Show Description: This show launches show number one of the series. “Financial Detox Investing 101”. Jason shares a recent experience while traveling with some individuals who are well versed in business but have been misinformed based on the overload of information when it comes to investing. Information that is presented in multiple mediums, none of which is pointed and direct in helping them understand what they should be doing with their accumulated wealth. Alex enters the conversation by stating that often people will, quoting the phrase, “buy what you know”. People tend to buy stock in companies that they know or products that they use and trust. This series will cover five necessary components. Things that you or your adviser should be doing daily to manage your assets. This show, one of a series of five, will focus on Asset Allocation. Alex and Jason go into defining the different asset classes and how many sub-asset classes there are. Jason directs the focus of today’s show on Large Asset Classes. Alex and Jason will cover Cash, Bonds, Publicly Traded Stocks, and Alternatives. Jason defines Alternatives by offering some examples and Alex adds that this assets class tends to attract investors with exciting products but can also cause the most damage if not properly understood. After the first commercial break, Jason and Alex continue the topic of allocation and use the correlation of life and having multiple things that you enjoy to asset classes and being diversified in how you should invest. Alex poses some question; Why should you use multiple asset classes? Why does it matter? And can I just buy stocks? Jason responds and shares some insight on how the firm builds and manages portfolios along a spectrum. A spectrum that covers all investment needs from capital preservation to aggressive. Alex brings the discussion back to asset allocation and asks Jason to further describe the major asset classes in a typical IDA portfolio and how many asset classes one expects to see. After responding, Jason spends some time discussing bonds and some sub asset classes within the bond market. While discussing the types of bonds available, Jason takes the conversation deeper and touches on yield and the need and desire for some investors and advisers to chase yield. Unknowingly exposing their portfolios to excessive risk. Jason and Alex segue into equites and the sub asset classes within the equities market. Jason shares the benefits of being globally diversified based on historical data, even though the current U.S. equity markets have been a successful investment. Alex closes the show with stating that the point of this series is to learn to control what you can control, diversify, and follow evidence based proven facts and data when building a successful portfolio.   In this show you will learn about:- Asset Allocation- Alternatives - Bonds- Equities

Financial Detox® Show

Investing 101

Jason and Alex started by talking about how they were excited for the 1st presidential debate, but they slowly became more and more disappointed that Trump and Biden are the best representatives that this country can offer its great citizens. Jason talks about how he was watching the debate with his wife and kids, and they had to turn it off because it was not something appropriate or positive for his young boys to be watching. Alex asked if Jason’s kids Dax -9 and Luke -11 had shared their perspective on the debate, and he talked about how he has observed that his kids and most kids almost always mirror the views and ideas they observe from their parents.Jason and Alex discussed how politics have become a show at this point, and how our country’s founding fathers talked about how it would lead our country down a bad path if we ever got so divided that both parties essentially couldn’t work together in any capacity. They discussed how capitalism is a beautiful thing that can spread prosperity and opportunity for all, but when taken to the extreme it can be very bad if there are no boundaries or regulations. Alex discussed how the media, especially the political-based media, is nearly 99% opinion and is designed that way to rile listeners up. There needs to be more regulations and disclosures surrounding the broad based media sources because it is almost like they are able to put any information, even if it isn’t 100% factual, out to the general public in a convincing manner.Jason and Alex discussed how it is so important to have regulations in the financial industry. The SEC is the governing body over IDA, and we are legally bound and obligated to do what is in our clients very best interests. This is extremely important in our industry because there are so many potential conflicts of interest, especially if an advisor works at a firm that has a broker dealer offering a list of products. Jason explains that most insurance salespeople have product bias, and they tell their clients not to worry because there are no fees and the insurance company pays them.Alex then ties this regulation back to the media and said that they are not paid to report the truth, they are paid to report what will sell. Jason and Alex explain that conflicts of interest are present in the financial world, social media, and all other sources of media. They talked about the importance of seeking the truth no matter what the source is because there is so much information available, and a good portion of this information is bad and doesn’t have the end person’s best interests in mind. They invite listeners to send their questions to jason@financialdetox.com or call 877-707-8889.  In this show you will learn about:- Summary of the 1st presidential debate- The importance of regulations surrounding capitalism and political media sources- The importance of regulations in the financial industry- The conflicts of interest present in the financial world, social media, and all other sources of media

