Surprises in the Estate Tax Proposal

Estate tax reform seems to be waiting around the corner.

Rather than resolve the estate tax issue for good, to help people plan for the future, the compromise proposal sets rules only until the next election. The proposal eliminates estate taxes for individuals with less than $5 million, and for couples with estates below $10 million. The legislation also cuts the inheritance tax rate to a maximum of 35%.

There were a few surprises that will need to be sorted out if the legislation passes. For one thing, the new law doesn't seem to require the use of marital and family trusts (sometimes referred to as "A" and "B" trusts) in order to evenly divide the assets between a husband and wife. The proposal calls for the remaining spouse to be able to use the "unused portion of the estate tax exclusion," eliminating the need for an even division in how assets are titled.

The increase in the exemption amount to $10 million also surpised me. It significantly reduces the number of estates that will be subject to the tax, and reduces the tax burden for the taxable portion. Reducing the number of taxable estates will decrease the use of joint and survivor insurance policies sold for estate planning purposes, though local estate planning attorney, Dave Turner, points out that insurance remains a convenient planning tool for those estates in need of liquidity to pay estate taxes and for other traditional uses.

The proposal also gives heirs of estates created by a death in 2010 a choice between adopting the new rules and going by the old 2010 rules. While the 2010 rules eliminate a specific estate tax, heirs would still be required to pay capital gains tax on appreciated asset values if the gain exceeds a $1.3 million exemption amount. In instances where determining the cost basis is difficult, heirs may choose to adopt the new step-up rules even for family members that died in 2010.

Another surprise was that the proposal increases the amount that can be set aside to skip a generation without being subject to tax. In recent years, the generation skip gifting has been limited to $1 million, even as the estate exemption gradually increased to $3.5 million in 2009. The current proposal re-establishes a link between the individual estate exemption and the generation skip exemption, raising both to $5 million.
 
Whether or not this passes in its current form is anybody's guess, but we finally have a concrete proposal to consider and the proposal, being tied to the extension of the Bush tax cuts and the extension of unemployment benefits, has momentum. 
 
 Douglas B. May, CFA, is President of May-Investments, LLC and author of Investment Heresies .

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January 18, 2011 - Save the Date

Mark January 18, 2011 on your calendars for the 2011 May-Investments annual Economic Forecast luncheon.  We've outgrown Bookcliff Country Club and have moved this year's lunch to the Doubletree Hotel.  We hope to see you, between 11:45am and noon, and we look forward to getting back out the door no later than 1:30pm.

This year's invitations are being sent primarily to clients and readers of the monthly eMag, so please encourage friends to sign up for the eMag distribution list so they don't miss out.

We have a lot to announce on the 18th.  Hope to see you there!
 
 Douglas B. May, CFA, is President of May-Investments, LLC and author of Investment Heresies .

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Natural Resources added back to holdings

The model portfolio sold one of its healthcare positions as upward movement in the commodity indexes is making it increasingly important to give the inflation sensitive energy and commodity investments a larger weight in the portfolio.  A natural resource fund was added to the portfolio as a replacement.


Concurrent with the Federal Reserve's decision to buy more bonds in an attempt to keep interest rates artificially low, gold, oil and other commodity prices have staged a rally. The administration has told the world that it fully intends to devalue the dollar, and the natural result is inflation in commodity prices. It is hard to know how long this can continue, but it's probably another instance where it doesn't pay to "fight the Fed," and though the portfolio has maintained its gold position for most of the past 18 months, up until recently it has paid not to be in oil, so the portfolios have been underweighted energy and natural resources for several months.

Energy is the most significant component of the natural resources complex. Oil prices are going up. Importantly, refining margins are also strong. Earnings in the oil sector are also correlated to employment and miles traveled, and each of those indicators is moving up. Dividend yields in the sector are more attractive than normal, and today's low payout ratio suggests that dividends - which are already increasing faster than the market's - can continue to be increased from current levels.

Nine out of ten top fund holdings are energy sector stocks. ExxonMobil and Chevron are the most heavily weighted positions. The energy complex has lagged gold, and the gold mining companies, this year. The divergence from industrial metals may have been caused by the BP oil spill, which hurt the broad sector and raised the specter of an international economic bust (the oil spill happened at roughly the same time that the Euro was having problems). As evidence of continued economic growth mounts, and evidence that the Federal Reserve is bound and determined to trash the dollar in order to jump start U.S. exports, the energy sector has turned up.

