📅🎉 Happy Leap Day! 2️⃣9️⃣

For all those celebrating birthdays today, we wish you an extra special day! 🥳

For the rest of us, since we are gifted an extra 2,880 minutes this year, let's make it count! Do something kind for a stranger, reach out to a friend you haven't spoken to in a while, or surprise a loved one with a card.

Do you have any other good ideas? It's only once every four years we get this extra day. I hope everyone has a good one!

⏳The ancient philosopher Theophrastus said that wasting time was the most extravagant and costly of all expenses.

Time is the one thing we can’t get back, replace, or have enough of.

Yet, in this world, too often, money and the material items it affords are seen as the measure of success. 🧮

It’s good to remind ourselves that it is not money but our time ⏰—and how we choose to spend it—that is our most valuable asset.

Celebrating Black History Month

In honor of Black History Month and to recognize and celebrate the barrier-breaking journeys of influential African Americans such as Maggie Lena Walker.

Walker was an African American entrepreneur who broke traditional gender and discriminatory laws by becoming the first Black woman to establish and become president of a bank in the United States—the St. Luke Penny Savings Bank in Richmond.

By 1924, the bank had spread to other parts of Virginia and included more than 50,000 members. While other banks collapsed during the Great Depression, St. Luke Penny Savings survived.

As of 2010, when it was known as the Consolidated Bank and Trust Company, St. Luke Penny Savings was the oldest continually African American–operated bank in the United States.

For anyone who is still paying off student loans (think med 👩‍⚕️ 👨🏾‍⚕️ school grads), a significant change goes into effect this year.

📣 The recently passed SECURE Act 2.0 allows employers to match employee student loan repayments with matching payments to retirement accounts.

Here are details employers and employees should know:
➡️ Matches apply to qualified student loan payments made to repay loans for higher education.
➡️ Employees self-certify that they made payments that year.
➡️ Matches can be made annually.

The new rules give employers an attractive employee benefit to offer workers and workers an extra incentive to save for retirement while paying off educational loans.👩‍🎓👨‍🎓

Connect with your financial or tax professional to understand how this may apply.

Recent updates to retirement contribution limits allow savers to build their nest eggs faster. The catch-up contribution is set at $7,500 for those 50 and over.

For context, the 2023 traditional IRA contribution limit is $6,500. So eligible individuals over 50 can now contribute an extra $1,000, for a total of $7,500.

401(k) contribution limits saw increases as well. Starting in 2025, those aged 60–63 can make catch-up contributions of $10,000 or 150% of the standard catch-up amount, whichever is higher.

Expanded catch-up contribution limits allow older savers to maximize retirement contributions in peak earning years right before retirement.

Let’s connect to discuss how these updated limits could impact your retirement.

Remember, once you reach age 73, you must begin taking RMDs from traditional IRAs, 401(k)s, or other defined contribution plans, in most cases. Withdrawals are taxed as ordinary income and, if taken before age 59½, may be subject to a 10% federal income tax penalty.

Unless Congress acts, current tax rates and many provisions in the tax code are scheduled to expire at the end of this year.

One change may be to the Child Tax Credit, impacting families. 👨‍👩‍👧

As a reminder, the current credit is $2,000 per child (under 17), with income phasing out starting at $400,000 for couples.

Next year, the credit may return to the pre-TJIA (Tax Cuts and Jobs Act) level at $1,000 per child, and phaseout may drop to $110,000 for couples. 😮

The Child Tax Credit is just one potential change. Remember, tax rules can change without notice, and there is no guarantee that the treatment of certain rules will remain the same. This post is not intended as real-life advice, so you may want to review any specific questions about the TCJA with a tax, legal, or accounting professional. FMG created this content to provide insights into a topic and is not affiliated with a broker-dealer or investment advisory firm.🤝🏽💼

We'll continue to share info as we get closer to the changes taking effect. Follow us if you want to stay updated! 🔔📲