Conflicts of Interest in the Financial World

The end of the year is near. The time is now to prep for year-end decisions. Today’s show covers topics around year-end planning and reviews the things that you have control of within your financial plan. Alex starts the show with discussing interest rates. Rates are at historic lows in terms of borrowing and you should be exploring your options to take advantage of this low rate environment.Jason shares a story about a client that he recently spoke with were it did not make financial sense to refinance and to watch out for toxic information. This client was initially led into thinking that since everyone has been talking about refinancing. She should as well refinance. This is not always the case and working with a trusted professional is key. Alex discusses how banking institutions are requiring investment assets to be moved into the lending bank prior to loan approval to potentially qualify for a reduced mortgage rate. Unfortunately, this scenario does not guaranty a loan approval and can disrupt a well-managed investment portfolio.  Jason adds, not to mention, the potential tax implications of selling securities with gains to satisfy the lender’s request. Closing take away; be sure to work with trusted professionals that work together to manage your best interest.  Jason segued into the topic of paying off your loan early and how it typically does not make good financial sense given the current low interest rate environment and the potential average rate of return in an investment account. Alex adds that those focused on paying off their loan tend to under fund retirement accounts and miss out on compounding interest and growth. Rebalancing your portfolio is the second topic discussed. Jason posed the question, how many clients that manage their own investments, properly rebalance using a strategy or philosophy? AND how many advisers do account rebalancing the right way? Jason further explains tolerance band rebalancing used in Intelligence Driven Advisers (IDA) portfolios and the benefits associated. Alex discusses how this year has been an incredible example of portfolio management through rebalancing and utilizing tax loss harvesting as another component of rebalancing.  Tilting your portfolio to stay in line with global macroeconomic themes, is the third topic that Jason and Alex introduce. Where are we in the economic cycle? Politics, protests and movements are events that you need to be aware of, but do not let these short-term events dictate big moves in your portfolio. No, rather, make small tilts. Jason uses the analogy, of fine tuning the frequency of an old radio to make the signal sound crystal clear. Jason provides further explanation of tilting positions within your portfolio. Alex and Jason close the show with reminding listeners to save, given the current COVID environment many activities such as vacationing have been cancelled creating additional cash flow. Individuals should have more money available. Unfortunately, many are spending money on items that they do not need. Instead, use those savings to max out your retirement accounts and add to your investment accounts.In this show you will learn about:- Interest Rates and Refinancing- Portfolio Rebalancing - Tilting Portfolios

Prepping for End of Year Financial Decisions

Jason and Alex start the show by talking about a movie The Social Dilemma, a film first played at the Sundance Film Festival. The movie was created by a group of tech mogul executives and others members of the major social media companies. They discussed how we use social media for IDA as a business, but they are conflicted internally about whether or not social media is a good arena to share content based on how it is destroying everything good in our country right now.The average child has a cell phone at age 9, and they are exposed to YouTube and all major social media sites at such a young age, where their minds and opinions are molded. Jason humbly expressed that we are not proclaimed social media experts, but we are investment experts. He also explains that these platforms are designed to distract and reward distraction and keep us hooked. This is done at the expense of our well-being while collecting as much data as possible. They are then able to sell more adds and more specifically tailored adds to people, which makes the end company very wealthy. Alex remembered that the movie pointed out that there are only two businesses that call their clients “users”, drug dealers and software providers. This is mildly disturbing when you connect the two because they are using us as individuals to sell ads to the end “user”.Jason and Alex talk about the democracy dilemma. Political polarization and divisiveness are a direct result of content on these social media platforms that strongly promote fear, greed and drive further engagement. Jason and Alex tied this to financial media sources and how the truth is boring. They only make money if they can stir up fear and emotions in their listeners or viewers because it causes them to take action. Most of the time, this is not good action, it is poorly timed, and very costly. They talk about how the right way to invest is not meant to be like going to Vegas to get that gambler’s rush, it is meant to be consistent and reliable over periods of time.Jason talks about how there is so much damage being caused by social media because it is further enhancing the political divide that is present in our country. It is so easy to find information and content that promotes conspiracy, outrage and deception, and these platforms have algorithms that continue to feed more information to the users based on their tendencies. This drives more clicks to make more money at our expense. Alex discusses that the original goal of these companies was to connect people and allow people to congregate no matter where they are geographically located.Jason discusses how Wall Street and the major financial media sources are designed to get people engaged negatively, just like social media sources. Markets and how they operate have evolved over time from the barter system to the efficient markets we have today. Those systems are still necessary, but the toxicity surrounding those systems causesmajor mental health problems for people today. They explain how the biggest companies are making tons of money every day by getting investors convinced that they have all the answers, even if it is not the best way to invest. They invite listeners to send their questions to jason@financialdetox.com or call 877-707-8889.In this show you will learn about:- The Social Dilemma- The toxic role of social media in people’s lives- The social media dilemma relating to democracy- The mental health issues associated with social and financial media sources