By adding this natural resource position to a portfolio which already owns gold stocks and Latin America investments, our position in "hard assets" is rising toward maximum weightings. We have a little more room to add some more commodity exposure, but not much more.
 
The good news is that we are approaching our "good news portfolio" which will be heavily weighted to overseas and commodity investments. This is similar to the portfolio that performed so well for us in 2006 and 2007. Even more importantly, it is not a portfolio that we would expect to do well if an economic collapse were right around the corner. This is the sort of portfolio that would do well if the economic recovery will prove sustaintable, and global growth continues. Whereas the latest data from our own Leading Economic Index is indicating a sustainable rebound, current market activity seems to confirm this good news.  
 
Douglas B. May, CFA, is President of May-Investments, LLC and author of Investment Heresies .

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Improvements to LEI Index Continue

Economists tell us that the Great Recession ended in June 2009, but for many it doesn’t feel like that. More importantly, where does the economy go from here? The May-Investments Leading Economic Indicator has been rising steadily since March of this year, indicating that the recovery we’re experiencing is real and, possibly, sustainable.


Some economist say we’re recovering, but to a “new normal” level of activity that is significantly below the prior peak. The traditional economic indicator suggests that things are better now than they were when the economy topped out in October of 2007. Still others view enormous upside from here, primarily because the sell-off two years back was so severe. In reality, no one really knows for certain, which makes it hard to make any decisions based on economic forecasts.

The most common result of this controversy is that many investors make investment decisions based on emotion, rather than economic fundamentals. Lacking perfect information, the vast majority of investors either throw out all of the data or only pay attention to facts that support their current beliefs. Here in Western Colorado’s conservative country, anger at the Federal government’s fiscal and monetary policies has led many investors to conclude that the recovery is an illusion.

May-Investments has been measuring and monitoring events all year, having been forced to develop a proprietary Leading Economic Indicator to help us objectively track the direction of this economy. The indicator shows that we aren’t anywhere near the prior peak, which supports the view on Main Street that we have a long way to go before we have really recovered from the 2008 financial panic. On the other hand, the May-Investments Leading Indicator suggests that the recovery in corporate profits is sustainable, the worst of the unemployment situation may be behind us, and a spirit of optimism may soon return to America’s entrepreneurs. Never underestimate the resilience of the American economic system!

Of our ten indicators, only exports, bank lending (still the most negative indicator), and manufacturing orders are waiving red flags. For several months, now, 70 percent of the indicators are positive. Since these are leading indicators, these suggest that the current recovery can continue through much, if not all, of 2011. For investors, it means that outperforming cash and bond investments might not be too difficult, at least for the first few months of the year. Looking back, it appears that 2010 will go down as a pleasant surprise as compared to expectations, even if it’s not a banner year in absolute terms.

Hopefully it also means that every reader will have a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year celebration in the coming weeks.

 Douglas B. May, CFA, is President of May-Investments, LLC and author of Investment Heresies .

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Planning for the Transfer of Your Personal Possessions and Why It’s Important

Grandma is in the nursing home and her house is being sold. Is now the right time to divide up her belongings, or should we wait and simply store everything?

There are five children in the family and each of them wore the same hand-knit sweater. When mom passes, who should get that?

Estate planning is a valuable and necessary process in our modern times, and like most, you probably have given careful, even deliberate consideration to how you want your largest assets to be passed on; but have you given the same deliberate thought to how you want your smaller, non-titled assets to be handed down? We’d like to argue that, from an emotional standpoint, planning for the transfer of your personal, non-titled possessions could be just as important.

Let’s take a moment to define what we mean by non-titled personal assets. These are your personal possessions that do not require legal title and might include such items as jewelry, tools, photographs, hand-made items, clothing, family heirlooms, clocks, furniture, and more. For the purposes of this article, we are concerned with items whose primary value is sentimental, not monetary. Items of large monetary value probably are better addressed in a traditional will.

