Municipal Bonds/IRA Planning and Social Security (E1909439)

Advanced Strategies for Maximizing Social Security Income
Ash Ahluwalia, MBA, NSSA, CSSCS, CFP - Atlas Advisory Group, LLC 

This session will review the new rules governing Social Security filing options and advise you of advanced filing strategies available to maximize Social Security benefits. More than 90 percent of filers receive less money than they are entitled to, including individuals who are married, divorced or widowed, couples with minor children and business owners who need your guidance to maximize benefits. We will also address strategies to minimize the taxation of Social Security benefits as well as the best way to maximize benefits for high-net-worth individuals. 

Roadmap to Retirement: Top 12 IRA Planning Mistakes to Avoid

Andrew Diamond - MFS Fund Distributors

This presentation will give financial professionals tools to help their clients avoid costly mistakes in planning for retirement, including:

• Maximizing spousal contributions
• Avoiding unnecessary penalties
• Taking advantage of IRA deductions
• Following the RMD rules

Municipal Bonds Today: Why Active Management is More Important Than Ever
Joseph Proscia - AllianceBernstein

The financial crisis significantly changed the municipal market.  Municipalities face continued financial stress, interest rates are at 50-year lows and some of the basic mechanisms of the bond market that investors have counted on for years no longer work the way they used to.

Smart advisors will have an uncomfortable conversation with top clients about how best to manage their bond portfolios in this environment.  Others will avoid the topic, simply hope for the best, and watch helplessly as client portfolio lose value and clients struggle with those losses.  This presentation is designed to help you understand the changes that have happened in the bond market, teach you some of the basic (but often poorly understood) mechanisms that inform investing in Municipal Bonds, and show you how you can take a simple, low-risk action to save your best clients - and perhaps yourself - from needless pain.

Specific topics covered include:

• An overview of how the muni market has changed in recent years including an examination of tax rates, interest rates, municipal bond insurance, credit quality, and liquidity
• A discussion on how investors can navigate the new municipal landscape and how active management uncovers value by seeking to enhance return, not just yield
• Suggestions for better positioning your portfolio to take advantage of the changes in the marketplace and the benefits of active management

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