The Social Dilemma

Show Description: Jason and Alex open the show with the analogy, as one problem goes away, new issues arise. Like a never-ending problem. Jason touches on the election and how people choose to process information. Information such as the current issues in our economy and the issues that we are facing as a society. Alex and Jason cover some of the biggest questions that are being asked by clients during these unprecedented times. Jason comments on clients wanting the firm to recognize that, these times feel different and that we are in a period in the market not like anything previous. Jason and Alex continue with discussing the benefits of having an adviser that provides a strategy and a consistent process that guides them through difficult times. Jason continues with discussing the ideologies of Intelligence Driven Advisers (IDA) the investment firm associated with Financial Detox.The discussion Segway’s into how markets perform during election years and if there are any patterns. Jason provides some historical data on election years and states that, what we do know is, “control what you can and ignore what you can’t”.Alex and Jason continue with a discussion on controllable factors within investing. The discussion goes deeper into factor investing and being cognizant to global macroeconomic themes.   Jason reviews the concept, Financial Detox. Jason correlates toxic foods with toxic thoughts and how a toxic thought process can cause you to make investment blunders, financial mistakes and potentially destroy your long-term investment returns. Jason refers to a comment that Alex made at the beginning of the show, “problems will keep coming back”. From here the discussion goes into looking back at history and all the radical events that seemed very different at the time, but were they really? In the end, are companies going to continue to produce goods and services and are we as consumers going to continue civilization as we know it. Definitively, yes. The show closes with “yes”, there will always be a Three Headed Hydra out there but stay focused, get a financial plan and stay the course. Jason offers to provide listeners with a complimentary investment portfolio analysis/stress test second opinion, and the opportunity to have a draft of their financial plan built out. They also invite clients to reach out for a complimentary initial introduction conversation with Clay Willits to see if there are potential benefits of further tax planning. They invite listeners to send their questions to jason@financialdetox.com or call 877-707-8889. In this show you will learn about:- Election Patterns- Controlling what you can control - Global macroeconomic themes and factor investing- Historical events and the effects that they had on the market

