Ernst & Young's Personal Financial Planning Guide Special Tax Edition

I've owned several reference books over the years on financial planning and/or taxes, and the ones I always reach for first are the E & Y guides, and this book is no exception. This is a no-nonsense, no fluff guide (unlike the several Suze Orman books I bought and then gave away) that is clear and complete. Highly recommended.

I use this book basically because I am a financial planner. Some of the advice I gave out are similar to those in this book. My clients appreciate the advice, ideas and insight a lot. This book gives you impartial, insightful and authoritative advice on almost all major topics in financial planning. It gives you not only the ideas and solutions but also the reasoning and analysis behind them. Not many authors can do that. I recommend this book to all financial planners and lay people who really care about their finances, future and well-being.

Ernst & Young has the reputation and qualification for good financial planning advisory and consultancy. There are just too many so-called financial planners around preaching quack financial planning ideas, but this is not one of them. As a matter of fact, the financial planning ideas presented by Ernst & Young is very complete, sound, and logical. This book is also one of the recommended references in some Certified Financial Planning (CFP) courses. The book starts with fundamental financial planning ideas - investment planning, insurance planning, estate planning and retirement planning, all which integrate very well with Ernst & Young's specialty - tax planning. The ideas are presented in easy to read, integrated and complete. It progresses slowly into more indepth financial planning concept. The 2nd part of the book deals with life planning - financial planning with regards to being singles, getting married, divorce, having a newborn, retiring, starting a new business, etc. Overall, this book is one of the best books in the market on financial planning. It is complete, covers all the essential areas of financial planning. The financial planning ideas are sound, logical and presented extremely well for those new to financial planning, and also to those already experienced.

As a tax professional and tax educator, I recognized many years ago that tax & financial illiteracy is a major problem amongst taxpayers. For example, consider: 1. how many wage-earners do not even understand all the deductions posted on their pay statements -- or that net pay is not the same as taxable income; or 2. how many people do not understand that the basic tax equation is "tax liability = tax base x tax rate" -- and that tax rate alone is not enough information to calculate one's tax liability; or 3. how many people think capital gains taxes paid are a "bad thing" -- when in fact, they are frequently a "subsidy" provided to wealthier taxpayers at the expense of wage-earners; or 4. how many people are eligible for some form of deferred compensation [401(k)plan, 403(b) plan etc] but they either do not participate or do not participate fully; etc, etc, etc.In an effort to promote "Basic Tax Literacy," I highly recommend the EY-PFP Guide as a highly accessible & understandable guide for teens and above. This book makes a wonderful gift for all life events -- coming of age ceremonies, graduations, marriage, birth of child, divorce, mid-life crisis, pre-retirement, retirement. It could even serve as a textbook for certain courses and seminars.

This 3rd edition is a useful tool for people who are either starting to understand personal financial planning or those who have years of practical experience but want the latest information available. Complex concepts are explained clearly and concisely. There are no major gaps in the information provided. The book is well organized. Part II which uses a life-event approach to financial planning will be most helpful for people beginning to understand personal financial planning or facing a major life-event.I enjoyed reading the book and found it filled with exactly the information I was seeking to improve my own personal financial planning. The format was very understandable and will allow me to continue using the book as a reference.