Christopher Fess – Christopher Fess

CeeDee Lamb Leads Dallas Cowboys 2020 NFL Draft Class

Christopher Fess is an experienced, Frisco, Texas-based wealth management professional who has been recognized as a Best of Frisco Financial Top Advisor every year from 2012 to 2019. Beyond his professional pursuits, Christopher Fess enjoys following the National Football League’s (NFL) Dallas Cowboys.

The Cowboys added seven players to their roster through the 2020 NFL Draft, which concluded in April 2020. With its first pick, 17th overall, the team selected University of Oklahoma wide receiver CeeDee Lamb. In his junior season in 2019, Lamb accumulated 1,327 receiving yards on 62 receptions and scored 14 touchdowns. Through three seasons at the school, he registered 3,292 receiving yards and 32 touchdowns. He was a Consensus All-American in 2019.

Dallas selected University of Alabama cornerback Trevon Diggs with its second-round pick. Diggs had an impressive senior campaign, with 37 tackles, eight passes defended, and three interceptions, one of which was returned for a touchdown. He and fourth-round pick Reggie Robinson II have the potential to step right in and make an impact in Dallas’ secondary. The Cowboys also drafted defensive tackle Neville Gallimore (Oklahoma), center Tyler Biadasz (Wisconsin), defensive end Bradlee Anae (Utah), and quarterback Ben DiNucci (James Madison).

The Intricacies of Taxing Partnerships

Close-up of bar graph with executives negotiating background Free Photo

Award-winning financial advisor Christopher Fess works at Fess Financial in Frisco, Texas. A chartered financial consultant (ChFC) and tax professional, Christopher Fess helps clients, such as limited partners, in navigating complex tax laws.

Partnerships, unlike corporations, do not have a legal life of their own and are therefore considered pass-through entities for tax purposes. This means that partnerships do not pay taxes on their earnings as corporations do. Rather, these earnings are distributed to partners who then pay taxes on their individual shares or deduct their share of losses.

With regard to dealings with the IRS, a partnership should file a Schedule K-1 with the agency alongside a Form 1065. The former details each partner’s share of profits and losses and the latter helps the IRS know if the partners are reporting income correctly. Each partner then reports his or her share of profit or loss in his or her tax return (Form 1040). Because partners have no employer to withhold their income taxes, they should estimate how much money they will owe at year end and make payments every quarter. They should also pay self-employment taxes on their partnership profits including social security and Medicare.

Saving for Retirement When You’re Self-Employed

The Best of Frisco Financial Top Advisor for 7 consecutive years, Christopher Fess has been working in the finance industry for more than 30 years. Throughout that time, he has earned several licenses, including his Series 63 and 24 licenses. A financial advisor at Fess Financial + Life & Legacy Financial, Christopher Fess has also taught thousands of people about everything from asset protection to retirement planning.

While there are plenty of benefits to being self-employed (such as greater freedom), self-employed individuals are solely responsible for saving for retirement. Fortunately, they usually have access to the same types of retirement savings plans as traditionally employed individuals, such as a 401(k) and IRA.

A one-participant 401(k), or solo 401(k), functions in the same way as employer-sponsored 401(k) plans. However, due to their self-employed status, those who have solo 401(k) plans set up can contribute to their retirement plans as both the employee and employer. When contributing elective deferrals, individuals are still subject to maximum annual contribution limits, but they can make non-elective contributions to the plan of up to 25 percent of their total compensation each year.

IRAs, either traditional or Roth, are also options for self-employed individuals. They are particularly beneficial to new entrepreneurs, and can be formed from old, employer-sponsored 401(k) accounts. While IRAs are still subject to annual contribution limits set by the Internal Revenue Service (IRS), they are one of the easiest methods of saving for retirement as a self-employed person.

There are also Savings Incentive Match Plans for Employees (SIMPLE) and Simplified Employee Pension (SEP) IRAs. Both IRAs are similar if at least one employee is covered by the plan, but they do have drastically different contribution limits. For 2020, the SEP IRA limit is roughly $57,000, while the limit for a SIMPLE IRA is $13,500.

In Your 40s? It’s Not Too Late to Start Saving for Retirement

A chartered financial consultant and chartered life underwriter, Christopher Fess has more than two decades of experience as a financial advisor. Passionate about financial planning, Christopher Fess believes retirement planning can help people live comfortably in their golden years.

