Search Results

June 11, 2013 |  BY Chris Baysden |  Article

The AICPA released an exposure draft of a Proposed Statement on Standards in Personal Financial Planning Services on Tuesday as part of an initiative that’s expected to help boost the profile of CPA personal financial planning (PFP) practitioners. The proposal outlines members’ responsibilities in PFP engagements. These responsibilities include: General professional responsibilities; Responsibilities of members in PFP engagements; Planning the PFP engagement; Obtaining and analyzing information; Developing and communicating recommendations; Monitoring and updating engagements; Working with other service providers; and Using advice provided by other service providers

June 1, 2013 |  BY Alistair M. Nevius |  Article

This spring, following a two-year drafting process involving practitioners from across the AICPA, the AICPA Personal Financial Planning Executive Committee issued an exposure draft for public comment on a Proposed Statement on Standards in Personal Financial Planning Practice. The proposed statement addresses the responsibilities of AICPA members when providing personal financial planning (PFP) services.

April 1, 2013 |  BY Ray A. Knight, CPA, J.D. and Lee G. Knight, Ph.D. |  Article

The emotional aspects of a divorce often interfere with planning for the efficient distribution of the marital estate. The shock and ill feelings may create a barrier between spouses that prevents even discussing issues. Tax practitioners need to know how to explain to a divorcing client the tax realities, to avoid any post-divorce tax surprises.

April 1, 2013 |  BY Kim T. Mollberg, CPA, CGMA, CMA, MBT |  Article

Sec. 408(d)(1) ordinarily requires a pro rata allocation between taxable and nontaxable amounts (using the Sec. 72 annuity rules) when reporting distributions received from an individual retirement plan (an individual retirement account or annuity (IRA)). The practical effect is that a taxpayer must recover any nontaxable amount (basis) ratably as distributions are received, by tracking basis on Form 8606, Nondeductible IRAs.

November 2, 2012 |  BY Ken Tysiac |  Article

A natural disaster does not have to be a financial disaster, too. Estimates of damage caused after Hurricane Sandy ravaged the East Coast have run as high as $60 billion. CPA personal financial planning experts say that taking the right steps after a disaster can help people protect their surviving assets and rebuild successfully.

October 1, 2012 |  BY Julie Jason, J.D. |  Article

Disclosures mandated in 2011 by the SEC help investors become more informed about the financial advisers they work with or wish to retain. CPAs can use them as part of their due-diligence process. CPAs will be viewed as fiduciaries, according to Walter M. Primoff, CPA/PFS, former deputy executive director of the N.Y.

September 19, 2012 |  BY Ken Tysiac |  Article

U.S. investors’ confidence in domestic capital markets has rebounded, but their faith in markets outside the United States has continued to decline, according to new research by the Center for Audit Quality (CAQ). Sixty-five percent of investors reported that they have some, quite a bit, or a great deal of confidence in U.S.

August 9, 2012 |  BY Ken Tysiac |  Article

Many children aren’t learning much about money from their parents, a new survey shows. Three in 10 parents never talk to their children about money or have had just one big talk with their children on the subject, according to a U.S. telephone survey conducted for the AICPA by Harris Interactive.

July 1, 2012 |  BY Ted Sarenski, CPA/PFS |  Article

CPAs have an unprecedented opportunity to demonstrate their value in the following ways before the end of 2012, when the Bush-era tax cuts are set to expire, estate and gift tax exemptions are scheduled to shrink back to $1 million, and current proposals could diminish the planning advantages of grantor and dynasty trusts.

July 1, 2012 |  BY Nicholas C. Lynch, Ph.D. and Charles R. Pryor, Ph.D. |  Article

The recent recession left no age group untouched, but baby boomers were hit especially hard. High unemployment and an uncertain stock market have caused older Americans to realize that their retirement funds might not support their desired lifestyle. Many seniors are facing foreclosure, while others are unable to meet their basic needs, such as paying medical, energy, and other daily living expenses.