The Three Headed Hydra

In this show, Jason and Alex talk about the importance of integrating and closing the circle of advisers for a client. It is extremely important for a financial adviser to be working with the CPA to collaborate on behalf of the client to make sure their financial lives are maximized. Clayton “Clay Willits” was a guest speaker on the show, and he is IDA’s newest member of the team and leader of IDA Tax. He got his CPA license back in 1984 in CA and has been working in public accounting, tax, and then went back into the private industry as a CFO for several industries. The last 18 years, he has been working with individuals completing their tax returns and assisting with various levels of tax planning. Clay was a board certified flight-instructor.Jason explains that incorporating the tax advice and financial planning together as a one stop shop is so beneficial for our clients. Alex explained how we always bring the CPA in as much as possible even when they are not in house to make sure that the best possible decisions are being made. IDA Tax is the in-house IDA tax division. Jason and Clay explain that this is a powerful proposal to be able to offer a sit-down meeting with both the financial adviser and the CPA in one meeting to maximize the time for the client.Jason, Alex and Clay discuss specific end of the year tax strategies. End of the year is the perfect time for tax planning, especially for business owners that have businesses and business entities such at S-Corps, LLCs, Sole Proprietorships, etc., as they are the individuals that are able to utilize more complex tax planning strategies. Clay explained further that W-2 employees are more limited with their options to save money on taxes. He also stressed the importance of meeting with the CPA in November or December to discuss transactions they may enter into for business purposes such as purchasing a new vehicle or purchasing other capital expenditures to take advantage of bonus depreciation. Jason explains that it is also important for younger individuals making large sums of money to start planning for their retirement now, and there are more complex savings strategies that can be implemented to save much more money on taxes than the traditional 401(k), IRA, or SEP IRA account structures. In the proper situation, a solo 401(k)/profit sharing plan, Cash Balance plan, or Defined Benefit plan can be included, and this could allow clients to save hundreds of thousands of dollars in tax savings over an extended period of time, and also save MUCH more for retirement. These more complex plans must be setup sooner, and the funding doesn’t have to happen by year end. A lot of times this can happen by the time they file their tax return, even if they file an extension.Clay talks about some of the biggest pitfalls for financial advisers in relation to tax planning. One of the biggest mistakes that he has seen is in the timing of realizing capital gains and capital losses. He had a client that sold a piece of real estate for a large gain in one year, but didn’t tell the financial adviser about the transaction, and there were substantial temporary capital losses that could have been realized in the taxable account. Clay emphasized that these losses MUST be realized in the year the gain occurs. This is also known as tax loss harvesting, which this strategy is utilized every day at IDA for our clients.In this show you will learn about:- Introduction to Clayton “Clay” Willits, Lead CPA of IDA Tax- The importance of collaboration between a client’s Financial Adviser and CPA.- Specific strategies for business owners to save money on taxes, and the best time for tax planning.- Some of the biggest pitfalls in tax planning for Financial Advisers and CPAs

Tax Efficiency and Investing

Jason Labrum opens the show with a story about a new prospective client who at the end of 2019 had 2.9M in investable assets drop to 900k within nearly nine months. After looking into what the portfolio was comprised of, is was apparent that the client had been working with a broker dealer who had sold them two highly commissionable products. The products were BDCs (Business Development Corporations) and Non-Traded REITS. A commission to the broker upwards of 15%.Alex Klingensmith adds that at a one-million-dollar investment the commission would be paid to the broker dealer first and the client would start with 850k investment. In addition, and unfortunately for this client, these products did not experience the rebound that the market experienced during that nine-month period.Jason and Alex continue the topic of, Investment Products, a discussion that will help their listeners think about, what is being sold to them and who is selling it. Jason adds that you need to be very wary when buying an upfront commissionable product and ask yourself, “How come there needs to be an upfront commission to sell these products”.The two products that are highlighted in this show are BDCs (Business Development Corporations) and Non-Traded REITS. These two products seem to continue to be associated with lawsuits and bad press.Jason begins the discussion on BDCs with a broad overview of the investment product. Alex adds some personal experiences on BDC products that have been brought to the firm by clients and the unfortunate outcomes (small business loans, liquor licenses, and taxicab licenses).The show continues with Jason and Alex opening a deeper discussion in to BDCs.Alex shares some history on BDCs and a look into The Investment Act of 1940 and the amendments that were made in the 1980s to allow for BDCs. Jason and Alex discuss further the lack of rules around BDCs.Jason shares how broker dealers can up sell clients on all the bells and whistles that become available to the BDC investor, like access to private markets and venture capitalists.Alex adds that catch phrases like, “Private Markets and Venture Capitalist” sound cool to the investor and can make them more interested in buying into the product, making a small investor feel like he can invest like “rich people”.Jason closes with what BDCs typically invest in and the speculative nature of the investment.Jason and Alex bring the discussion back to asking, “Why”. Why can this product advertise potential yields of 8% to 10% when traditional bonds are yielding 2% or 3% maybe 4%? You must go back to one of the fundamental principles of investing. Risk and return are related.Jason and Alex segway into Non-Traded REITS stating that these products are popular and that there are a lot of Non-Traded REITS currently being offered.Jason shares that there is a big well-known San Diego advisor whose whole book of business was built on Non-Traded REITS.Jason goes into describing the mechanics of Non-Traded REITS and the similarities to BDCs. He further describes the difference between buying these products from a Registered Investment Adviser (RIA) and a Broker Dealer. Outlining the commission structures associated with broker dealers, calling this “toxic”.Jason sums up the topic of BDCs and Non-Traded REITS with specific reasons to avoid these products. For example, hidden commissions, lack of regulation and no requirement to disclose financials. Jason and Alex close the show with some straightforward advice, “Do not buy a Non-Traded REIT or BDC from anyone other than a Registered Investment Adviser (RIA)”.In this show you will learn about:- Business Development Corporations (BDC) as a commissioned product- Pros and Cons of BDCs- Non-Traded REITS a commissioned product- Reasons to avoid Non-Traded REITS

