Kingdom Advisors equips Christian financial advisors to bring their faith into their practice with the industry-recognized Certified Kingdom Advisor designation. We bring those advisors together with other industry leaders to form a vibrant network. And through that network, we give them the resources, tools, and encouragement they need to serve clients like you, helping you align your values with your financial decisions and investments. To learn more, visit kingdomadvisors.com. Generosity can begin with a simple gift, but when it becomes a family rhythm, its impact can last for generations.
Hi, I'm Rob West. We want our children to experience the joy of giving, but generosity rarely develops by accident. Sharon Epps joins us today with practical ways to cultivate a generous spirit in your family from the early years through adulthood. And then it's on to your phone calls at 800-525-7000. That's 800-525-7000.
This is Faith in Finance, biblical wisdom for your financial decisions.
Well, it's always a pleasure to welcome Sharon Epps back to the program. Sharon is president of Kingdom Advisors, our parent ministry, which equips Christian financial professionals to integrate biblical wisdom into the advice and guidance they provide. Sharon, as always, great to have you back. I'm glad to be here. Sharon, you're also the co-founder of Women Doing Well, a ministry that helps women discover greater purpose and joy and generosity and encourages them to cultivate that same spirit in their families.
So, this topic is especially meaningful to you, I know. Let's take a look at generosity opportunities, perhaps by age group. When parents want to nurture generosity in young children, let's say, where do they begin? Oh, I love this because often we think, well, they need to be able to count money before they can be generous. But no, we can model giving through just simple and short activities and kids learn by watching us.
So take them with you when you go to buy groceries and then drop them off at a food bank. Let them see. The groceries, not the kids, right? I love for them to be able to see you in action. Yes.
Another idea would be to host a reverse birthday party. And that's where the guests actually bring gifts for a charity that your child helps to choose. Wow. Age appropriate, of course. They may still expect a little something, but it's great to have something to give away as well.
And then, finally, for this age group, keep some blank cards handy and let them draw or even write some little letters, an encouragement note that you can just send to somebody in need. Oh, I love those ideas. They are so practical. What are some other practical, hands-on ways families can help perhaps elementary children experience the joy of giving?
Well, as they get older, you can volunteer side by side at a local ministry, and especially one that might be serving other children. And then you can also begin sponsoring a child on maybe your child's fifth birthday and let them sponsor a child a similar age. That's always a great journey for them to grow together. Man, those are great. As children enter their teenage years, Sharon, how can parents connect generosity to the causes and interests they already care about?
Well, this is where we really want to connect with their passions.
So, if they're interested in hiking, for instance, perhaps they could help invest in a Christian family camp. Spring break or other holidays could become a serve week where you do fun things and help charity. My kids, for instance, went on spring break mission trips growing up. They continued it in college because it just became what we do. And I think that's exactly right.
Now, generosity often involves sacrifice.
So, what are some creative ways parents can help teenagers experience the cost and the joy of giving?
Well, this is where you can involve them experientially.
So, you know, there's a survivor pantry challenge where you live off of what's already in the house and limit your grocery purchases. That's something that can be fun, but also educational for those older kids. Yeah, that is so good. All right.
Now, as we transition into adulthood, what does it look like to encourage generosity there? Oh, there's so many great things, but one of the ones I would encourage you to think about is opening a donor advise fund in their name, help seed it, and perhaps match money that they add to give away to others. This is great. Sharon, what I love. Here is that yes, we can give money, but we can give so much more than that.
We can give through our service, we can give through our time. And this has really been a hallmark of your teaching for a long time: is that we need to expand our view of generosity, don't we? It really is a whole life purpose-filled generosity that makes a difference. And, Sharon, you've seen the fruit of this. Perhaps one story that comes to mind from your own family as you've done this with your kids.
Oh, absolutely. In fact, my daughter adopted a compassion child when she was five and kept up with her all the way through as they aged out, and it was a beautiful experience. That is so good.
Well, it's clear generosity is caught more than taught. And when families practice it together, they plant seeds that can grow for a lifetime. Sharon, great ideas. Thanks for stopping by today. Glad to be here.
That's Sharon Epps, president of Kingdom Advisors. By the way, if you want to learn more about Kingdom Advisors, perhaps share Kingdom Advisors with your advisor, just head to kingdomadvisors.com or direct your Your advisor to do the same. That's kingdomadvisors.com. All right, a quick break and then back with your questions after this. The number 800-525-7000.
That's 800-525-7000. We'll be right back. I was in ministry full-time and I was always looking for a way to integrate my faith with this new industry around money and finances. This is Mark. He is a certified kingdom advisor.
