Articles By Ty Bernicke,
as Published in Forbes

Article
Ty Bernicke, CFP® | President & CEO

Understand History Before Purchasing Your Next Mutual Fund

There are many variables that investors analyze when either buying or selling assets. One popular technique used to analyze stock mutual funds and exchange-traded funds (ETFs) includes analyzing past performance and using this information as the catalyst to either buy or sell.

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Article
Ty Bernicke, CFP® | President & CEO

How To Get Extra Money From Mutual Funds

The title of the 1985 song “Money for Nothing” by Dire Straits is a reference to the rock stars of this group achieving a wealthy status for doing easy work by playing music for people. Some mutual funds and exchange-traded funds, or ETFs, also derive easy money through a process called securities lending.

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Article
Ty Bernicke, CFP® | President & CEO

Index Fund Pitfalls: What Investors Need To Know

In his 1973 book, A Random Walk Down Wall Street, economist Burton Malkiel contended that higher cost, actively managed mutual funds were flawed and unlikely to beat low-cost, passively managed index funds. Following the publication of Malkiel’s book, there were dozens of studies touting similar benefits associated with low-cost, passively managed index funds. Today, index funds are rising in popularity, and many investors blindly rely on them without truly understanding what differentiates one index fund from another.

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Throughout my 30 years in the wealth management industry, I’ve witnessed the outcomes of many people’s estate plans after they’ve passed away. Many times, these estate plans successfully delivered the intended outcomes for beneficiaries. Unfortunately, I’ve also seen countless estate plan disasters. This article focuses on the three things most people do not consider with estate planning that can cause significant problems.
On March 23, 2010, the Affordable Care Act (ACA) was signed into law. Since its inception, it has been used by many retirees who need health insurance before becoming eligible for Medicare at age 65. However, what many don’t realize is that the cost of ACA insurance can vary significantly based on a person’s modified adjusted gross income (MAGI).
Over the past 35 years, our firm has helped many people retire and, despite what you hear from some mainstream media outlets, I rarely find people wishing they had worked longer. I also find that traditional retirement planning tends to confuse people into thinking they should work longer than necessary. There are several reasons why this occurs.
A common concern for pre-retirees is paying taxes on their retirement income. To understand how taxes work in retirement, it is first important to understand how different sources of retirement income will be taxed.
Our firm has worked with retirees for over 30 years, and it is a common practice to help our clients turn their nest eggs into a reliable retirement income stream.
Many wealthy individuals own one or more highly appreciated investments. How these highly appreciated investments are liquidated could save these investors thousands of dollars in taxes over a lifetime.
There are a variety of issues estate planning attorneys seek to mitigate when creating an estate plan for their clients. These issues may include unnecessary income and estate taxes, and the need to avoid probate.
With the national debt soaring to unprecedented levels, you may be concerned about protecting your investments from future tax rates. Investment accounts like IRAs, 401(k)s and other tax-deferred retirement plans are particularly susceptible to rising taxes, as the money in these accounts will eventually be subject to income tax.
Minimizing taxes, obtaining affordable health insurance, and having ample penalty-free income at a young age are all critical variables for early retirement. At first glance, these different variables might seem independent of one another, but the decisions you make on one of the variables can heavily influence the others.
There are generally three different categories of investors when it comes to investing in stocks. The first category believes that paying extra for actively managed investments, like many mutual funds, can provide returns that outweigh the additional costs.

Learn why you may be able to retire earlier than you think.

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