Financial reporting

The term "financial planning" covers a lot of area. On the high end, it can mean managing millions of dollars in assets, and continuously analyzing the results, yields and needs to determine the best allocation of capital.Financial planning also refers to the accountant or tax preparer who sees or hears from a client once a year, and uses the annual tax preparation appointment as a way of offering planning advice as well.

Edward A. Weinstein of New York will receive the New York State Society of CPAs’ Distinguished Service Award.

If you’re like most Americans, debt is a way of life, says Jason Rich. So what separates the rich from the poor? He claims that the wealthy use debt to improve their financial situation -- something he calls “Smart Debt” -- and the poor use debt for instant gratification by which they just keep getting deeper in the hole.Rich is a bestselling author with some 30 books to his credit, including the Wall Street Journal bestseller, "The Unofficial Guide to Starting a Business Online," and, "Job Hunting for the Utterly Confused." He has a new book on the market called "Smart Debt" (Entrepreneur Press), that offers strategies to avoid wasting money on fees and interests as a result of credit cards.

There is no question that most people appear quite serious about preparing an estate plan that can get passed along to future generations. The intention is all there but too many people still seem to find ways to mess it up entirely.

You hear over and over again that your money has to outlive you, even for an hour. When I talk to friends and family about various financial planning aspects, the most feared one is exactly that...outliving money.There is this woman, age 91, that I know. She is a widow, in relatively good health, has a house that is fully paid (no mortgage), has a Social Security check that comes in each month for some $1,800 and a small pension amount from a prior job of about $110 a month. She buys very little food because she goes to a senior center almost every day and they load her up on free food.

Sage Software has unveiled the latest version of Sage Fundraising 100, its donor relationship management system for midsized and large nonprofit organizations.

The Government Accountability Office recently released a report on detailing some of the conclusions gleaned from a recent forum on engaging and retaining older workers.

Everybody knows that taxes are a drag on performance, but I am constantly surprised at the number of investors who blithely pay taxes each year on their investment earnings without considering the impact on accumulation or the alternative strategies that they could employ.It's never a good idea to let the tail wag the dog, of course - a rational investor shouldn't seek tax avoidance, or tax minimization per se. But it makes sense to pursue the highest after-tax return.

ONLY 51% READY FOR FISCAL CRISISResults from the fourth annual "financial fitness" survey conducted by Quicken revealed that only 51 percent of consumers were prepared for a financial emergency or had an emergency fund in the event of accident or illness.

Investment research firm Morningstar Inc. has entered into an agreement to acquire Standard and Poor’s mutual fund data business for $55 million in cash.

For most of my life, I have been a fairly liberal, loose-swinging person. I generally went against the mainstream and was comfortable seeking my own level and being relatively nonconformist. It served me quite well career wise.

Raymond James Financial will pay $2.75 million to a brokerage firm regulator for poor supervision of its more than 1,100 branch managers who manage their own offices.

The Connecticut Society of CPAs is very, very good at disseminating specific financial planning and tax tips not only to CPAs but also to the general public. Some of those recently caught my eye as being particularly easy to understand and right to the point.The society sent out a notice on its Web site about how the public could get their money matters in order after popping champagne corks, tossing confetti, and making New Year’s resolutions.

Retirement is the No. 1 personal financial planning concern, regardless of age, according to an informal survey at the American Institute of CPAs’ 2007 Personal Financial Planning Conference.The AICPA said that it was a surprised to see that retirement planning is a major concern for career builders -- classified as those between the ages of 25 and 34 -- who also have the seemingly more immediate pressures of education, home buying and debt management following close behind.

Kintera Inc. has unveiled its first software as a service fund accounting system for nonprofits.

Mutual funds have something for everyone - at least Michelle Smith of the Mutual Fund Education Alliance thinks so."The industry has adjusted to the public's demand for choice," said Smith, who is managing director of the alliance, a nonprofit association that provides education to investors on mutual funds. "The public wants investment options, simplicity, low cost. They want help and advice and, in many cases, they want somebody to make it as simple for them as possible. It's a complete cafeteria of options."

NASD RULES AGAINST AMERIPRISEAn NASD arbitration panel ordered an Ameriprise Financial Inc. subsidiary to pay out as much as $9.3 million to three former pilots for American Airlines who charged that a broker for the financial services' subsidiary, Securities America, squandered their retirement savings on mutual funds that contained high fees and trading costs.

A ballooning number of corruption scandals at non-profits may result in more NFPs adopting tighter policies and procedures according to global CPA and business advisory firm Grant Thornton.

There is this guy I see on the train Monday to Friday going to work. He must weigh at least 450 pounds, give or take a kilo. Where do you think he works? No, change that, what kind of store do you think he owns? You’re right. It’s a sandwich/pastry shop.Now plunking a fellow like that down into handling food all day doesn’t seem very rational but let’s look at it from the other end of the telescope. I haven’t decided yet what this has to do with financial planning but it certainly will have something to do with wealth accumulation. Besides, my wife tells me my columns are getting boring because they’re all about the same subjects: financial planning, estate planning, retirement planning. Sorry, that’s what I do.

Companies don’t believe broad-based tax reform is coming anytime soon, though they do think that the change of control in Congress will have a significant impact on tax policy, according to a survey conducted by a Washington law firm.