Weekend Reading For Financial Planners (July 26–27)

Enjoy the current installment of “Weekend Reading For Financial Planners” – this week’s edition kicks off with the news that Charles Schwab’s annual RIA benchmarking study found that median firm AUM increased 16.6% in 2024, with revenue up by 17.6%. While some of these gains can be attributed to strong market performance, firms also boosted their organic growth during the year, with firms with less than $250M AUM showing 9.2% net organic growth and larger firms seeing 5.0% growth (while RIAs as a whole also maintained a 97% client retention rate). In the report, Schwab also identified key traits of “top performing” firms (including having a defined ideal client persona and a defined client value proposition) and the key strategic initiatives respondents plan to pursue (with generating client referrals topping the list for the third consecutive year, followed by recruiting new staff).

Also in industry news this week:

A recent report highlights the rapid growth of RIA “consolidators”, with advisors seeking them out for compliance and succession support, though concerns about a potential loss of autonomy and independence from joining one remain
The Treasury has delayed until 2028 the effective date for a proposed Anti-Money Laundering (AML) rule that would have affected most SEC-registered RIAs and plans to revisit the substance of the rule to perhaps tailor it more specifically to focus on businesses that face the greatest AML risk

From there, we have several articles on tax planning:

The One Big Beautiful Bill Act (OBBBA) has made the Section 199A tax deduction permanent (i.e., without a scheduled sunset date), potentially benefiting not only business-owner clients but also those who own REITs in their portfolios as well
The OBBBA has also made permanent the Qualified Opportunity Zone program (albeit with a narrower scope and updated rules), providing some clients with the chance to defer gains on the sale of certain investment property
How charitable planning considerations might change under the OBBBA, from the new 0.5% AGI ‘floor’ on the deductibility of charitable contributions that starts in 2026 to the ability of non-itemizers to potentially get a tax benefit for (at least some of) their charitable gifts

We also have a number of articles on retirement planning:

How financial advisors can help clients explore their funding options amidst an expected increase in the costs of long-term care in the coming years
The planning considerations surrounding unpaid care, from the benefits of creating a formalized care plan well in advance of a need to cash flow planning for younger clients who might be responsible for (unpaid) caregiving in the future
An analysis of the options for advisors and their clients who face a premium increase on their long-term care insurance policies

We wrap up with three final articles, all about travel:

Why flexibility is the key to saving on flights, from flying on less popular days of the week to traveling during “shoulder season”
How State Department employees created an online system that allows many Americans to renew their passports online in as little as 15 minutes (and achieved overwhelmingly positive reviews in the process)
Amidst crowding in many airport lounges, some airlines and credit card companies are looking to open smaller lounges offering more casual, grab-and-go options for their customers

Enjoy the ‘light’ reading!