Planning for the transfer of these assets may not seem like top priority, but most attorneys who specialize in estate planning say that the smaller non-titled items often cause some of the biggest problems when settling estates. There are a number of reasons for this; divorce, second marriages, blended families, large families, sentimental attachments to items, the age of potential heirs, interest level among heirs, the strength of your relationships, and overall family dynamics are all challenges that serve to complicate the process. Because these assets tend to be highly personal by nature, the emotional stakes surrounding the division of these assets can be high, and a lack of planning will only compound problems. In short, a lack of planning can lead to some serious sour grapes among potential heirs.

Another danger posed by a lack of planning is the loss of information associated with your personal items. Because the value of many personal belongings lies in the sentimental, and not the monetary value of the item, preservation of the stories, origin, family history, and meaning associated with these possessions is vital. This information easily can get lost if you don’t take purposeful steps to preserve it.

Additionally, advanced planning is the only way you can be sure that your wishes will be met, and it lets you control when those wishes are carried out (i.e., you may choose to give with warm hands or you may prefer to wait until your estate is divided).

We firmly believe that the peace of mind that comes from ensuring the orderly and meaningful transfer of your most treasured belongings is invaluable at any age, and we encourage our clients to do advanced planning. However, knowing how to plan for this process can be confusing and complicated, and that, coupled with the fact that it is a highly personal process, can cause us to drag our proverbial feet.

We are here to help! If you are interested in learning more about the steps involved in the planning process or would like our assistance with the process, be sure to attend our upcoming workshop on the subject, to be held January 11, 2011, from noon until 1 p.m. We also have a number of resources that we can recommend on the subject. Anyone interested can phone our Retirement Concierge, Lisa Mauser, at 263-5126 or contact her via e-mail at http://www.blogger.com/Lisa@GJStocks.com.

 
 Douglas B. May, CFA, is President of May-Investments, LLC and author of Investment Heresies .

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Storyteller from Mesa County Spellbinders entertains Mesa Valley Vision students

A storyteller from Mesa County Spellbinders entertained approximately 25 students from the Mesa Valley Vision Program Dec. 3 at Grand Valley Books, 350 Main St. in downtown Grand Junction.

Mesa County Spellbinders, which started in 2002, is an organization of trained volunteers who tell stories to elementary-school children, captivating young listeners by using animated and entertaining storytelling styles. Mesa County Spellbinders is sponsored by the Grand Junction Horizon Sunrise Rotary Club, and proceeds from the sale of Spellbinders CDs help pay for Spellbinders training.

Each student at the event received a copy of the Spellbinders CD, an early Christmas present courtesy of May-Investments, sponsor of the storytelling session.

Storyteller Ruthmary Allison told captivating tales and played an autoharp to lead students in several songs. One of the stories she told, “The Gunniwolf,” can be heard on the Spellbinders CD.

Spellbinders CDs available at several Grand Junction locations

The Spellbinders CD, which contains many of the storytellers’ popular tales, lets kids and adults enjoy the stories at home, whenever they want. Spellbinders CDs make great holiday gifts or stocking-stuffers, and the CDs are available at several locations in Grand Junction, including: Enstrom’s, 701 Colorado Ave.; Heirlooms for Hospice, 635 Main St.; The Frame Depot, 529 Bogart Lane; and Grand Valley Books, 350 Main St.

The storytelling event at Grand Valley Books involved students from the Mesa Valley Vision Program, an accredited K-12 public school that supports home and community-based learning in Mesa County.  (Image above courtesy of Mesa County Valley School District 51.)

 
 Douglas B. May, CFA, is President of May-Investments, LLC and author of Investment Heresies .

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Selecting a Colorado wine for the holidays

Need to find the perfect wine for your holiday meal? Look no farther than Palisade, where the largest concentration of wineries in Colorado offer a variety of wines and meads to suit almost any taste.

But before we get into specific suggestions from some of the wineries, consider the advice of Lis Muse, who works in the tasting room at Carlson Vineyards, 461 35 Road on East Orchard Mesa.

“Don’t be afraid of wine,” she says. “A lot of people tend to shy away from wines because of the wine snobs."

Don’t be intimidated by people who might or might not know what they’re talking about when they sniff, taste, swish, and spit.

“Unless you’re trying to impress your boss or your in-laws, drink what you like,” Muse says. “Play with your food and wine.”

So with that philosophy in mind, here are some wines and pairings that Palisade wineries suggest to get you started on your wine/food playtime.

