By: David HuntercloseAuthor: David Hunter Name: David Hunter
Member: Member Paladin
Quality Rating:
Email: davidhunter@horizonswealth.com
Site: http://paladinregistry.com/external/beaninformedinvestor/advisor_profile.php?advisor_id=2886
About: David Hunter has over seven and a half years of fee-only advisory experience. He has served as the primary advisor and office manager for North and South Carolina. He has a BSBA in Finance (Financial Planning) from Western Carolina University, where he currently serves on the Finance Advisory Board. David attended WCU on a full athletic scholarship to play quarterback for the Catamounts. He earned his CFP® certification in July of 2004. David was married in July 2002, to Misty, who is an English teacher employed with Buncombe County Schools. They had their first child, Sadie, in September 2008. David is an outgoing individual and enjoys working with people. What he enjoys most about Horizons Wealth Management is the true “team” atmosphere, as well, as building lasting relationships with clients. David resides in Western North Carolina where he was born and raised. He enjoys spending time with family and friends, reading mystery novels, and participating in sports such as golf, basketball and other physical fitness activities. David is a loyal football fan and frequently attends high school, college, and professional ballgames.See Authors Posts (5) | December 16, 2009

With the markets up and down this year you may have investments that are worth less today than when you bought them. You have the opportunity to realizeť those losses which can increase your tax deductions. There are limits to how much you can use each year, so ask your CPA or consult a fee-only advisor.

By: David HuntercloseAuthor: David Hunter Name: David Hunter
Member: Member Paladin
Quality Rating:
Email: davidhunter@horizonswealth.com
Site: http://paladinregistry.com/external/beaninformedinvestor/advisor_profile.php?advisor_id=2886
About: David Hunter has over seven and a half years of fee-only advisory experience. He has served as the primary advisor and office manager for North and South Carolina. He has a BSBA in Finance (Financial Planning) from Western Carolina University, where he currently serves on the Finance Advisory Board. David attended WCU on a full athletic scholarship to play quarterback for the Catamounts. He earned his CFP® certification in July of 2004. David was married in July 2002, to Misty, who is an English teacher employed with Buncombe County Schools. They had their first child, Sadie, in September 2008. David is an outgoing individual and enjoys working with people. What he enjoys most about Horizons Wealth Management is the true “team” atmosphere, as well, as building lasting relationships with clients. David resides in Western North Carolina where he was born and raised. He enjoys spending time with family and friends, reading mystery novels, and participating in sports such as golf, basketball and other physical fitness activities. David is a loyal football fan and frequently attends high school, college, and professional ballgames.See Authors Posts (5) | October 15, 2009

NO. It was a nice dream though. Insurance companies are for profit businesses; always have been and always will be. However, there are a few steps you can take to put yourself ahead:

- Discipline yourself to have an adequate emergency fund.
- Raise your deductibles to lower premiums. (Health, Auto, Home owners) Notice I didn€™t say lower coverage!
- Get Term Life insurance as opposed to Whole Life. Generally, this is a better option if you can live without the forced savings of Whole Life insurance.

Once you have taken these steps you can calculate the difference between your old out-of-pocket premiums and the new ones. Make yourself invest or save that amount. Do NOT spend it! You already know you do not need it; you have been paying it for years and haven€™t missed it. Over time you will see savings growing consistently. Consider it your reward for exercising personal financial discipline.

By: David HuntercloseAuthor: David Hunter Name: David Hunter
Member: Member Paladin
Quality Rating:
Email: davidhunter@horizonswealth.com
Site: http://paladinregistry.com/external/beaninformedinvestor/advisor_profile.php?advisor_id=2886
About: David Hunter has over seven and a half years of fee-only advisory experience. He has served as the primary advisor and office manager for North and South Carolina. He has a BSBA in Finance (Financial Planning) from Western Carolina University, where he currently serves on the Finance Advisory Board. David attended WCU on a full athletic scholarship to play quarterback for the Catamounts. He earned his CFP® certification in July of 2004. David was married in July 2002, to Misty, who is an English teacher employed with Buncombe County Schools. They had their first child, Sadie, in September 2008. David is an outgoing individual and enjoys working with people. What he enjoys most about Horizons Wealth Management is the true “team” atmosphere, as well, as building lasting relationships with clients. David resides in Western North Carolina where he was born and raised. He enjoys spending time with family and friends, reading mystery novels, and participating in sports such as golf, basketball and other physical fitness activities. David is a loyal football fan and frequently attends high school, college, and professional ballgames.See Authors Posts (5) | September 1, 2009

There may be a million different opinions about this very subject. There may also be a million right answers to this age old question. The problem is that you will not know exactly whether pre tax retirement savings are better than tax deferred, until you retire. Therefore, I feel that tax diversification is the best approach. First, you always need to max out company matching on 401ks. Then you need to mix in some Roth savings if you are eligible. During your retirement years this will allow you to see what the tax rates are before deciding where to take your distributions. You essentially get to buy your time, wait, see and then react. It definitely isn’t the gamblers move but it will allow you to play the ever changing income tax tables.

