Lifecycle Financial Planning Certificate Series

Course Objectives

Assessing Client Needs & Building a Plan

Learning Objectives:

• List the subject matter areas of financial planning and the levels in the financial planning pyramid.
• Recognize the general financial needs of people in different stages of the financial planning lifecycle.
• Identify the key concept of reverse glidepath theory and how it differs from traditional financial planning theory.

Behavioral Finance Biases 

Learning Objectives:

• Recall the difference between the rational economic person concept and behavioral economics
• Recognize how common information processing and emotional biases affect client financial decisions
• Identify how standard of living risk affects a practitioner’s methods in dealing with behavioral biases

Data Security on a Budget

Learning Objectives:

• Identify the relationship between information security, network security, and cyber security
• Recall what data security measures are required of tax preparers and financial advisors
• Identify how to prevent common data security risks
• Recognize what risks are mitigated by purchasing a cyber insurance policy

Investment Policy Statements & Portfolio Risk

Learning objectives:

• Identify the core parts to an investment policy statement
• Recall the difference between actual and perceived ability to take on risk
• Recognize key findings in safe withdrawal rate (SWR) research

Dependency 

Learning objectives:

• Identify changes to the personal exemption
• Indicate which tax credits are affected by dependency
• Recognize the different types of dependents and the qualification tests for each type
• Recall the rules for claiming a Qualifying Child in the instance where more than taxpayer may be eligible to claim the dependent
• Determine which taxpayers are able to claim a Qualifying Relative in the case of a multiple support agreement

Getting Money to Small Business Owners

Learning objectives:

• Compare the basic tax implications of distributions from a C-Corporation, S-Corporation, and Partnership
• Calculate the tax implications of cash distributions and property distributions from S-Corporations and Partnerships
• Calculate tax basis for a partnership and an S-Corporation
• Identify the factors that establish reasonable compensation, reasonable rent, and reasonable loans between a closely-held entity and its owner

Qualified Retirement Plans

Learning objectives:

• Recall key differences between qualified and non-qualified plans
• Identify situations where it is better to use Roth Retirement Plans vs. Traditional Retirement Plans
• Recognize key differences between SEPs and SIMPLE plans
• Recall early distribution penalties & exceptions
• Determine key considerations for setting up a retirement plan for a company

Social Security Planning

Learning objectives:

• Recall the different types of Social Security benefits
• State the tax treatment of Social Security benefits
• Compute the benefit change when one takes benefits before and after the full retirement age
• Identify differences between commercial disability insurance and social security disability benefits
• State how Social Security may be incorporated into a client’s financial plan
• Name the different parts of Medicare
• Recognize the difference between Medicare and Medicaid

Retirement Planning

Learning objectives:

• State who may contribute to a Traditional IRA and a Roth IRA
• Recognize how recent legislation has affected the taxation of IRAs
• Identify contribution, distribution, and RMD planning considerations when working with IRAs