For Holiday Dinners

The folks at Grande River Vineyards, 787 Elberta Ave. (http://www.granderiverwines.com/), suggest its Meritage Red with a good prime rib for Christmas dinner. Meritage Red consists of 40 percent Cabernet Sauvignon, 31 percent Cabernet Franc, 25 percent Merlot, and 4 percent Petit Verdot. “It will go with pretty much anything. If you’re having prime rib or ham, the Meritage Red is good,” says Jenny Nichols of Grande River Vineyards.

For white-wine lovers, Nichols suggests Grande River’s Meritage White, composed of 67 percent Sauvignon Blanc and 33 percent Semillon, or the winery’s Viognier. “The Viognier goes with white cheeses and lighter food if you’re having a holiday get-together,” she says.

At Plum Creek Winery, 3708 G Road (http://www.plumcreekwinery.com/), Winemaker Jenne Baldwin-Eaton suggests Riesling for the holidays, especially if the menu includes poultry. For tables where prime rib or ham will be served, Plum Creek’s Palisade Red is a good choice. Palisade Red, made with Cabernet Franc, Cabernet Sauvignon, and Merlot, “has a wide range as far as matching things, so it really is food-friendly,” Baldwin-Eaton says.

Canyon Wind Cellars, 3907 North River Road (http://www.canyonwindcellars.com/), recommends its Chardonnay with the Christmas turkey. But if you want to get a little more exotic for your holiday meal, Winemaker Jay Christianson recommends grass-fed roast buffalo served with Canyon Wind’s Petit Verdot or the winery’s newest offering, IV, which is 50 percent Petit Verdot, 32 percent Cabernet Franc, 16 percent Cabernet Sauvignon, and 2 percent Merlot.

If you’re serving beef, Christianson recommends Canyon Wind’s Cabernet Franc.

At Carlson Vineyards (http://www.carlsonvineyards.com/), Lis Muse recommends the winery’s Riesling paired with a Christmas ham. “It makes ham less salty and brings out the flavor,” Muse says.

Carlson’s Gewurztraminer goes well with turkey and dressing, and the winery’s Sweet Baby Red (a blend made primarily from Merlot) goes well with barbecued meats or deep-fried turkey. Tyrannosaurus Red, made from Lemberger grapes, pairs well with turkey, prime rib, or grilled steak with cracked black peppers. T-Red also would go well with spaghetti or lasagna on New Year’s Eve, Muse says. If you’re thinking seafood such as shrimp or lobster, Muse suggests Carlson’s Dry Gewurztraminer.

Sandy Broughton, who works in the tasting room at St. Kathryn Cellars, 785 Elberta Ave. (http://www.st-kathryn-cellars.com/), suggests Talon Wingspan White, which is 69 percent Chardonnay and 31 percent Viognier, to accompany holiday turkey. St. Kathryn also makes Cranberry Kiss, a surprisingly tasty cranberry wine that would go well with poultry and ham.

If you’re serving red meat on Christmas, such as prime rib, Broughton recommends Talon Cabernet Sauvignon or Talon Wingspan Red, a blend of Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon, and Cabernet Franc.

A good all-purpose wine from St. Kathryn Cellars is Sweet Scarlet, which is 50 percent Merlot and 50 percent blackberries. It’s generally considered a dry dessert wine, but it doesn’t taste like a dry wine and could go well with red meat. “For me, it’s an anytime wine, but for people who like dry wines, it’s a dessert wine. It’s our top seller,” Broughton says.

Time for Dessert

Now comes the fun.

At Meadery of the Rockies, 3701 G Road (http://www.meaderyoftherockies.com/), you can find a variety of wines made from honey (mead is fermented honey) and some delicious products perfectly suited for holiday desserts. The meadery’s Chocolate Cherry Satin is good from a glass but best from a cordials cup made of chocolate.

“It’s a dessert wine. It tastes like a chocolate-covered cherry,” says Donna Lively of the meadery.

The meadery also offers a raspberry chocolate satin – yes, break out the chocolate cordials cups again – and a Honey Shere that Lively describes as having “a brandy spirit without that brandy burn.”

Carlson Vineyards offers several fruit wines that are suitable for dessert sipping, but worth a special mention is the winery’s Cherry Wine. At the tasting room, you can buy a bottle of Cherry Wine with a block of Enstrom’s chocolate; for a great holiday dessert, melt the chocolate, dip a wine glass in the chocolate just far enough to coat the rim, then drink your cherry wine from the chocolate-dipped glass.