As a CKA, one of the best things I offer my clients is trust in knowing that they're working with a professional that understands their values. And I think in all of the different challenges that clients go through, if we can go back to trusting in God, then He'll make the path straight. You can find an advisor like Mark at findaceka.com. FaithFi's preferred banking partner is Christian Community Credit Union, now joined with Adelphi, a division of CCCU, bringing you the best in Christian banking for greater kingdom impact. With high-yield checking, savings, Visa cash back cards, and a new competitive high-yield money market account, your everyday banking helps advance the gospel.
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Uh I'm so glad you joined us today on Faith and Finance. Whatever your questions are today, anything in your financial life, we've got lines open. You can call right now, 800-525-7000. That's 800-525-7000. Our team is standing by.
All right, let's take some phone calls today. We're going to dive in and begin in Missouri. Frank, you'll be our first caller. Go ahead, sir. Yes, Rob, I listen to you all the time and I get some good advice, but my question today is.
is I have an annuity and I'm wanting to buy an investment property. a second home basically And I want to know. I've talked to people and they said that you can get a loan because I have money in Fidality. To show that I have the assets to pay the two hundred thousand that I'm going to borrow. But my question is, they told me that if I get that, then I could take my annuity out and pay the loan off and I wouldn't be taxed on that.
It wouldn't be considered earned income.
Now, my question is, is that True, that I can do that without getting hit with them taxes on the money from my annuity. Yes, it really depends. I mean, a loan is not taxable because you're borrowing money and agreeing to repay it. An annuity withdrawal is different. When you withdraw earnings from a tax deferred annuity, those earnings are taxed as ordinary income.
If it's a qualified annuity held in an IRA or something else, the entire distribution is taxable unless there are after-tax contributions.
So, using the annuity proceeds to pay off a loan doesn't eliminate or reduce the tax on the annuity distribution.
Some annuity contracts do, in fact, allow loans, but most annuities do not. It's not like a 401k, which commonly offers loans. They're much more common, not only with 401ks, but with life insurance policies than annuities. But even if they do offer it, ultimately, that withdrawal that you would take would be taxable, at least in part, if not in full. Yeah.
Well, that's what I was trying to figure out a way. That I could do that without having to get hit with that tax at the end of the year because that'll be a pretty big chunk of money coming back out. Yeah.
So you clearly want to get some tax advice on that before you make a decision because this is a big factor here in how you proceed.
So I'd connect with the CPA just to look at your specific situation, exactly what type of annuity you have, what features are there, whether it's loans or otherwise. And then, you know, if you do need to take a withdrawal, what portion of that would be taxable so you can run some models on that and determine kind of what that tax hit would be because that may cause you to make a decision one way or the other. Yeah, it came close to saying I'm gonna break the bank when you gotta write that check at the first of the year. Yeah, exactly. Exactly right, Jake.
Hey, we appreciate you being a regular listener, my friend. And let's do this. Stay on the line. I'm going to send you the latest issue of our magazine, Faithful Steward, just as a thanks for being on the program today. Appreciate you very much.
Thank you. All right, take care. Let's go to Norton, Ohio. Dave, how can I help? Yes, I set up a trust for my wife.
She was in a facility with Alzheimer's, and she just passed a couple of years ago. I was wondering how often should you review a trust? And should I redo the thing? Yeah, a good rule of thumb on this, Dave, is to review your trust every three to five years, even if nothing major happened.
Now, anytime there's a significant life event, you need to review it.
So, since your wife has passed, and I'm sorry to hear that, this is one of those major life events that need a review because beneficiaries may need to be updated, successor trustees need to change, assets need to be retitled in the name of the trust. I suspect that's already been done. But your wishes or family circumstances may be different now. And if the trust was designed as a joint revocable living trust, part of it may have become irrevocable at your wife's passing, depending on how it was written.
So, definitely need to have that reviewed, sir. Hey, we appreciate your call today. We'll go to Indiana. Steve, how can I help? Hi, Rob.
Thanks for taking my call, sir. Um I have a question. I'm looking to get equity out of my home. Probably have two hundred fifty thousand of Mercury So I'm looking to tap into that Don't particularly like the cash out refines because I'm at three point eight five interest. On my mortgage.
So I'm asking about the home equity investment programs. If you know anything about them and if they are. Legitimate programs, I guess, is what I'm seeking. Yeah.
Yeah.
Yeah.
