...Regardless, despite the upheaval, itemizing deductions is still a viable strategy to reduce overall tax obligations, and there are still six core deductions available to taxpayers, including: medical expenses (to the extent that they exceed 10% of Adjusted Gross Income); taxes paid to other governmental entities (both state or local municipality taxes as well as foreign governments, but with a $10,000 maximum deduction limit… regardless of filing status!); at least some types of interest paid (for not only mortgage interest – up to a $750,000 principal limit – but for investment purposes as well); charitable giving (but with limits); casualty and theft losses (but, for individuals, only if they were attributable to a Federally declared disaster); and other (miscellaneous-but-not-subject-to-the-2%-of-AGI-floor) deductions (such as gambling losses, among others)...

...If your income has indeed increased since you opened your credit card, and you have considerable self control over your spending, you should go ahead and update your income. The increased credit limit could actually boost your credit score...

...Once your son or daughter moves in, the room will never look like that again. Opt for sturdy items and be realistic...

...Some worries belong in the "unlikely to happen/deal with it when it actually does" bin...

...Tax-deferred accounts have long been a boon to savers, allowing them to earn additional growth on top of the growth without Uncle Sam taking a share. But tax-deferred doesn’t mean tax-free, and sooner or later, Uncle Sam will eventually take his share, since each and every retirement account is subject to Required Minimum Distribution (RMD) rules at some point...

...It’s probably low relative to your future earnings potential. It may even give you permission to dial back your own intensity – and spend some more quality time today with your family...

...When it comes to risk-taking, one size does not fit all. Each of us takes different types of risks at different times depending on our personal motivations. Our risk tolerance is relative to our life experience, unique personality, education, and situational factors...

...Under the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017, though, the debt limit on deductibility for acquisition indebtedness is reduced to just $750,000 (albeit grandfathered for existing mortgages under the old higher $1M limit), and interest on home equity indebtedness is no longer deductible at all starting in 2018...

...While the new deduction will be a powerful way for many business owners to reduce their tax liability, it comes at a price… complexity...

...You don’t know what you don’t know. You know some things about how you want to dispose of your assets after you die. What you may not know is all the case law and legislation that have evolved into your state’s probate code...

...In fact, while hiring a child may not seem like a top-of-mind move for many businesses owners, if you play by the rules, there can be a surprisingly broad array of tax (and other) benefits to doing so...

...whether you are new to 529's or already invest in a 529 account, understanding more about the ins and outs of how these plans work can help you maximize your investment...

...Ultimately, the key point is that salary deferral limits for individuals apply once across all plans, while employer contributions are limited on a per-plan basis…unless the plans themselves are related employers under the controlled group or affiliated service companies that aggregate that limit back into one as well...

...Achieving your long-term financial goals depends on two separate, yet complementary skills: fiscal discipline and investment discipline. Fiscal discipline means saving or otherwise gathering capital to invest, whereas investment discipline involves building a portfolio and managing risk in order to reach your investment goals...

...focusing on spending rates at least puts the focus back on what households can control – what they spend, and what they earn – rather than focusing on or criticizing a savings rate that ultimately is more a result of other decisions than a decision unto itself...

...the rise of the digital world has created a new wrinkle for estate planning: how to transition “digital” assets...

...Here are 5 steps that can help when you manage a financial shock...

...If you're among the people who are still on the fence about what to do, the best way to make smart decisions is to go into the process armed with the facts...

...Notably, many of the tax preferences do come with trade-offs (such as penalties for early distribution, and rules about how the funds can be spent), but for high-income earners, those limitations simply mean it will be necessary to coordinate amongst the various tax-preferenced savings accounts at the time of liquidation...

...The institute’s Financial Literacy Commission put together a list of financial conversations people should have with their partner before they tie the knot. Following are the institute’s suggestions and an explanation by AICPA of why each is important...