Last month we shared five things that can still be done in December to minimize your 2020 taxes. With only a day left in the year, the number one thing you can still do to offset your taxes is to GIVE.

Giving is a tax one two punch – lowering taxes today and tomorrow. 

Charitable contributions are tax-deductible in the year you make the gift, either to your favorite organization or your Donor Advised Fund. By contrast, gifts to individuals provide a longer-term benefit – they are a great way to lower your overall estate and reduce the amount that is potentially subject to estate taxes in the future. Cumulative gifts to an individual up to $15,000 [$30,000 for a married couple filing jointly in 2020] are under the annual gift exclusion and do not require a gift tax return to be filed. If you give more than $15,000 to one person, you may have to file a gift tax return, and we would encourage you to consult with your tax professional. Of course, for clients of Hill Investment Group, we handle the consultation and coordination.

Morgan Housel just wrote THE book you need to read, and our pick for the November Book Club. In this episode, the esteemed financial writer joins Matt Hall and shares insights into his own investing strategies, an event that shaped his outlook on risk, a story about a janitor who left behind millions of dollars to charity, and why behavior is the most important factor in mastering your financial life.

Listen here.

Have you found yourself asking, “Who cares about diversification? Shouldn’t I put everything in the US market?” Here are a few reminders as to why we go global with our clients. 

It’s no secret the US market has performed exceptionally well over the past several years. Still, as the saying goes, you shouldn’t put all your eggs in one (market) basket.

• The US market hasn’t been the best performer this year. Sweden, Denmark, Finland, Ireland, and Norway all outperformed the US market in the third quarter of 2020, with Sweden pulling ahead of the US by almost 8%. In fact, over the past year, Sweden has outperformed the US market by 12.7%.
• There’s no reasonable way to predict which country’s market will outperform and when. Less than a year ago, Finland, for example, went from the third worst-performing market to the third-best market this past quarter.
• Guessing wrong could have a significant impact on returns. The difference between the best performing developed market (Sweden) and the worst-performing market (Portugal) was 20.7%. The gap was even wider amongst emerging markets, with 30.5% separating India at the top of the list and Turkey at the bottom.