Finances
Supreme Court Strikes Down State’s Double Taxation
On May 18, 2015, the United States Supreme Court declared a provision of Maryland’s State Income Tax unconstitutional as discriminatory against interstate commerce, and thereby in violation of Article I, Section 8 of the United States Constitution. The case is Comptroller v. Wynne. The specific and technical issue is that Maryland’s personal income tax has […]
What Does Oatmeal and Giving Have to Do With Each Other?
The next time you’re in the cereal isle at your local grocery store I want you to think of Henry Parsons Crowell. Mr. Crowell has been a source of inspiration to me. While he faced many difficulties in his life his focus was on what truly matters. He endured the early loss of his father, […]
What is the Value of My Business?
What is the value of my business? That’s the question every business owner wonders from time to time. But the correct answer varies depending on the purpose of the appraisal. Different rules and “standards of value” may apply in different circumstances. In the United States, the most widely recognized and accepted standard of value is […]
A Review of the Financial Markets in 2014 —Grading Bob Doll’s “Ten Predictions”
In January of each year, Bob Doll, the Chief Equity Strategist at Nuveen Asset Management (and the Keynote Speaker for the 2015 CPN Conference) makes his “Ten Predictions” for the coming year. With the year coming to a close, we can look back at 2014 Financial Performance through the lens of Mr. Doll’s predictions: 1. […]
“Shark Tank” and Church Financing
Shark Tank, a show about billionaire investors who either turn away or fight over investing in hopeful entrepreneurs, can teach us a lot about capital campaigns, and how capital campaigns impact a church’s ability to qualify for financing. If you have watched the show, you have probably noticed that there are two types of entrepreneurs, […]
Staying Solvent, Staying Liquid: “The Micawber Principle”
“Annual income twenty pounds, annual expenditure nineteen [pounds] nineteen [shillings] and six [pence], result happiness. Annual income twenty pounds, annual expenditure twenty pounds ought and six, result misery.” So opined Wilkins Micawber in Charles Dickens great novel David Copperfield. Mr. Micawber thus announced a principle of personal and business finance taught by professors, preached by […]
The Five Year Bull Market and Smart Investing
The stock market recently celebrated the fifth year of growth since the start of the current bull market. Looking back, there are clear lessons for intelligent investors. On March 9, 2009, the financial news was universally bad. The Standard & Poor’s 500 stock index had fallen 57% from its 2007 peak; headlines in the Wall […]
National Survey of Economic Freedom
The Fraser Institute released its annual report, Economic Freedom of North America, on December 12, 2013. The report measures the impact government restrictions have on economic freedom in the United States and Canada, on a state by state (and province by province) basis. The study ranks the states from those with the greatest economic freedom […]
Charitable Giving: the Barometer of a Growing Economy
Charitable giving is growing at a healthy pace, a sign that Americans are a little more confident about the economy and their own finances. Individuals, corporations and foundations donated $316.2 billion to charitable causes in 2012, a 3.5 percent increase over 2011, according to the annual Giving USA study, which is conducted by the Giving […]
IRS Changes “Use or Lose Rules” for Health FSAs
Flexible spending arrangements (FSAs) are popular benefits offered by many employers as part of their employee’s health-care package. The Internal Revenue Service has issued Notice 2013-71, which modifies the current “use it or lose it” rules that restrict the use of these accounts, which is move which benefits both employers and employees. FSAs are accounts […]
