Submitted by Creveling & Creveling Private Wealth Advisory on December 13th, 2016
By Peggy Creveling, CFA, and Chad Creveling, CFA
This article originally appeared in the American Chamber of Commerce of Thailand (AMCHAM)’s T-AB Magazine 5/2016 and has been shared with permission.
For many employed expats in Thailand, Thai Long-Term Equity Funds (LTFs) and Retirement Mutual Funds (RMFs) can provide worthwhile Thai tax benefits. This article discusses the merits of both types of investments, and highlights an important 2016 change to the LTF holding period. For a period of time U.S. citizens were unable to invest in LTFs and RMFs due to FATCA legislation; however, some Thai asset management companies are again accepting U.S. citizens.
Submitted by Creveling & Creveling Private Wealth Advisory on November 21st, 2016
By Peggy Creveling, CFA, and Chad Creveling, CFA
As you look for a holiday gift for your favorite expat, or perhaps just for some interesting reading for yourself over the holidays, have a look through our annual list of highly rated books from 2016, especially selected with the expat reader in mind. All can be easily purchased on the internet, and while some are more serious, some are just for fun. For those expats who may live far away, most of these titles have a digital version available, which makes getting them to your friend or loved one that much easier.
Submitted by Creveling & Creveling Private Wealth Advisory on November 14th, 2016
By Chad Creveling, CFA, and Peggy Creveling, CFA
If you live an expatriate lifestyle, your financial interests and obligations may be international or global. You may be paid in a foreign currency, have a spouse who is a different nationality, and have kids who are at home in places as far flung as Bangkok, Shanghai, London, and Chicago. Your home, assets, and liabilities may be scattered, you pay tax in more than one jurisdiction, and you may want the option to retire in a number of places. To match your situation, you want an investment portfolio that’s equally global and flexible.
Submitted by Creveling & Creveling Private Wealth Advisory on October 24th, 2016
By Chad Creveling, CFA, and Peggy Creveling, CFA
It's not news that we're facing a retirement crisis. According to a retirement security report by the U.S. Government Accountability Agency, "About half of (U.S.) households age 55 and older have no retirement savings (such as in a 401(k) plan or an IRA)…Many older households without retirement savings have few other resources, such as a defined benefit (DB) plan or nonretirement savings, to draw on in retirement." A number of structural issues—a shift away from corporate pensions, spiraling health care costs, lack of job stability, greater longevity, and the demise of the nuclear family—have contributed to the coming crisis.
Submitted by Creveling & Creveling Private Wealth Advisory on October 10th, 2016
By Peggy Creveling, CFA, and Chad Creveling, CFA
As a survey from earlier this year showed, one of the top concerns expats have is how they will finance retirement. We all know that saving for retirement is challenging—just the sheer amount of money required is a barrier for many. Saving for the future goes against human nature. Behavioral economic studies suggest that at a basic level, we're more strongly motivated by short-term concerns than long-term possibilities. We're also more likely to avoid pain before we seek out benefits. It follows that it's only human to resist cutting discretionary spending today (avoiding short-term pain) even if it’s at the expense of getting the retirement we want (a long-term benefit).
Submitted by Creveling & Creveling Private Wealth Advisory on September 27th, 2016
By Chad Creveling, CFA and Peggy Creveling, CFA
The Wall Street Journal invited Creveling & Creveling to be part of a panel of experts for personal finance on its WSJ Expat site. The following article originally appeared on the WSJ site and has been shared with permission:
Individual retirement accounts can be a great tool for those saving for retirement. The combination of tax-deductible contributions and tax deferral often allows funds to compound faster than in a taxable account.
But the problem for expats is that the IRA rules were written for the U.S. tax code, which can often conflict with the tax codes of the countries where they live and work. While a number of countries maintain double-taxation treaties with the U.S., so that expats don’t have to pay taxes in both countries, very few countries outside the U.S. allow expats to defer local taxes on their U.S. IRAs. IRA mistakes can be costly for U.S. expats.
Submitted by Creveling & Creveling Private Wealth Advisory on September 19th, 2016
By Peggy Creveling, CFA, and Chad Creveling, CFA
Expat Americans married to foreign spouses and who have kids who one day plan to attend college face special challenges (and opportunities) when saving for higher education. One challenge is simply the costs involved. In the U.S., university tuitions have been increasing at above-average inflation rates for years. Although one option to help cut the cost may be to send your kids to a non-U.S. school, universities outside the U.S. are also not as affordable as they used to be.
Submitted by Creveling & Creveling Private Wealth Advisory on August 29th, 2016
By Chad Creveling, CFA and Peggy Creveling, CFA
Nearly every expat who has lived outside their home country for a significant length of time will consider buying a home overseas. This may not be strictly a financial decision. Often, expats are looking to recapture a sense of stability and permanence or to forge a connection with the local community. Sometimes, we’re also hoping to participate in what appears to be a rapidly appreciating property market.
Submitted by Creveling & Creveling Private Wealth Advisory on July 25th, 2016
By Chad Creveling, CFA and Peggy Creveling, CFA
Living overseas can be filled with adventure, but it can also add complexity to your financial affairs. Even if you’re assisted by your company’s HR department, the complexity can make day-to-day management and long-term financial planning a time-consuming and overwhelming burden.
Submitted by Creveling & Creveling Private Wealth Advisory on July 19th, 2016
By Peggy Creveling, CFA and Chad Creveling, CFA
This article is for general information purposes only and is not intended as specific tax advice. Please consult your tax advisor for advice relevant to your situation.
If you're an American working overseas who's a contractor, sole proprietor, or small business owner, you may think that there are few U.S. tax-advantaged choices available to help you save for retirement. Those expats not working for U.S. firms are often unaware that they could be eligible to contribute to U.S. tax-advantaged retirement plans. Depending on your situation, however, there may be several alternatives from which to choose. The solo 401(k)―sometimes referred to as the single 401(k) or individual 401(k)―is one that can be a powerful retirement savings tool for some U.S. expats who are self-employed or who own a small business.
