Financial Opportunities During the Coronavirus Crisis

Making smart decisions in times of panic may not be easy, but for those who can keep a cool head and follow a plan, there are some calculated steps you can take towards growing your wealth despite the situation. Now, and for generations to come.
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The headlines over the past months have been riddled with two serious threats to the health and well-being of people across the U.S. The first and obvious threat is the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak. The other obvious danger is the stock market, which entered bear market territory for the first time in 11 years.

Bob Michaels is extremely passionate about providing the best possible legal experience for his clients, and focuses his practice on elder law, estate planning, business, and real estate matters. Bob has been able to provide piece of mind and a solid foundation to many folks in the Puget Sound area over the years and wants to provide resources and relevant information whenever he can. For more information on how Bob can help your loved ones through these troubling times, contact Bob to schedule a FREE consultation.

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In the world of competitive car racing, they say that races are won and lost in the curves. Similarly, in the world of investing, success is driven (or stalled) in times like these, based on your actions and, inactions. When panic strikes the world like it has recently, it can cause a sudden “curve” in the market — naturally causing added stress and fear for everyone, inhibiting the ability to make sound and opportunistic financial decisions.

However, there are some wise decisions that can be made in a bear market. As Warren Buffet says, “You should be fearful when others are greedy and greedy when others are fearful.” If you sell now, you are selling at a low point. Now should be the time to hold the course and stick to a well-defined financial and investment plan that is tailored to your particular circumstance.

The current financial climate offers some opportunities that can help you grow wealth for generations to come. Here are a few examples:

Roth Conversions
This can be a great time for Roth IRA conversions, especially for intragenerational family wealth transfer strategies. Traditional or rollover IRAs have likely declined in value if they were broadly invested in the equity markets. In this case, it may make sense to discuss converting some or all of your IRA into a Roth IRA. Those who make this change will recognize income tax on the amount converted, which is lower due to recent declines. Plus, any recovery in the value of the account is now tax free in a Roth IRA.

The Bank of Mom and Pop: The Benefits Afforded by Intrafamily Lending
Roth IRAs are not subject to future required minimum distributions (RMDs) and may be passed down to the future generations for additional tax-free growth. It’s important to note that under the SECURE Act, non-spouse IRA beneficiaries are no longer able to “stretch” RMDs from an inherited account over their lifetime. Instead, all funds from an inherited IRA generally must be distributed to non-spouse beneficiaries within 10 years of the IRA owner's death.

Refinancing Debt
The low interest rate environment has created a great opportunity to refinance existing long-term debt or intra-family loans and potentially increase principal amount of an intra-family loan for a greater family generational wealth transfer opportunity at these suppressed values. Lowering the cost of borrowing, frees up cash flow for spending or other saving/investing purposes. Additionally, lowering the cost of intra-family loans allows more money to get to the family members borrowing the money, thus getting more money into their hands vs. yours.

Execute Stock Options
Executives with non-qualified stock options should strongly consider executing those options today to reduce future tax bills. Executing the options at a lower price for people intending to hold their shares lowers the amount of tax upfront. Future growth will be at capital gains rates vs. ordinary income rates. This is ideal for employees who intend to hold their company’s stock over a longer period of time after they exercise their options. Clearly, holding too much of one stock carries its own risk, but certain companies require their employees to own a certain percentage of the stock.

For wealthy investors, there are a multitude of other opportunities that, based upon your own situation, could be relevant in building wealth. With a well-constructed plan that is tailored to your unique circumstances, you can turn negative market events like the ones seen today into positive opportunities.

Tune Out the Noise
One of the biggest hurdles to both sound and opportunistic financial decisions is the financial media distractions. The proliferation of financial news that constantly barrages the public with the latest ‘shocking developments’ can be a contributor to the speed at which bear markets accelerate. Only a few months ago we were at all-time high markets, with strong earnings and a healthy financial system. Since then, we have experienced the fastest decline ever into bear market territory.

The relative speed of these markets, fueled by panic spread over the airwaves and in social media feeds, makes it even more challenging to make sound financial decisions or to pull the trigger on the opportunistic ones.

In times like these, we need to focus on what we can control to mitigate the threats posed to both our health and our wealth and rely on the knowledge and tools at our disposal to mitigate any impact that a bear market might have to our and our families’ well-being.

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