Financial Products- What's Best?

Show Description: In this show, Jason and Alex talk about stress testing portfolios and how to invest for the future. This is extremely important given all the uncertainty surrounding potential election results, and the future of our economy. The main goal is to stress test client financial plans and investment strategies to truly achieve financial peace of mind. This allows investors to make good financial decisions by cleansing their financial mindsets to focus on things they can control. Alex discusses that highly contentious elections, civil rights movements, and democracy aren’t new things, but the way that investors and leaders choose to act around those major events is an opportunity to build and improve on experiences from the past.Jason and Alex talk about what a financial plan really is. They define a financial plan as taking all financial information in one’s life and programming it into a very sophisticated software that models out ANY potential scenario. This would include all assets, all liabilities, income sources, taxes, inflation, expenses, all expectations about markets and performance of specific markets, rental real estate specifics, buy/sell business and real estate transactions, etc. Jason explains that the software has the ability to analyze and show the output for ANY potential financial decision, and show the cause and effect relationship between crucial decisions surrounding saving more, spending less, investing more aggressively, retiring at different ages, and insurance coverage just to name a few. Jason compares this to several hundred engineers sitting in a room analyzing a client’s financial situation.Jason explains that it doesn’t matter if someone has hundreds of millions of dollars to invest or five hundred thousand of investable assets, a financial plan should be the cornerstone of any person’s investment strategy. He explains that Monte Carlo analysis is also known as probability analysis, and this involves taking into account hundreds of factors to show what is the probability of success within one’s financial life.Alex explains that one of the number one financial fears is running out of money. The main goal of Monte Carlo analysis is to show the probability of not running out of money, and then good financial decisions can be made based on the proposed outcome. Jason explains a financial plan is run through 1000 random variations and sequences of returns looking back over 40 years of outcomes. If the success ratio is too high, then there are specifics ways for clients to maximize their financial life. Long term goals and objectives and a client’s target rate of return are based heavily on the probability of success.Jason and Alex talk about the Aladdin portfolio analysis tool that has the ability to stress test a client’s portfolio in a wide range of different ways to show what would have happened during historical periods and through potential major economic events/changes in the future.Jason offers to provide listeners with a complimentary second opinion, and the opportunity to have a draft of their financial plan built out. They invite listeners to send their questions to jason@financialdetox.com or call 877-707-8889.In this show you will learn about:- The accurate definition of a comprehensive financial plan- Monte Carlo analysis and investment analysis tools used to stress test a financial plan and investment strategy- How to determine the appropriate investment strategy and target rate of return for a client- The Aladdin analysis tool and its capabilities to show shocks to an investment portfolio