These are also called home equity sharing agreements. They're legitimate products offered by established companies, but they're expensive, and I'm not a big fan. I mean, the biggest con is you give up part of your home's appreciation.
So if your home increases significantly in value, the company. May receive much more than the amount they originally gave you. It can also be much more expensive than a traditional loan. While there are no monthly interest payments, the total cost at the end of the agreement can exceed what you would have paid by far on a home equity loan or a HELOC. There's also significant upfront and closing costs.
So, you know, they have origination fees, appraisal title, other closing expenses, and you're going to have less equity later. There's also limited flexibility.
So, if you want to refinance or sell or buy out the agreement early, there may be some restrictions or an expensive buyout calculation. And then, of course, you still are responsible for the taxes and the insurance and the maintenance.
So, not all these contracts are the same. The valuation formulas or the appreciation sharing percentages, the fees can vary significantly.
So, you've got to read the agreement. Carefully. But if you expect your home to appreciate substantially or you can qualify reasonably for an another option, I would certainly look at that. What is your age, if you don't mind me asking, Steve? I'm seventy one.
I'm living off Social Security. We don't particularly want to move, but we kind of need a cash flow influx. Um just for security purposes.
So Yeah, okay. Yeah, I mean, I like the home equity conversion mortgage. The reverse mortgage is a better option to the ATI. You keep all of your home's appreciation. You're borrowing against your equity, but you're not selling a share of your future home value.
You don't have the mortgage payment, so you've got the optional payment.
So, as long as you live in your home as your primary residence and you keep paying the property taxes, insurance, and maintenance, which you would have to do anyway, then you don't have to make a payment.
So, that could affect, you know, number one, you don't have to make a payment, but number two, you could convert it to a monthly income stream. Most commonly, people take it as a line of credit, but if you are trying to solve for an income gap, you could turn it into an income stream. And, you know, that can be really helpful.
Now, they have costs as well. The interest accrues over time, the loan becomes due, and you move out permanently, sell the home, or pass away. But compared with an HEI, you know, you have a growing loan balance, but you retain all future appreciation. With the HEI, you don't make loan payments, but you give away part of your home's future appreciation.
So I think that home equity conversion mortgage for a borrower sixty two and older is going to be my preferred option there. Gotcha.
So that would that's the reverse mortgage debt. Yeah, exactly right. Do you have a product that you would recommend there? Movement Mortgage is our preferred vendor there. They're an underwriter of this program, and they're run by believers, and they really specialize in this area.
So if you go to faithfy.com/slash movement, Just like it sounds like faithfi.com/slash movement. I'll also let you hold the line, and our team can connect you personally if that's helpful. But that would be my better approach. And Harlan Akola, who literally wrote the book, Home Equity and Reverse Mortgages, is our go-to guy. You'll hear him regularly on this broadcast.
He leads with education, he leads the team at movement. He's an expert in this area and can kind of walk you through all the mechanics of it and apply it to your specific situation.
So hang on the line, Steve, and we'll get you connected. Thanks for your call today. Hey, a quick break and then back with more questions after this. 800-525-7000. Stick around.
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Great to have you with us today on Faith and Finance. We're taking your calls at 800-525-7000. Let's go to Michigan. Glenn, how can I help? I've got a good problem here that I need to deal with.
There's a potential that I may be going on a couple of missionary trips. And I'm 62 years old now. I'm single and I don't have a lot of family. And I feel the Holy Spirit saying, you need to get some type of will. You need to get, like Hezekiah was told, your house in order.
And that can mean various things. Spiritually, he's getting my house in order. to be a good steward with some of the talents I have because I feel like I'm burying a lot both physical talents and financial talents.
So my house is really getting cleaned up and put in order right now, and it's discomforting in a lot of ways, but it's good. And it's a trial. And I'm posed with the problem now of the protocol, how to put together a will or a trust, what's the difference between the two. whether I need a power of attorney to execute these documents and these wishes of possession to have property and Some of the investments I do have.
So I'm praying you could possibly get me on the right track here. Yeah.
Well, I'd be delighted to. And I'm so thrilled to hear that you're headed out on the mission field. And I think, you know, we always need to have our house in order, but it's interesting how trips like this cause us to say, wait a minute, maybe now I have that reason to go ahead and get that thing done that I've been putting off. And so, regardless of what the reason is, I'm glad that you are getting your house in order. And that includes preparing for the next steward, this last stewardship decision you will make as to where whatever God has entrusted to you will be then passed on to the next steward.