For yet another dessert treat, or for an après ski warm-up drink, add mulling spices to warm mead or peach wine. Mulling spices are available at several tasting rooms, including St. Kathryn Cellars and Meadery of the Rockies.

If traditional dessert wines are more to your liking, several Palisade wineries offer ports. Grande River Vineyards sells its Tawny Port, made from Merlot grapes, and Canyon Wind Cellars offers a Cabernet-based port fortified with brandy made at Palisade’s Peach Street Distillers.

Where the Wines Are

These are just a few ideas of various wines and pairings to make the holidays tastier. Many more wineries with an array of different products exist around the Grand Valley and throughout Colorado. For a complete list of Colorado wineries, visit the Colorado Wine Industry Development Board website at http://www.coloradowine.com/wineries/wineriesList.cfm. For a list of local wineries in the Grand Valley, visit the Grand Junction Visitor and Convention Bureau’s website at http://www.visitgrandjunction.com/attractions_culture/index.php?Heading=Wineries. Most of the wineries have tasting rooms and welcome visitors. A self-guided wine-tasting tour of the Grand Valley is a great way to spend an afternoon.

 
 Douglas B. May, CFA, is President of May-Investments, LLC and author of Investment Heresies .

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Protecting yourself from identity theft

Identity theft is perhaps the quietest, most insidious type of crime. Someone gets ahold of your personal data and uses it for a variety of fraudulent purposes, and you don’t have any idea that it’s happened until the effects begin showing up in your credit report or other financial records.

A nationwide study by California-based Javelin Strategy and Research found that between 2008 and 2009, the number of identity fraud victims in the United States increased 12 percent to 11.1 million adults. At the same time, the total annual fraud amount increased by 12.5 percent to $54 billion. (Source: https://www.javelinstrategy.com/news/831/92/Javelin-Study-Finds-Identity-Fraud-Reached-New-High-in-2009-but-Consumers-are-Fighting-Back/d,pressRoomDetail)

Closer to home, Mesa County is now dealing with the consequences of having data that was posted in a non-secure domain.  Whether it results in information theft or not, the consequences can be brutal.

Many insurance companies now offer stand-alone policies or add-on endorsements for homeowners coverage to help protect people from the effects of identity theft, says Carma Brown, insurance manager for Home Loan Insurance Co. in Grand Junction.

Identity theft insurance typically doesn’t compensate policyholders for losses, Brown says. Instead, the coverage helps policyholders pay the various costs of restoring a stolen identity. Often, victims of identity theft must get new drivers licenses, passports, and other documents, which all come at a cost. Victims also must regularly monitor their credit reports to ensure that the identity theft has been resolved.

One of the biggest headaches with resolving identity theft is notifying all of the federal, state, and local agencies that might see some effect from the theft. Such notifications are time-consuming, as is regular monitoring of credit reports. Brown says the most desirable identity-theft policies provide policyholders with personal assistance in alerting credit card companies, credit bureaus, the Social Security Administration, and other agencies about your identity theft. Problems created by identity theft can take years to resolve.

The time savings of having assistance in resolving your case is worth the price of a policy, Brown says, not to mention the expertise of the handler who works on your case.

“If you have a person helping you who does this for a living, that is priceless,” Brown says.

Brown suggests that anyone buying identity theft insurance make sure the policy provides personal assistance with resolving problems caused by the theft. She also recommends policies that cover all members of the family, even children. She says children are a popular target for identity theft because it can take years for the theft of a child’s information – such as a Social Security number – to be detected.

Premiums for identity theft insurance usually run about $50 per year for a family, Brown says. Before buying stand-alone policies, check to see whether you can add an equally effective endorsement to your existing homeowners insurance for a lesser price. But if you’re considering buying identity theft coverage, do it before you find out that your identity has been stolen. Brown says policies aren’t retroactive and must be in effect before you find out that you have a problem.

For clients worried about the possible ramifications of the county's potential data release and your brokerage accounts, know that your custodian has taken precautions so that the county data is not sufficient to enable someone to login to account information. 

The Federal Trade Commission has assembled a website containing exhaustive information about identity theft, how to avoid it, and what to do if you think your identity has been stolen. The site is at http://www.ftc.gov/bcp/edu/microsites/idtheft// .

