WLIM’s Otto Rivera answers how he would invest $50,000 right now.
Click to read on Market Watch.
Click to download the PDF of the article.
By using our website you have entered into a binding agreement to accept our terms of use. Please read these terms carefully. They affect your legal rights and limit our liability. If you do not agree to be bound by every one of these terms, please exit our site immediately.
We may modify these Terms at any time without notice to you. The latest Terms will be posted on our Website. By using the website after we have posted modifications, you agree to be bound by the modifications. If you do not accept the Terms as modified, do not continue to use the Website.
We grant you a limited, non-exclusive, non-transferable, revocable license, without any right to sublicense, to use our Website strictly in accordance with the Terms. You may use the Website solely for personal, non-commercial purposes, and not for republication, distribution, assignment, sublicense, sale, preparation of derivative works, or any other use. Commercial use of any content on the Website is absolutely forbidden. You may not print out or use an electronic version of any part of our Website. You agree not to copy materials, content or any other information on the Website, reverse engineer or break into (hack) the Website, or use materials, products or services in violation of any state or federal law.
You agree to comply with all applicable domestic and international laws, statutes, ordinances and regulations regarding your use of our Website. In addition, you agree not to manipulate or otherwise display the Website by using framing or similar navigational technology. You agree not to access the Website by any means other than through the standard industry-accepted interfaces. You will not use the Website for any purpose that is unlawful or prohibited by these Terms. You may not use the Website in any manner which could damage, disable, interrupt, over burden, or impair the Website or WLIM’s network or servers, or interfere with any other party’s use and enjoyment of the Website. You may not attempt to gain unauthorized access to the Website, other accounts, computer systems or networks connected to the Website, through hacking, password mining or any other means. You may not obtain or attempt to obtain any materials or information through any means not intentionally made available through the Website. In addition, you shall not register, subscribe, attempt to register, attempt to subscribe, unsubscribe, or attempt to unsubscribe, any party for the Website if you are not expressly authorized by such party to do so.
You and we are independent contractors. This Agreement in no way creates any agency, partnership, joint venture, employee-employer or franchisor-franchisee relationship between us.
All content on the Website, including but not limited to designs, data and databases, text, graphics, images, photographs, illustrations, audio and video material, artwork, proprietary information, client-side code (e.g. HTML, JavaScript, etc.), server-side code (e.g. active server pages, VBScript, databases, etc.), information and statistics concerning the use of the Website, and all copyrightable elements of the Website, and their selection and arrangement (collectively, “Content”) are the property of WLIM. Our Content is protected by U.S. copyright law, international treaties and other intellectual property rights. Except as otherwise stated herein, Content may not be copied, transmitted, displayed, performed, distributed (for compensation or otherwise), licensed, altered, framed, stored for subsequent use or otherwise used in whole or in part in any manner without our prior written consent, except to the extent permitted by the Copyright Act of 1976 (17 U.S.C. §107), as amended, and then, only with notices of our proprietary rights. You may, however, download the information in the Website and print out hard copies for your own personal, noncommercial use, so long as you do not remove any copyright or other notice as may be contained in the information as downloaded.
This Website is intended for adults aged 18 years or older. Any registration by, use of or access to our Website by anyone under age 18, is unauthorized, unlicensed and in violation of these Terms of Use. By using our Website you represent and warrant that you are 18 or older and that you agree to and to abide by all of the terms and conditions of this Agreement.
[WLIM has sole right and discretion to determine whether to accept a Client, and may reject a Client with or without explanation.
If you become a Client, you will receive a password that will allow you to access to a secure section of our Website. You agree to maintain the confidentiality of your password and are fully responsible for all liability and damages resulting from your failure to maintain that confidentiality and all activities that occur through the use of your password.
You agree to immediately notify us of any unauthorized use of your password or any other breach of security. You agree that our Website cannot and will not be liable for any loss or damage arising from your failure to comply with password security as discussed herein.]
Your use of the Website creates no professional relationship of any kind between you and WLIM. Nothing contained in our Website shall constitute financial, investment, legal and/or other professional advice to or for you. You hereby agree that you shall not make any financial, investment, legal and/or other decision based in whole or in part on anything contained in our Website.
We reserve the right, and you authorize us, to use and assign of all of your information regarding your use of our Website in any manner consistent with our Privacy Policy.
All remarks, suggestions, ideas, graphics, or other information communicated by you to us (collectively, “Submission”) is considered assigned to us and is as such considered our property. We will not be required to treat any Submission as confidential, and will not be liable for any ideas (including without limitation, product, service or advertising ideas) and will not incur any liability as a result of any similarities that may appear in our future products, services or operations.
Without limitation, we will have exclusive ownership of all present and future existing rights to the Submission of every kind and nature everywhere. We will be entitled to use the Submission for any commercial or other purpose whatsoever, without compensation to you or any other person sending the Submission. You acknowledge that you are responsible for whatever material you submit, and you, not us, have full responsibility for the message, including its legality, reliability, appropriateness, originality, and copyright.
We may assign these Terms and our rights hereunder, in whole or in part, to a third party, in our sole discretion, in connection with a merger, acquisition, reorganization or sale of substantially all of our assets, or otherwise. You may not assign, sublicense, or delegate any of your rights hereunder.
Our Privacy Policy is considered part of this Agreement. You should review this Privacy Policy by clicking on this link.
WLIM’s Otto Rivera answers how he would invest $50,000 right now.
Click to read on Market Watch.