Stress Testing and the Future

New School Factor Investing

In this show Jason and Alex answer questions from listeners. They invite listeners to send their questions to jason@financialdetox.com or call 877-707-8889. The goal of Financial Detox is to provide consumers with access to quality and complimentary financial education.Alex offers sage advice to listeners who have a relationship with a financial advisor: Do not hesitate to ask the genuine questions that are on your mind.He then shares a listener question that has been on many minds: “Considering the upcoming election, what is the plan if things tank?” Jason importantly breaks the question down into 2 parts. First, he educates listeners with the fact that election year outcomes are not correlated to stock market performance. It is impossible to predict how the market is going to perform according to which party in office. Historically the data shows no correlation. Second, the Financial Detox team’s plan is to stick to the long-term financial plan and investment strategy already in place. A common is mistake investors make is changing their investment plan according to the news, events, and hype out there. Alex points out fear and greed naturally, as human beings, cause people to make significant investment mistakes. Jason stresses that investors should take action on a regular basis, as needed, according to an investment philosophy; not in reaction to events. For example, investors should continue to re-balance the amount in each investment according to a target amount.They share a second listener question, which is similar to the first: “Why shouldn’t I make tactical changes to a portfolio?” Dimensional Funds, a respected provider of investment research, uses a metaphor to effectively answer this question. They point out the similarities between making tactical changes in a portfolio and betting on sports; making tactical investment changes in response to news is like betting. Each tactical decision and sports bet take quite a bit of stress, energy and luck; imagine trying to keep repeating that over time. Jason stresses the importance of having a portfolio and an investment philosophy that gets you through good times and bad. Some tactical aspects, such as considering themes like the technology revolution, should be included when creating a portfolio. However, the tactical aspects should not be driven by events; they should be driven by investment philosophy.Jason shares the importance of first creating a financial plan that shows what rate of return need is needed to meet ones’ goals. Only after that is done can an investment strategy be properly created.Alex offers a pressure-free and complimentary video meeting to listeners who are stressed and looking for help in these times of global economic turmoil. Jason cautions that there are huge differences in quality of financial advice; always get second opinions because there are good advisors and bad advisors out there.In this show you will learn about:- Why investors should not change their investment strategy in response to news and events- How election year outcomes are not correlated to stock market performance- Tactical changes that are good for investors to make and which should be avoided- The importance of seeking a second opinion when hiring a professional for financial advice or managing a portfolio on your own.

Financial Detox® Listener Questions

In this show Jason and Alex debunk the common perception that performance of markets is correlated to which political party is in office. They warn against misinformation out there surrounding this topic; investors may make costly mistakes when they make changes to their portfolio based on prediction of election results.They present historical data, since the S&P 500 was created, that show there is no pattern of market growth or decline according to which party is in office. Jason offers to share this Investing During Election Years report with listeners. Interested listeners should email him at jason@financialdetox.com for a complimentary copy of it.Jason and Alex then stress the importance of focusing on what investors can control, amidst the shut-down of the global economy. They offer a complimentary second opinion to any listener who would like advice on their portfolio, including a risk analysis. The Financial Detox team has a world class risk analysis tool.In this show you will learn about:- How performance of markets is not correlated to which political party is in office- Why investors should be invested for the long run and why they should not make changes based on predictions of election results- Why investors should be discerning of information disseminated by the media- The importance of focusing on what can be controlled in a portfolio amidst the global economic shut down

Long Term Investing Amidst the Election

In this show Jason and Alex educate consumers on how to avoid the common pitfalls of annuities, and the uncommon reasons why one could be an effective part of a portfolio.They begin by warning listeners that most people who sell annuities are highly compensated for selling them, via commissions paid by the consumer. Thus, they prioritize selling them over other financial solutions. Jason offers to listeners free education about annuities via a phone conversation. Listeners can call the Financial Detox team for the unfiltered and unbiased truth about annuities, as they are full-time fiduciaries. They do not sell many annuities, but they do occasionally recommend them to clients when they are appropriate. In the rare case they do recommend an annuity, they do not allow their advisers to take large compensation upfront. Rather, they allow them to take small compensation up front and level it over time so there are no biases to recommend certain products. He also lets listeners know they can learn the unbiased truth about annuities from his complimentary book, Financial Detox, which can be obtained by emailing him at jason@financialdetox.com.Jason warns listeners that seeking advice on or signing up for an annuity from a person who is not a full-time fiduciary should be avoided. Annuity Salespeople who are not full-time fiduciaries typically claim, to the consumers they sell annuities to, that the insurance company pays them. They typically mislead consumers by not truthfully disclosing how they are compensated.Alex then presents pros and cons of annuities, and how their features can be very complicated.They then discuss whether investors should insure their portfolios just as they would insure their cars or homes. Also, whether returns from annuities can be large enough to surpass taxes, inflation, and fees. They come back to their stead- fast principal that annuities do not make sense for most people. They only make sense for investors who truly can’t stomach volatility and can accept the cons, such as dismal returns.Jason ends the show by reminding listeners that the guiding principal for all investors should be to first build a customized financial plan. He stresses the importance of seeking advice from full time fiduciary advisers at businesses who are Registered Investment Advisers, who provide advice on a personal basis. In this show you will learn about:- The common pitfalls of annuities- The uncommon reasons why an annuity could be an effective part of an investors’ portfolio - Pros and cons of annuities- When seeking financial advice, why it is important to seek advice from full time fiduciaries at businesses who are Registered Investment Advisers 

