Blog

Your Cryptocurrency Tax Guide

2023-05-11T15:13:14-04:00February 7th, 2022|Blog, Taxes|

Your Cryptocurrency Tax Guide By: Stacey Nickens Bitcoin investing has become increasingly popular over the past year. In December 2021, Grayscale Investors found that more than half of the current Bitcoin investors had begun investing in Bitcoin during the previous 12 months. Like many others, you may find cryptocurrencies to be an intriguing new [...]

9″Above-the-Line” Deductions for Your 2021 Return

2023-05-11T15:14:54-04:00February 4th, 2022|Blog, Taxes|

9"Above-the-Line" Deductions for Your 2021 Return By: Stacey Nickens Taxpayers often ask me about deducting mortgage interest payments or medical expenses. However, many taxpayers do not claim these popular deductions because it is more beneficial for them to take the standard deduction. On 2021 returns, the standard deduction is $12,550 for single filers and [...]

Do I Pay Off My Mortgage or Invest?

2023-05-11T15:15:10-04:00February 4th, 2022|Blog, Financial Planning, Investments|

Do I Pay Off My Mortgage or Invest? By: Stacey Nickens Perhaps you came into an inheritance or a bonus recently. Perhaps you have extra money sitting in your bank savings account. Either way, with extra cash on hand, you may ask yourself: Should I use this money to pay off my mortgage, or [...]

2022 Market and Economic Outlook

2023-05-11T15:15:20-04:00February 4th, 2022|Blog, Investments|

2022 Market and Economic Outlook By: Stacey Nickens As of close on January 27, the Dow Jones was down 6%, the S&P 500 was down 9.2%, and the Nasdaq was down 14.7%. Such steep losses have many investors wringing their hands. Is this the beginning of a persistent market downturn? What will happen to [...]

15 Financial Goals for 2022

2023-05-11T15:15:41-04:00February 4th, 2022|Blog, Financial Planning|

15 Financial Goals for 2022 By: Stacey Nickens As 2022 dawned, the Elm3 team was enjoying time with family, preparing for tax season, and setting our individual financial goals. Writing down your goals is immensely helpful in driving success; however, only about a third of people write down their aspirations, according to Schwab’s Modern Wealth [...]

Tax Tip: Save Important Child Tax Credit and Stimulus Letters

2023-05-11T15:16:26-04:00February 4th, 2022|Blog, Taxes|

Tax Tip: Save Important Child Tax Credit and Stimulus Letters By: Stacey Nickens In 2021, many eligible taxpayers received advanced payments of their child tax credit as well as stimulus payments. The IRS has accordingly begun sending out letters to those taxpayers in order to help them document the size of their payments. You [...]

3 Resolutions for the Nervous Investor

2023-05-11T15:16:35-04:00February 4th, 2022|Blog, Investments|

3 Resolutions for the Nervous Investor By: Stacey Nickens The stock market has had a rocky start to 2022. Shedding points like some of us are trying to shed weight, the S&P 500 was down nearly 2% year-to-date, as of close on Friday, January 7. The spread of Omicron, potential Fed rate hikes, and [...]

Choosing the “Best Fit” Pension Plan for You

2023-05-11T15:17:00-04:00December 13th, 2021|Blog, Financial Planning, Retirement|

Choosing the "Best Fit" Pension Plan for You By: Stacey Nickens American Express was the first company to offer pensions to their long-term employees. Beginning in 1875, employees who served the company for more than 20 years had access to half of their annual salary upon retirement. While pensions expanded in popularity during the [...]