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Moving into 2018 there is a need to prepare for a subtly changing investment environment. It is time for a comprehensive reality check, and the Ten Themes for 2018 can help you understand the opportunities and risks ahead. We think that we will see another year of positive, if generally rather lower, investment returns. Beginning with theme number 1—forewarned is forearmed—we believe that you should be prepared, at the very least, for higher levels of volatility.

Now that The Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (the Act) has been signed into law, you may be wondering what this means for you and your family. The Act is broad in scope and will change the tax rules for individuals and businesses in 2018 and beyond. When thinking about the impact of the Act on you, your family, and your business, it’s important to remember that every individual has their own set of circumstances, and is uniquely affected by tax reform.

Investors focus on the yield curve with good reason—an inverted curve has historically led to recession and eventual stock market losses. However, these stock market declines take time to materialize, suggesting that an inverted yield curve is less a “predictor” of stock market declines than a challenge to economic functioning. The Fed is cognizant of this history and, absent an upsurge in inflation that forces its hand, will seek to avoid significant yield curve flattening.

Low inflation, subdued global growth, and historically elevated stock valuations are the realities we believe your investment portfolios face over the next five years. Investors can position their portfolios for the long-term with these six key themes in mind: valuation superstructure, entrenched growth, stuckflation, monetary godot, populist catharsis, and regulation in limelight.

Depending on where you live, your philosophy on fiscal policy and what your sources of income are, the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act could be viewed as a gift or a lump of coal.

Private foundations assessing the impact of the tax reform legislation (HR1) signed into law on December 22, 2017 should look beyond the private foundation-specific proposals that were not included and assess the impact of provisions affecting all tax-exempt organizations. For some private foundations, the list of key items may include the new excise tax on organizations with highly compensated employees, segmentation of unrelated business taxable income (UBTI), and changes to employer provisions for qualified transportation fringe benefits.

Congress on December 20, 2017 gave final approval to the House and Senate conference committee agreement on tax reform legislation (HR 1 or the Act).

On December 19, 2017, the House and then the Senate approved HR 1, the “Tax Cuts and Jobs Act,” which was signed into law on December 22, 2017. The major tax overhaul includes a reduction in tax rates for most individuals, a reduction in the top corporate tax rate from 35% to 21%, and a reduction in the tax rate on individual business income. Generally, HR 1 leaves retirement savings tax incentives untouched, and that is (for the most part) good news. In this article, we consider some key elements of the bill bearing on retirement savings tax policy.

Estate planners have heard the list of complaints surrounding the Subtitle B, Chapter 13 of the IRC, also known as the generation-skipping transfer tax’s (GST) introduction into the Code—it is nonsense, too complicated, and frightening. The naysayers, however, are missing that the GST tax is rich and nuanced in its applications—but often misunderstood. Knowledge about gift and estate tax concepts can produce erroneous conclusions if applied to certain aspects of the GST.

Financial planning is essential to helping secure the future of you and your loved ones, yet it is easy to delay tackling it. Creating a customized financial plan helps define your individual investment goals, identify potential obstacles and allows you to adjust strategies as circumstances change. This article addresses the commonly asked questions about family financial planning, including philanthropic giving, estate planning and gifting strategies, and how to select a financial advisor and estate planning attorney.