Douglas B. May, CFA, is President of May-Investments, LLC and author of Investment Heresies .

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Nordic Council grooms ski trails atop Grand Mesa

When you’re gliding along smooth, firm ski tracks on top of Grand Mesa, it’s easy to forget that someone else played a big part in making your high-quality cross-country skiing experience possible.

The Grand Mesa Nordic Council (GMNC), a community-based nonprofit organization, grooms and maintains the mesa-top trail system at Skyway, County Line, and Ward Lake. Add up the distance of all the trails in the system, and you come up with 32.4 miles (54 kilometers) of groomed Nordic skiing fun. Difficulty varies among trails, but there’s enough terrain to accommodate all levels of skiers, from beginners to experts.

A basic trail map is available at http://www.gmnc.org/wp-content/uploads/2010/02/GMNC-Map-2003-Adless-2.pdf.

“I've lived and skied in areas all over the world, and I’ve found no other place that can match the Grand Mesa,” says Christie Aschwanden, who is in her third year as president of the Nordic Council. “I love that the GMNC is an inclusive, community-based organization run almost entirely by volunteer power. We get our funding from members, and our motto has always been to encourage donations via the carrot, not the stick. It’s satisfying to see how many people choose to give beyond our nominal membership fees.”

Trail grooming is funded and performed entirely by the Nordic Council, under a permit from the U.S. Forest Service. Nordic Council volunteers oversee races and learn-to-ski programs, raise funds through memberships and grants, and take care of other details to ensure that the trails are well-groomed throughout the winter. The council employs an operations manager and two groomers who are on the trails almost daily.

Grand Mesa Nordic Council trails are growing in popularity; parking lots at Skyway and County Line are often near capacity on weekends. Use of the trails is free, but users are encouraged to either leave a monetary donation in designated boxes at the trailheads or to join the council. Individual memberships are $45 per season, and family memberships are $75. Additional levels of financial support are available. All money from memberships goes toward paying groomers and covering the costs associated with keeping the trails groomed and in good shape for skiing.

“The recession has hit our communities hard, yet our membership numbers rose to 757 paid members last year. We hope to top that this year,” Aschwanden says.

The Nordic Council has grown and evolved since its founding in 1990.

“In the beginning, we groomed trails with a single volunteer on a snowmobile,” Ashwanden says. “But our members tell us they want more grooming, and over the years we’ve expanded the frequency of our grooming operations. Due to a very generous grant from the Jean Thomas Lambert Foundation, we were able to purchase a Pisten Bully snowcat a few years ago, and that has raised the quality of our grooming substantially. Hiring the operations manager was the next step, which has allowed us to improve the quality and quantity of grooming. Having an ops manager has also enabled us to become more responsive to our members’ feedback.”

Most of the operations manager’s position is funded this year by a grant from the Grand Junction REI store, and the Nordic Council is working on fund-raising efforts to sustain the position. In addition, the council is working to raise funds to maintain its high-quality grooming equipment.

“Our budget last year topped $57,000 and nearly all of that money went toward grooming,” Aschwanden says. “The Lambert Foundation grant that allowed us to purchase our snowcat also provided funds to run the machine for several years. That money is now gone, and we’re facing a deficit in our operations fund that we’ll need to make up through member support.”

“We are hoping to continue to operate at our current level, but this will require more members stepping up to increase their contributions. We hope to solicit some legacy partnerships, and we expect that some of our members will choose to boost their yearly donation,” she says.

The Nordic Council has ambitious plans not only for trails, but for on-mountain facilities to improve the experience for skiers.

“We have been working with the U.S. Forest Service for many years now to open a new trail at Skyway/County Line. We hope that the trail will finally be in place in the next year or so. We’ve also increased the number of events over the past couple of years. We now offer adult ski lessons (group and private), and we’ve added a sprint race and some kids’ races to our schedule. Last year we had a full-moon bonfire party to celebrate our 20-year anniversary, and we have another event like that scheduled for December 18,” Aschwanden says.

“Our next big goal is a parking lot expansion, new restrooms, and a small warming hut at County Line. It’s a costly project, but the U.S. Forest Service and Mesa and Delta counties have been very supportive, and together we’re working toward raising the funds to make it happen.”