And you've highlighted a couple of tools here: a will and a trust. The difference between the two is, at its core, a will is instructions for what happens after you die. A trust is a tool that can manage assets during your life if you become incapacitated and after death. And it doesn't all have to be distributed immediately after death. Your trustee could distribute it based on certain conditions over time.
So let's talk about those differences.
So the will, again, takes effect only after death. and is going to involve the probate court. Which means there's going to take some time. There's going to be some cost from the probate court. It could take anywhere from a couple of months to six months, depending on how complicated your situation is.
It will become a part of the public record, so it's not anonymous. But in the will, you would name who gets assets. And the other thing that wouldn't apply here is if you had a minor child, it would name the guardian. But the primary thing is it just articulates the instructions for who gets your assets. It's simple to do, it's less expensive to set up.
But again, the probate can be time consuming and costly. The revocable living trust, what people often refer to as a trust, again, works during your life and after death, avoids probate, so everything goes immediately, stays private, not a part of the public record. And you can control through the trust document how and when your assets are distributed. Which the pros are obvious: faster distribution, more control, privacy. The downside is you've got to move the assets into the trust.
So they have to be retitled, including a home. And there's more cost to set it up.
So think of the will as a simple set of instructions. The trust is like a container that holds and manages the assets.
So it's not an either-or, it's just really, you know, which one is necessary depending on your situation. If you have a simple estate with few assets and you're not concerned about probate, a will will do just fine. If you want to avoid probate, you want privacy, you own property in multiple states, or you want control over the distributions, you don't want it all just to happen automatically at death.
Well, then a trust could serve that purpose. Do you do it yourself kind of through one of the online sites, or do you get professional help? My general recommendation is to get a local godly estate planning attorney who could help with this. Ask the right questions, make sure it complies with your state. You know, could do the other documents at the same time.
The healthcare surrogate, the person you'd want alongside you to make health-related decisions if you're unable to do so, the living will end-of-life decisions around life support and other issues. The durable power of attorney, the person that can make legal or financial decisions on your behalf if you're unable to do so. All those things could be done at once alongside the will and the trust.
So, I generally recommend with something as important as this is that you get an attorney to do that for you. Do you have to? No. There are some great online solutions. For instance, there's one that's been advertising a lot lately: trustandwill.com.
And if you do the You look at the reviews, you'll see they get excellent reviews. I mean, Trust Pilot, which is probably one of the most well-known independent review sites, they give it a four and a half out of five stars. And the summary of the reviews is that most reviewers have an overwhelmingly great experience, and it's easy, and it's simple, and it's straightforward.
So, you could do that and save some money. And that would probably be one of the ones that I would go to. But again, I think you could knock out a lot of things at once, make sure it's done right, and do that with an attorney. But let me stop there and get your questions. Are there any Christian organizations like the Timothy Plan that specializes in those will type issues?
Not an online low-cost solution. I mean, there's plenty of godly estate planning attorneys, and every certified kingdom advisor would probably have one that they could refer you to.
So you could go to findaca.com to find a cka there in Michigan and then ask for a referral to a godly estate attorney. But in terms of a website, like a do-it-yourself option that is Christian operated and owned, I'm not familiar with one. If there is one, I'd love to know about it.
So, the Certified Kingdom Advisory, I would just go to that site and they would find.
Some godly attorneys in my area. Is that what you're saying?
Well, there's far less CKAs that are attorneys that are state planning attorneys. Most of them are in the financial planning or the investment space. But any of those CKAs there in your area, if you called and say, listen, I listen to Faith and Finance. Yeah, Rob said if I called you, you could refer me to whoever the estate planning attorney is you refer your clients to. They would all have one in your area they could refer you to, and that would be a great referral source.
So that sounds like a good start. Start with the certified kingdom advisor's direction. Um then Okay. Um yeah, this is something I'm sure uh a lot of your listeners uh deal with. Maybe not, but I I've been a pretty much a selfish person all my life and I'd rather see a lot of stuff got free my my wallet and then my finances up so I can I've been very blessed to be debt-free for over 15 years.
Everything's paid for. That's great. And he's got me to a point where, you know, all right, I'm giving you a social security check now and a pension check and the scripture of too much has been given, much will be expected. Yes. Amen.
Well, it sounds like you're doing a great job managing that as a wise and faithful steward. Head over to findacaka.com and thanks for raising this issue. 65 to 75% of Americans don't have a will and they should. Folks, thanks for being with us today. Thanks to my team today, Devin, Roberts, and Taylor.
We'll see you tomorrow. Faith in Finance is provided by FaithFy and listeners like you.
