As we enter the third quarter, the economic landscape is dominated by two surges – a fiscal surge and a vaccination surge. In combination, these surges should lead to much stronger economic growth and higher inflation. A key question for investors, however, is whether this will fuel a continued back up in long-term interest rates or a market correction in areas of the markets that look frothy. As the pandemic winds down, investors will likely once again focus on longer-term issues such as sustainable investing and the relentless growth of the Chinese economy and capital markets.

The tax environment is fluid and what will occur is uncertain. This session will be updated up until the date of the program to provide practitioners with practical, actionable, tax planning advice that can be given to clients. Depending on the status of tax legislation current proposals and what to do in light of them will be reviewed. If there is actual legislation that will be discussed. in all events the focus will be on specific planning you can guide clients with.

Life insurance enjoys similar income tax characteristics as Roth IRAs. Premiums are paid into the policy after tax, earnings in the cash value, and withdrawals therefrom or loans thereagainst, are not includible in the policy owner’s gross income (if the policy is designed and managed properly), and death benefit proceeds are generally not includible the beneficiary’s gross income. For many high-income-earner taxpayers cannot qualify for Roth IRAs, or may be limited with how much can be contributed to a Roth 401(k), cash value life insurance can be a powerful Roth-alternative wealth accumulation strategy. For those with large traditional IRAs not needed for retirement income, cash value life insurance can also be a powerful wealth transfer strategy when distributions from the IRA are used to fund premiums. This session will examine how cash value life insurance can act as an “unlimited Roth IRA” for high earners to grow wealth, including a detailed analysis of the effect of policy charges on cash value accumulation compared to investing in a portfolio of traditional taxable investments, as well as an effective wealth transfer strategy to help control the damage caused by the SECURE Act on traditional IRAs.

Behavioral Finance Advice with Magic bridges the gap in traditional finance that assumes people are rational. Because most people are irrational, it combines traditional finance with the science behind how our brains work and the psychology of why we make the decisions we do.

After this session, you will be able to help your clients:

Disabilities don't discriminate. Families of great means have children and other beneficiaries with disabilities at the same rate as families of modest means. Addressing the myriad needs of a person with a disability (PWD) requires a comprehensive Special Needs Financial Plan (SNFP). The SNFP is built upon a network of Special Needs Trusts (SNTs), each of which is designed to be funded with different types of assets, at different times, from different sources. Identifying and engaging a family's "team" of allied professionals is a critical first step in developing the funding formula for the network of SNTs. Although a SNFP will maximize the use of a family's private wealth and resources, it must also be compatible with maintaining the eligibility of the PWD for government benefits that are the sole gateway to accessing beneficial programs and services that are not available on a private pay basis.

A mindset is how you see the world - and it's the birthplace of action. By understanding and practicing the growth mindset, you can become more resilient and positive and achieve better results in all aspects of your life.

We will explore what the growth mindset is, the scientific evidence behind how it benefits us, and specific ways you can cultivate it - within yourself and your teams. 

What have we learned from the past 15 months of living through a life changing pandemic? How has it changed the world around us in temporary and permanent ways? What does it mean for your firm and practice? Have you thought about what it looks like going forward? How has it impacted your clients and their perspective of their lives, goals, ambitions and future direction?

This session will give you the perspectives on these questions from three of the thought leaders in the CPA Financial Planning Profession. These leaders have been thinking deeply about these issues from Day One of the pandemic through their own firms, study groups, and various webinars and conference presentations. Now, as we hopefully see some light at the end of the COVID tunnel, how do we capture the lessons learned from this experience to make our firms, our clients lives, and us better?

The Best Ideas Panel will pull together the best thinking from the first two days of the conference and some of our highest rated speakers. We will give the attendees practical planning strategies that affect their clients that they can implement now. Topics will cover thought leadership in the income tax planning, estate planning, retirement and other areas as well as some of the general sessions. Our panel consists of individuals who are recognized experts in each area and consistently ranked as our top speakers at the conference.

Learning Objectives:

1. Analyze best planning ideas from across all the sessions from the first two days of the PFP conference.
2. Recognize current hot topics including tax planning, estate planning, retirement, elder planning, and other financial planning topics will be presented in a practical format.