For more information about the Grand Mesa Nordic Council, visit http://www.gmnc.org/. An online membership form is available at http://www.gmnc.org/grand-mesa-nordic-council-membership-application/. Anyone with specific questions about the Nordic Council or its operations can reach Aschwanden at http://www.blogger.com/grandmesanordic@gmail.com or Operations Manager Doug Conant at http://www.blogger.com/gmnordic@gmail.com (970-261-2392).

 
 Douglas B. May, CFA, is President of May-Investments, LLC and author of Investment Heresies .

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A gift for the person who has everything

They’re on every Christmas list – people who seem to have everything. Trying to find them a holiday gift becomes a nerve-wracking guessing game when purses, billfolds, scarves, and ties just won’t do it.

Why not consider making a donation in their name to a local charity? Nonprofit organizations of all types exist in the Grand Junction area, and donating to a charity that fits with your gift recipient’s values can have an impact long after other gifts are tucked away and forgotten.

Making a financial contribution to an organization in someone’s name is easy. Simply contact an organization of your choice and tell them what you would like to do. The organization can help you with the rest of the details.

Here are a few suggested nonprofits that would welcome such holiday donations:

Habitat for Humanity of Mesa County (http://hfhmesa.org/). Habitat for Humanity gives working families a chance to have a home for themselves. According to its website, Habitat families that enroll in the program are required to help build their home in a partnership with Habitat. When the home is finished, the new homeowner pays a no-interest mortgage back to Habitat. For more information, contact the organization at 970-255-9850.

Homeward Bound of the Grand Valley (http://www.homewardboundgj.org/). Homeward Bound of the Grand Valley operates the Community Homeless Shelter, which houses more than 90 people per night. The program operates three successful transitional programs and works with local churches to handle overflow on the coldest winter nights. For more information, contact the organization at 970-256-9424.

Counseling and Education Center (http://www.cecwecare.org/). The Counseling and Education Center provides professional counseling services to individuals and families that otherwise might not be able to afford such services. For a variety of reasons, many families and individuals in crisis have trouble accessing professional counseling services. The Counseling and Education Center helps make these crucial services affordable and accessible to those who need them. For information, call 970-243-9539.

Community Food Bank. The Community Food Bank in Mesa County has existed since 1978, and the organization says its primary purpose is to reduce hunger by providing an emergency supply of good-quality food for residents in need. Food is purchased from local stores and the Western Slope Food Bank of the Rockies, and the organization also accepts donations of food from local churches, individuals, and food drives. In a year’s time, the food bank serves as many as 19,000 client visits. For information, call 970-640-0336. To read a recent news story about the Community Food Bank in the Grand Junction Free Press, visit http://www.gjfreepress.com/article/20101112/COMMUNITY_NEWS/101119977.

Center for Independence (http://www.cfigj.org/). The Center for Independence offers a variety of programs to help disabled people live more independently. Services include training for individuals with poor vision, interpreter services for deaf people, job training for disabled people, housing assistance, education about healthful living, and computer training for people with disabilities. For more information, call 970-241-0315.

Child and Migrant Services (http://www.migrantservicesgv.org/). Child and Migrant Services has been around Mesa County since 1954, providing community services to migrant and seasonal farm workers and their families. Among the services are meals, job-related assistance, translation services, clothing, social activities, housing services, and mental-health services. The total package of services allows migrant and seasonal farm workers to “live and work with dignity in our community,” according to the organization’s mission statement. For more information, visit the website or call 970-464-5226.

Roice Hurst Humane Society (http://www.rhhumanesociety.com/). Roice Hurst Humane Society operates a no-kill animal shelter and provides other programs such as low-cost pet-vaccination clinics and pet-adoption services. During this holiday season, Roice Hurst will send a special card acknowledging the gift when you make a donation for $20 or more in someone’s name. For details, visit the organization’s website.

This list is just a sample of the organizations in the Grand Junction area that provide crucial services to those in need. Even small contributions can help them fulfill their missions, and there is no better way to give during the holiday season than to help someone else.

 
 Douglas B. May, CFA, is President of May-Investments, LLC and author of Investment Heresies .

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MoneyGuidePro financial software available free to eMag subscribers

A few simple keystrokes today can put you on the road to reaching your financial goals.

Subscribers to the free monthly May-Investments eMag can now gain free access to the MoneyGuidePro financial-planning software that May-Investments uses to help clients prepare for the financial challenges that lie ahead in life.