The Good the Bad and the Ugly About Annuities

Jason and Alex commiserate with the audience on the resurgence of COVID-19 cases across the country. In a world that seems to be changing rapidly they bring the conversation back to focusing on what we can control, taxes and insurance being the focus of today’s show. They start by addressing insurance because many investors are asking about principal protection and alternative asset classes. While annuities do provide principal protection and guaranteed income for life, they explore the various issues that surround them. Jason reminds listeners that one of the things that makes him most frustrated with annuities is the people that sell them and how they fail to disclose their compensation. They also tend to not fully explain how investors miss out on the power of the markets and forego liquidity of their money by purchasing annuities. Alex reminds listeners of his learning experience being in the annuity only industry 15 years ago and how important it is to have a process based financial planning approach to identify whether an annuity makes sense or not. If it does, the financial plan is so helpful in making the initial recommendation and in reinforcing the decision when reviewing and monitoring the plan over time. This process is missing with many annuity salespeople which is highly problematic. The show shifts to the CARES Act next. Jason and Alex speak about the provision where 2020 Required Minimum Distributions, or RMD, has been waived. This presents a significant opportunity for listeners who are 72 or older and have RMD. You do not have to take RMD this year. If you already took it you can roller it back into your IRA. You can also convert the amount into a Roth IRA if you are ok with the tax. Unfortunately, the devil is in the details with IRAs and the CARES Act. The Act also changed Inherited IRAs by shortening the length of RMDs for Inherited IRAs to 10 years. This is a far cry from the previous term of the beneficiary’s life expectancy, which in some cases could be 50 years or more. Jason and Alex go on to explore these tax planning pros and cons and the need for many to see if there are any opportunities to do some tax planning. In this show you will learn about: -          The pros and cons of annuities -          The importance of using a financial planning process to determine if you could benefit from an annuity or an alternative investment -          Tax planning strategies under the CARES Act, especially for those over 72 years old -          Whether 2020 is the year to do a Roth conversion 

The Pros, Cons and How to Implement An Annuity into Your Portfolio & Tax Planning Under the CARES Act

In this show Jason and Alex provide listeners with a high-level process for building an optimal portfolio. They educate listeners on the importance of understanding and applying behavioral science and factors to this process.Jason and Alex begin by sharing where their educational videos for consumers can be found: on the financial detox webpage: https://www.idawealth.com/learn/the-financial-detox-show/ and on the IDA’s You Tube page: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC_uyRpMCu6GIpq_YiwL_Ibw.They bring to light how important discipline is to investor success. Success in investing requires having a disciplined investment philosophy, and continuously working to improve it. Understanding behavioral finance and factors are vital to this.Jason and Alex discuss some types of behavioral mistakes investors typically make. They highlight regret, due to the importance of freeing investors lives of unnecessary stress and investment mistakes. They discuss how behavioral finance shows people should control the things they can and ignore the things they can’t control.They then educate listeners on what factors are, and share examples of types of factors. Successful investors need to determine which factors have persistent higher probabilities of having better performance, based on long term historical data. Jason shares with listeners that factor index investing is now offered to investors. Traditional index investing is weighted by capitalization (size of business). Now factor investing is available to give investors low cost, tax efficient exposure to stocks with minimum volatility.Jason then brings the discussion back to the vital principal of starting with a financial plan before building a portfolio of investments. First the rate of return needed for a person’s goals need to be determined through a comprehensive financial plan. Only then can the optimal investment portfolio be built to achieve those goals.Alex points out there is an often overlooked easier and more successful way to manage investments through crises: prepare for the worst-case scenario before it happens. It is important to stress test financial plans ahead of crises to have peace of mind throughout the crises. He also reminds listeners tokeep in mind, during crises, that not all publicly traded companies will cease to exist at the same time, and if they do, then we all have much greater problems.They close the show by offering listeners a financial plan and comprehensive risk analysis of their investments, both complimentary. IDA has access to a top-quality risk analysis tool. It deconstructs risk in portfolios, looking at risks to portfolios such as pandemics, inflation, etc.In this show you will learn about:- The importance of understanding and applying behavioral science and factors to investment management- Examples of behavioral mistakes investors are prone to making- How factor index investing is now available to investors- Examples of factors in investing- The importance of stress testing financial plans