By: David HuntercloseAuthor: David Hunter Name: David Hunter
Member: Member Paladin
Quality Rating:
Email: davidhunter@horizonswealth.com
Site: http://paladinregistry.com/external/beaninformedinvestor/advisor_profile.php?advisor_id=2886
About: David Hunter has over seven and a half years of fee-only advisory experience. He has served as the primary advisor and office manager for North and South Carolina. He has a BSBA in Finance (Financial Planning) from Western Carolina University, where he currently serves on the Finance Advisory Board. David attended WCU on a full athletic scholarship to play quarterback for the Catamounts. He earned his CFP® certification in July of 2004. David was married in July 2002, to Misty, who is an English teacher employed with Buncombe County Schools. They had their first child, Sadie, in September 2008. David is an outgoing individual and enjoys working with people. What he enjoys most about Horizons Wealth Management is the true “team” atmosphere, as well, as building lasting relationships with clients. David resides in Western North Carolina where he was born and raised. He enjoys spending time with family and friends, reading mystery novels, and participating in sports such as golf, basketball and other physical fitness activities. David is a loyal football fan and frequently attends high school, college, and professional ballgames.See Authors Posts (5) | June 24, 2009

I recently had a newspaper clipping mailed to me by a client.  It was an advertisement for a high yielding CD, safe, FDIC insured, etc…

After reviewing the "fine print," we found that it was an introductory offer of 5% for 3 months and no mention of the rates after that.  There was a $10,000 maximum limit as well.  We also found that you could only get a CD after a financial meeting with one of this annuity company’s sales associates! 

After calculating the costs to the company, we found that it was cheaper for them to pay this interest short-term than to pay for a dinner presentation, workshop, and marketing services.  It was just another way of paying to get clients in front of their sales associates.  Similar to the free vacation/time share selling.

Be aware of any offer that has strings attached like this one.  Sometimes that dangling carrot is there for a reason and it is not for your benefit.  It could land you in a less than favorable situation that is difficult to get out of.

By: David HuntercloseAuthor: David Hunter Name: David Hunter
Member: Member Paladin
Quality Rating:
Email: davidhunter@horizonswealth.com
Site: http://paladinregistry.com/external/beaninformedinvestor/advisor_profile.php?advisor_id=2886
About: David Hunter has over seven and a half years of fee-only advisory experience. He has served as the primary advisor and office manager for North and South Carolina. He has a BSBA in Finance (Financial Planning) from Western Carolina University, where he currently serves on the Finance Advisory Board. David attended WCU on a full athletic scholarship to play quarterback for the Catamounts. He earned his CFP® certification in July of 2004. David was married in July 2002, to Misty, who is an English teacher employed with Buncombe County Schools. They had their first child, Sadie, in September 2008. David is an outgoing individual and enjoys working with people. What he enjoys most about Horizons Wealth Management is the true “team” atmosphere, as well, as building lasting relationships with clients. David resides in Western North Carolina where he was born and raised. He enjoys spending time with family and friends, reading mystery novels, and participating in sports such as golf, basketball and other physical fitness activities. David is a loyal football fan and frequently attends high school, college, and professional ballgames.See Authors Posts (5) | May 27, 2009

For many of us we used a term over and over without really understanding its meaning. ?Con Man, it sounds simple enough, everyone understands a Con Man will make off with your cash or valuable possessions. ?But did you know that Con is short for Confidence Man. ?By definition it?s; a swindler who exploits the confidence of his victim.

The most recent and high profile con man in history; Bernard Madoff was recently exposed for defrauding billions of dollars from trusting friends, colleagues, and investors. ?What you may not know is why or how it worked. ?At its core root the Madoff scandal preyed on the confidence that people had in Madoff himself, to outperform the markets with their investments. ?With years of data to build up that confidence, why not? ?What the eyes see and ears hear the mind believes; because we want to believe. ?

We are all human after all, and human nature enables us to be taken by con men. ?They understand that deep down you want to believe that they are good and honest folks that have found the secret to riches that no one has ever before found. ?Now looking at it like that you would say that it would be impossible. ?Yet, when presented in a professional manner you start to wonder what if this is true?

Below are some key words to be aware of that could mean trouble.

• CASH ONLY- this can only lead to bad things for you, your family and your savings.
• HIGHLY SECRET-this day in age, the only secrets are the ones that can lose you your money or get you in trouble with the law.
• GET RICH QUICK- Listen carefully, there is no such thing without the opposite risk of get poor quicker.
• SOMETHING FOR NOTHING- if it sounds too good to be true?. need I say more.
• MUST MOVE QUICKLY of TODAY ONLY- this indicates they don?t want you to come to your senses.

One good way to avoid being swindled by any Con Man is to consult other professionals for advice. ?If there is a con at work, they will help you find the truth amongst the smoke and mirrors. ?They will also provide an additional layer of common sense to your situation, while injecting professional expertise. This is your best chance of improving your financial situation.