One of the most common concerns people have about retirement is whether it is too late to start investing. The truth is, the earlier a person starts saving, the more they will have, since compound interest grows savings exponentially over time. A person in his or her 40s may not have that much time to benefit from compound interest. However, it’s not too late to start.

Consider this example: If a person 45 years old earning $50,000 annually expects to retire by 65, they have 20 years to invest. If the person invests $100 every month ($1,200 a year or 2.5 percent of income) in an employer-matched 401(k), earning an annual return of 7 percent, he or she will have $100,000 saved by age 65. If the person gradually contributes more than $100 per month, for example up to $2,250 annually at age 50, $3,250 at 55, and $4,250 at 60, matched by the employer up to 3 percent, total retirement savings will be $162,500 by age 65. However, that may not be enough for a comfortable retirement, since the average person spends about $45,756 a year in retirement. Therefore, a more ideal contribution by him or her is 20 to 30 percent of income every year. When time is constrained, the more money contributed toward retirement, the better a person’s chances of retiring comfortably.

The Difference Between Risk Tolerance and Risk Capacity

Christopher Fess has been working in the financial services industry for three decades. Based in Texas, he provides financial advice to clients through Fess Financial and Life & Legacy Financial. The advice provided by Christopher Fess and his team covers a variety of matters relating to investments and retirement, including risk management.

Whether you are investing for yourself or for clients, it is important to understand both risk tolerance and risk capacity. These phrases refer to two very different concepts that affect how you or your client make investments, what your ideal time-frame is, and your financial expectations.

Most people are likely familiar with the idea of risk tolerance. This refers to the amount of risk that you are willing to take based on your personal tastes and feelings, and the amount of volatility and losses you can handle. If, for instance, you find yourself extremely stressed about the potential losses of your investments, your risk tolerance is low and you should focus on less volatile assets. Conversely, if you’re emotionally capable of handling such losses, consider adding more high-risk products to your investment portfolio.

While risk tolerance is based on your feelings and desires, risk capacity is a mathematical measure of the amount of risk you can take. More specifically, it’s a measure of the risk you can take without negatively impacting your progress towards your financial goals. Because of this, risk capacity varies between each person according to their financial situation. Further, you will notice that your risk capacity changes over time as your financial situation varies. This is rarely the case with risk tolerance.

Overview of the Chartered Financial Consultant Certification

A financial advisor at Fess Financial Christopher Fess has 30 years of experience in the industry. In his current role, Christopher Fess’s chartered financial consultant (ChFC) certification enables him to provide advisory services to his clients on matters related to retirement income planning.

The chartered financial consultant (ChFC) and the certified financial planner (CFP) designations are similar, but the former requires more education and allows the license holder to assist clients in more areas. The ChFC coursework includes nine more classes that focus on investing and insurance and retirement planning. Once coursework has been completed, ChFC license holders are required to complete 30 credit hours every two years to hold onto the certification.

The ChFC can only be earned through the American College. The American College, based in Bryn Mawr, Pennsylvania, was created to help financial planners become certified in areas related to the insurance industry. The prerequisites for entry into the college is to have three years of full-time business experience within the first five years of getting the certification.

There are a few major benefits to earning this certification. The licensed adviser can actually help clients with a broader range of transactions in comparison to those who do not hold the certification. Finally, the certification makes them more attractive to employers, and ChFC license holders’ salaries are typically higher.

Types of Education Accounts

Financial Advisor Christopher Fess of Frisco, Texas has more than 15 years of experience assisting clients in making wealth management decisions. One of the ways Christopher Fess assists clients is by choosing the right college fund for their children.

Parents who have decided to finance their children’s education have different options. One of the most common educational funds, the 529 plan is authorized through the state, state agencies, or educational institutions and includes two investment options. The first option is the pre-paid tuition plan which allows parents to purchase credit hours at current rates for the child’s future education. Then, there is the education savings plan, which allows parents to set up an investment account that can be used to pay for a child’s tuition, mandatory fees, and housing. The advantage is the money grows in the account tax-free, and taxes are assessed if the money is used on qualifying expenses.

One other education funds include the Coverdell Education Savings Account which enables investors to use the money for expenses that occur at any time beginning in elementary school and ending in college. This plan is more flexible and can be managed the teens as soon as they reach the age of 18.