Business

Tax planning is an indoor sport, usually only played by adults. This particular tax game is played for the benefit of younger family members. Most are about 4 years old or younger… 50 is good, but the younger the better. Actually, we train our clients to call when the baby is born. Full story »

Gimmicks have made people rich before, and it’s a gimmick that Marco Islander Jim Gratkowski thinks might just do the trick for him. In the heady tradition of the Pet Rock, the Chia Pet and The Clapper, Gratkowski has secured a patent on his Slam Timer, a bar-top device that measures how fast one chugs a drink. Full story »

“Longevity risk” is one of the newer financial buzz words. It’s a fancy way of saying we could live too long and run out of money. There are many things we can do to minimize the risk of this occurring but the adjustments are all to “money side” of the equation rather than to the “longevity side.” Full story »

As I travel the country, speaking to numerous groups in varied industries, with different clientele or customers, and unique challenges, there’s still a common occurrence. It usually goes something like this: At some point, either during or immediately following a program, a participant says to me: “Jeff, while listening to you, I had an ah-ha moment!” “It was amazing, I now realize...” or... “I had an epiphany!” Full story »

Returning to his roots after a teaching sabbatical in Nevada, attorney Gary J. Hausler has joined the Law offices of William G. Morris on Marco Island. Full story »

Pollo Tropical opened its second Naples restaurant on Monday. The newest location for the Miami-based, Latin/Caribbean chain is 3777 U.S. 41 East, about one mile from Airport-Pulling Road. Full story »

Jeff, what most influences employee satisfaction? Although my clients have annual revenues from less than $1 million to billions, there are certain key “employee satisfiers” that are common and crucial to any size company. Full story »

It’s easy to lose — big dollars — to the IRS… almost always unnecessarily. Following are some easy-to-do (tax-saving and wealth-building) strategies that we have done hundreds of times, yet are little known. Why? Because most professional advisors don’t know how to implement them. Full story »

“We are licensed and insured. We offer safe, reliable, on-time and affordable service. Call for pricing. If you need it moved today, Capt. Phil is on the way.” — Capt. Phil Lawler Full story »

Working towards being an environmentally conscious institution has become a priority at Florida Gulf Coast University. This was the message from Dr. Wilson Bradshaw, the university’s third president, during an address at a Marco Island Area Chamber of Commerce business before breakfast session held April 25 at the Marco Island Yacht Club. Full story »

I’m not in the business of giving hot investment tips because I much prefer a properly allocated and diversified portfolio, but I will gladly share a hot tip with you though. It’s a thought process tip and extremely helpful in all sorts of situations. Ask yourself this simple question if you find yourself a bit perplexed over just about anything; “How important is it?” Full story »

Sink your teeth into a juicy hot dog at lunch time Friday and help put the bite on muscular dystrophy. That’s the message from Kim Escarra and Raul Medina from SunTrust Mortgage and SunTrust Bank respectively. Full story »

While you certainly value the time they spend working for your company, as a business owner you want to help your employees in their efforts to save for the time when they can finally retire. But establishing and maintaining a plan that will let your employees’ savings grow tax-deferred does come with additional responsibilities. Full story »

“Sushi is good because it is healthy. There’s no grease, and the presentation is always nice. I think this bar is going to be great. We want people to walk away from here and say that’s the best sushi they’ve ever tasted. Our prices are competitive, too.” — Luis Morales Full story »

It’s almost 100 percent guaranteed. What? That half of the family wealth will be lost to the IRS when the following words are spoken to me by a closely held business owner who is talking about transferring his business to his kids and/or his estate plan. Full story »