Click to download the PDF of the article.
The National spoke with WLIM’s Jonathan Lachowitz about the impact of FATCA on Americans living abroad.
Click to read the article
L’Agefi spoke with WLIM’s Jonathan Lachowitz about Switzerland switching from Model 2 of FATCA reporting to the IRS to Model 1, then, financial institutions will provide data to the Swiss Federal Tax Administration.
Click to read the article
“Where will you keep your money to ensure financial security? Jonathan Lachowitz, chairman of American Citizens Abroad, told The Wall Street Journal it is advised for Americans retiring abroad to keep most of their money in their U.S. bank accounts. Doing so allows them to take advantage of their 401(k)s and individual retirement accounts.”
Read the article
““Expats have to be motivated and persistent problem solvers,” said Jonathan Lachowitz, chairman of American Citizens Abroad, a nonprofit focused on tax and other issues that Americans living abroad face.
He recommends joining expat groups and online forums to find people who have already made the move. Banking, immigration and tax policies can change frequently, so double check everything you hear, said Lachowitz, who also is the founder of White Lighthouse Investment Management of Lexington, Mass., and Lausanne, Switzerland. “
“According to Jonathan Lachowitz, a certified financial planner who works in Switzerland and the US, “most American employers have overseas entities, so employees end up being locally hired. Some employees on a typical “expat” package will end up paying US social security but not local social security due to a totalization agreement, which is generally the countries that have the most Americans overseas.””
“…Jonathon Lachowitz added that interest in reforming CBT went beyond the ACA membership. “Our advocacy efforts in Washington, D.C., tell us that congressional offices are hearing from a wide range of individuals, businesses and organizations calling for tax reform for Americans overseas,” he said.”
“Founder of White Lighthouse in Lausanne, Jonathan Lachowitz is a specialist with planning offices active in Lausanne and the United States. The excruciating complexities of tax regimes do not scare him.”
It has now become difficult or impossible for some overseas Americans – especially those with lower incomes and savings amounts – to buy U.S.-listed exchange traded funds (ETFs).
“You’re hearing it already,” said Jonathan Lachowitz, a financial planner at White Lighthouse Investment Management, who said he has heard discussions about leaving the country and renouncing citizenship or other legal tax planning moves due to Democrats’ tax plans from several multimillionaires. “As the frustration mounts and tax burdens rise, people will consider it, just the way you have New Yorkers moving to Florida.”
“The impact on overseas Americans is potentially much more grave than for domestic Americans,” said Jonathan Lachowitz, chairman of the advocacy group American Citizens Abroad.
"The Tax Fairness for Americans Abroad: An Idea Worth Fighting For! campaign reflects what the founding fathers of America fought for, and won, the battle for tax fairness. Americans overseas want the same." said Jonathan Lachowitz, ACA Chairman.
It might be as straightforward as advanced tax or estate planning, or as narrow and sophisticated as what Jonathan Lachowitz, CFP, does for his clients. His firm, White Lighthouse Investment Management, specializes in cross-border financial planning. His knowledge of tax and estate planning in different countries makes him uniquely qualified for, for example, executives working abroad. “…The complexity of the work is almost beyond comprehension. Imagine doing estate planning for an American married to an Italian living and working in France with property in the United States, Italy, and France. No unlimited marital deduction for starters.”
“Jonathan Lachowitz specialises in cross-border financial planning and said: "People don't realise the complexity. Find a colleague who made a similar move recently.”
The ACA letter is signed by ACA executive director Marylouise Serrato; ACA chairman Jonathan Lachowitz, who is also a founder of White Lighthouse Investment Management, with offices in Massachusetts and Switzerland; and ACA’s legal counselor Charles Bruce, a lawyer with Bonnard Lawson.
“I prefer to fight to change the system. Since 2006 I’ve been a volunteer for American Citizens Abroad, a nonpartisan, nonprofit organization founded in 1978 in Geneva and now based in Washington, DC. I’m part of the executive team there. Our mission is very clear: “educate, advocate and inform”. Our main purpose is not only to educate Americans overseas, but also to meet with US government officials in Washington to try and improve policy as it affects Americans overseas. Our most well-known project is advocacy for residency-based taxation. Our proposal has gotten a lot of traction in the Senate Finance Committee and the Joint Committee on Taxation for its professionalism and even-keeled approach.”
“I asked my two favorite financial gurus for their help: Jonathan Lachowitz and Joe Saul-Sehy. Jonathan runs White Lighthouse, an investment management firm (and, for full disclosure, my financial advisor), and Joe is a retired financial planner who now runs the top-rated podcast, Stacking Benjamins(again, for full disclosure, I'm a frequent, but unpaid, guest on this podcast).”
“Jennifer Keehl Davenport and her family moved to Zurich three years ago for her husband's job.
Despite the international address, they decided to continue investing in 529 plan college savings accounts, which they had opened for their two girls, now ages 4 and 8, before leaving the States.”
“People rarely understand the complexity of cross-border moves,” says Jonathan Lachowitz, founder of White Lighthouse Investment Management of Lexington, Mass., and Lausanne, Switzerland. “You have to give planning a lot of time.”
“FATCA requires foreign banks to report accounts of U.S. citizens to the U.S. government, and U.S. citizens living abroad must report their financial assets in foreign accounts if their foreign assets exceed a threshold. "Because of FATCA, a lot of banks don't want to work with Americans," Lachowitz says. Those that will may charge an extra fee.”