January 2016

Happy New Year! We sincerely hope everyone had a very merry Christmas and a happy New Year's. With the start of a new year, we'd again like to thank all the fine folks that have put their faith in us and given us the opportunity to serve them with their retirement needs.

Now that 2016 is upon us, be prepared for the numerous changes in our industry that we've been speaking of in previous newsletters, especially on the insurance side of the equation. Check out our archived newsletters for more details on the upcoming changes to the insurance industry. On the securities side, regulators are continually trying to take control, and compliance has become almost a full time job! Some of that is good, but a lot of it is counterproductive and affects product offerings, etc. That in the long run hurts consumers - in a lot of cases. So, we'll have to stay on our toes and stay on top of it.

We'll be attending a nationwide Master Mind event the end of this month in Scottsdale, Arizona. We go to this event every year, and it will be attended by some of the top financial minds in the country. I know it will be extremely educational, and we'll learn a lot. We'll be sure to pass on what we learn when we get back from the conference in order to keep everyone up to speed.

Also, check out our website, because we've made some updates! We've added links to a PBS show called "Mastering Your Money" done by Josh Mellberg. Just go to the resources tab to find them. We believe these educational shows, which feature nationally recognized retirement planning experts, will bring great value to folks planning for retirement, and we're here to help with that process. Josh is a good friend of mine and an incredibly successful young man. He's an author, educator, television & radio show host, and he is one of America's top retirement planning specialists. He's the founder of JD Mellberg Financial in Tucson, Arizona, and we're fortunate to be part of his national retirement planning team. We'll be visiting with Josh and his team while at the Master Mind event I mentioned earlier. He always has great information to share, because he practically lives and breathes retirement income planning.

As always, remember that "applied knowledge is power" and "the purpose of the money dictates where you put it".

Enjoy this month's articles and we'll see you next month,

James D. Stillman

We'd also like to give a special thanks to those who attended our holiday party in early December. With your help we were able to donate almost 100 pounds of food and $100

to the Mooresville Soup Kitchen.

Social Security Changes Are Coming,

But Don't Panic!

Lake Norman Magazine, January 2016

We hope everyone had a great holiday season, a Merry Christmas, and a Happy New Year! It was nice to have a little time off to enjoy family, catch up on a few things, and get ready for the coming year. As always, there will be changes coming this year when it comes to retirement planning, investing, and insurance planning. That leads me to one big change that was signed into law in November 2015.

On November 2nd, a new bipartisan budget was signed into law by President Obama that will become effective in 6 months. Since 2000, retirees have been able to take advantage of a "loophole" in the Social Security system. It, in essence, allowed one spouse to draw on the other spouse's benefit while they allowed their own benefits to continue to grow. This strategy has been known as "file and restrict", because you would file, but restrict your benefit to half of your spouse's benefit while you continue to grow your own benefit amount. The spouse whose benefit was drawn upon could either be taking Social Security, or do what is called a "file and suspend". They would file, but suspend their benefit to a later date.

How this new law affects you depends on what group you fall in. (NOTE: If you are already drawing your Social Security benefits, then this does not apply to you.)

All content is intended for informational purposes only. Any guarantees are for insured products only and are dependent on the claims paying abilities of the insurer. All investments carry some risk and you should be advised by your personal financial advidor before implementing any strategies discussed, as they are not suitable for everyone. James D. Stillman is an Investment Advisor Representative of JDS Wealth Management Corporation and Global Financial Private Capital.

JDS Wealth Management Corporation's outgoing and incoming e-mails are electronically archived and subject to review and/or disclosure to someone other than the recipient. We cannot accept requests for securities transactions or other similar instructions through e-mail. We cannot ensure the security of information e-mailed over the Internet, so you should be careful when transmitting confidential information such as account numbers and security holdings. If the reader of this message is not the intended recipient, or an employee or agent responsible for delivering this message to the intended recipient, you are hereby notified that any dissemination, distribution or copying of this communication is strictly prohibited. If you have received this communication in error, please notify us immediately by replying to this message and deleting it from your computer."

This Month

Social Security Changes Are Coming, But Don't Panic!

It's Important to Stay Patient

Investor Resolutions for 2016