Opinion News from Financial Planning

Deals can falter when firm owners misjudge what it costs to replace themselves.

Regulators are stressing fiduciary and disclosure obligations for advisory firms. Adding human oversight to AI outputs is often the answer.

Smart advisors are using time gifted by AI efficiencies to recruit new clients and boost AUM, not improve their golf game, warns Ric Edelman.

Marketing materials rife with rote industry clichés can undercut an advisor's best pitch to prospects — their authentic voice.

The difference between bleeding a third of gains to taxes and being able to keep compounding isn't luck or a secret loophole. It's structure.

The OZ tax benefit for capital gains will still apply in 2027, but the original rule has an advantage worth weighing.

Young financial planners weaned on sports betting and prediction markets must lose their quick-reward mindset to build long-term financial plans, says a professor at Rutgers Business School.

The case for active bond management is compelling, given increased market volatility and persistent economic uncertainty, argues the president of Toews Asset Management.

Beyond numbers, data and spreadsheets lies the real value of financial planning: building human connection to help clients reach their goals.

The rise of humanoid robots as home-care assistants will rewrite retirement budgets. Forward-thinking advisors who understand the coming shift will be well-positioned to help clients.

Where do automated workflows end and advisor-owned outcomes begin? RIAs need to get the answer in writing before their tech stack goes live.

An overlooked section lets defined contribution plan participants use funds to pay LTC premiums without early-withdrawal penalties.

In vitro fertilization, sperm donation and other reproductive techniques can lead to legal and financial risk. Here's how to help clients avoid exposure.

Which private investments will generate income and protect capital after liquidity dries up? Financial advisors can look to fund managers to provide important clues.

If an advisor's tax offerings aren't visible to AI tools like ChatGPT and Perplexity, they effectively don't exist for today's prospective clients.

RIA deals can falter at the finish line if the acquiring advisor fails to think about financing at the start.

If you have high-net-worth clients with capital gains, retire the old playbook for qualified opportunity zones. The program is now a recurring planning regime.

Blind trust in AI tools can be a one-way ticket to a fiduciary crisis. Here's how to build a verification process that protects your clients and your firm.

As the RIA industry's own declaration of independence turns 86, its underpinnings have never been at greater risk, writes fiduciary maven Knut Rostad.

High-earning millennials and Gen-Zers now have two clearcut ways to pay down student debt — but with clarity comes a smaller margin of error.