“I want to give loyal readers a reward for subscribing,” says Doug May, owner and chief investment officer for May-Investments. To begin using MoneyGuidePro, subscribe to the eMag at http://www.fund-scout.com/ (don’t forget to reply to the confirmation message you will receive so that you will be added to the mailing list), then send an email to May-Investments Retirement Concierge Lisa Mauser at http://www.blogger.com/Lisa@gjstocks.com asking for access to the software. You will receive information about how to access MoneyGuidePro.

May says eMag readers can use MoneyGuidePro to update their retirement plans and determine the amount of money they need to save and invest now in order to meet retirement needs or other financial goals.

MoneyGuidePro is an extraordinarily comprehensive financial-planning tool – much more comprehensive than the free financial-planning tools available online – and it is fairly easy to use if clients have complete, up-to-date records of their financial assets.

“I would encourage people to try it on their own and give it a shot,” May says.

MoneyGuidePro uses personal, financial, and investment data supplied by the user and develops a set of calculations based on the information. The program also uses a series of scales to determine the relative importance of several variables in the individual’s profile, such as willingness to save more or delay retirement.

The program uses personal data and preferences to calculate various options, which it presents in a range from “Ideal” to “Acceptable.” For example, based on an individual’s profile and resources, the program might determine that 65 is an “ideal” retirement age, but 67 would be an “acceptable” retirement age. MoneyGuidePro lets users create various scenarios to determine how certain changes in their goals or financial strategy might affect their likelihood of reaching their financial goals.

Finally, MoneyGuidePro can produce a customized report outlining the user’s chance of reaching financial goals and suggesting changes that might help the user reach those goals more effectively.

The program resides online and can be accessed from any computer with an Internet connection. May says data that users enter into the program is private and securely stored; it cannot be seen by anyone except the user and May-Investments staff.  

May-Investments weekly educational workshop on Tuesday, December 14, will focus on how the online planning tool works.

It’s a great deal. Sign up for a free subscription to the eMag and receive May-Investments’ fun and informative electronic magazine each month, plus gain free access to one of the top financial-planning tools available today. Visit http://www.fund-scout.com/ to get started.

Everyone should have an inventory of important documents

Everyone should have one,

Putting one together seems tedious and time consuming,

It’s easy to put off,

But very important!

What is it? No, it’s not a riddle – it’s an inventory of important documents and family records, and the first line says it best – everyone should have one!

We live in an unpredictable world, and (unfortunately) emergencies are a fact of life. Because emergencies are by their nature unexpected, we cannot possibly anticipate what future problems we might face, but we can eliminate some of the anxiety surrounding the unknown by being prepared, no matter what comes our way.

The Federal Trade Commission (FTC), the nation’s consumer protection agency, says that when it comes to preparing for emergencies, financial readiness can be as important as a flashlight with fully charged batteries. The agency offers several tips to help consumers prepare:

• It recommends buying a fireproof file box where you can place your important documents, extra keys, safe deposit box key, and a small amount of cash. The box should be kept in a location that is easily accessible in case of an emergency, and it should be portable – something that you can ‘grab’ quickly.
• The agency recommends that you keep backups of important financial data maintained on your computer. This backup should be kept in your fireproof file as well as your safe deposit box.
• AND the agency recommends that you compile complete inventories, including:
• An inventory of household belongings (to help with insurance claims);
• A list of emergency contacts and your insurance policy information;
• An inventory of current prescriptions and your medical history;
• A list of phone numbers or email addresses and websites for your creditors, financial institutions, landlords, and utility companies, as well as a list of account numbers;
• Copies of financial and family records that include deeds, titles, wills, birth and marriage certificates, passports, and relevant employment, benefit, retirement, and Social Security documents.

If you feel daunted by the job of putting together (and maintaining) all of these inventories and copies, you are not alone.

We can help! We encourage our clients to be prepared for emergencies by keeping inventories and guarding their important paperwork. If completing such an inventory has been on your to-do list for far too long, come to our Nov. 30 workshop, where we will present a variety of resources to assist you with the process. This workshop, which starts at noon, is designed to equip you with the tools for your individual needs and is an important first step to obtaining the peace of mind that comes with being prepared. Please RSVP to http://www.blogger.com/Lisa@gjstocks.com. Look forward to seeing you there.