The Evolution of Factor Investing

Jason and Alex invite special guest Scott Palka to the show, to help small business owners amidst the “new normal” of continuous change. They announce that IDA is now filming all shows, to provide an additional educational resource to consumers.Jason begins the show by introducing Scott, jedi master of helping business owners financially plan. He is the creator of an innovative model that helps small business owners with high level financial planning. This simple, short term projection tool provides a range of estimates for different scenarios, to help business owners make better decisions.Jason points out how difficult it is to be a successful investor without a quality financial plan, and the consequences are even more severe for business owners who lack a proper financial plan.Scott shares a common mistake he has seen small business owners make in these times – focusing on how to accomplish PPP forgiveness, at the expense of focusing on what is going to get the business through the crisis into next year. The modeling tool helps business owners run a variety of scenarios to see what they need to do to ensure viability of the business going forward. He cautions business owners to do this when they have money so they can make adjustments and get to the recovery from this crisis; don’t wait until money has run out to find out the business isn’t working.Jason points out how great the correlation is to financial planning for people’s life savings – projections and scenarios are vital to run for success.Scott brings to light how business owners can get help with financial planning if they do not have a CFO. He offers to share his “do it yourself” modeling spreadsheet and his webinar that shows how to use it, with listeners. Please contact IDA via the "contact us" form in this post if you would like to receive these. He specifies it is designed for business leaders to use themselves to determine directional strategy and model potential scenarios. It is not for sending to financial professionals to use. Scott advises business owners look at the big picture first, then have accounting professionals drill down for more detail.Scott then shares a real-life example of how his model helped a local restaurant create a plan for how to get through the crisis this year.They close the show by sharing the important fact that financial planning helps business owners sleep better at night amidst the new normal of continuous change. Agile businesses will not only survive but thrive. Alex stresses the importance of optimism about the future amidst the different challenges people face from the pandemic.In this show you will learn about:- How business owners can financially plan for different scenarios amidst the new normal of continuous change to survive the crisis and thrive- What types of financial planning business leaders should do for themselves, and what types should be outsourced to accounting professionals.- Some common mistakes small business owners are making and the importance of focusing on financial planning to get a business through the crisis rather than how to get their PPP loan forgiven.- A modeling spreadsheet Scott built (complimentary to listeners), and how it can be used to help small business owners survive and thrive- How running projections and scenarios in financial planning are vital to both personal and business financial success

Planning for Small Business Owners Amidst the New Normal of Continuous Change - with special guest Scott Palka, CPA, MBA, CFA

Welcome to the Financial Detox® Show—a show that’s dedicated to helping you retire with confidence. Your host, Jason Labrum is a Certified Financial Planner and Founder of Intelligence Driven Advisers. For over 20 years, he’s shown people how to steer clear of toxic advice, achieve financial peace of mind, and manage their wealth for maximum impact—and now, he wants to empower YOU to do the same! Join Jason and his co-host Alex Klingensmith every other week, as they simplify the complex, share industry secrets, and provide proven strategies that will take YOU from financial insecurity to financial independence. Topics will cover retirement planning, financial planning, estate planning, tax saving strategies, investment management, 401K, alternative investments, stocks, bonds, portfolio allocation, business strategies, business advice, and much more.

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Financial Detox® Show

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