Treyton DeVore, who runs his own financial planning firm, AllStreet Wealth, and writes for Creatorbread, and is a freelance consultant (I’m out of breath just typing all that), explained his process.
“I usually review transactions weekly just to make sure everything's in order with no unexpected expenses.”
You can do this with accounting software. Treyton uses Wave, but there are lots to choose from.
An example of an unexpected expense? “We had to fax something—which was just insane in itself. We used an online fax service and it was 25 cents. Later, we got billed $90 for a subscription to this thing, and we had no idea about it. Little things can always come up, especially with subscriptions.”
Why bother tracking your business costs? Because you can deduct biz expenses that the IRS considers “ordinary and necessary.” Examples could include home office expenses and car mileage and depreciation. And, great news—you can take the standard deduction for your personal income and itemize your business deductions at the same time.
“The biggest thing that an LLC does, and especially for freelancers, is create that layer of protection between your personal assets and the business assets,” DeVore told Money Scoop. Each state has its own rules and regulations around how your business can be considered for an LLC.
An LLC can be taxed either like a sole proprietorship or partnership, or it can be taxed like a S–Corporation. This can have great tax benefits, because you can treat business owners as employees and put them on payroll, which can reduce the amount of self-employment taxes you need to pay.
But keep in mind, the salary must be “reasonable” and not too low. This means that non-wage distributions (which aren’t subject to self employment taxes) from your S-Corp can’t replace your payroll.
Published on March 29, 2022
Published on January 3rd, 2023
First, the new year is a good time to improve how your business works, DeVore says.
In particular, look at automating as many routine tasks as possible. This is particularly important for financial professionals given how many advisors work for themselves or in a small business.
“Being independent is tough because you have to manage your personal and business finances on your own, which can be very overwhelming,” DeVore says. “When you’re a business of one, time is your most valuable asset, so you need to reduce time spent on repeatable tasks.”
Relatedly, the new year is a time to improve the tools you already use.
“In my experience, it really comes down to figuring out what your needs are and then finding the right tools and services to support you,” DeVore says.
That’s no small thing.
Like many professionals, financial advisors and investors tend to pay less attention to their business tools as time goes on. As long as the emails arrive, they don’t really think about the inbox software they’re using. As long as the paperwork gets filed, they don’t really think about their recordkeeping process. And, ironically, as long as the bills get paid, they rarely think about their financial management software.
That can be a mistake because there’s a world of difference between “working well” and “not broken.”
Published October 20th, 2022
Treyton DeVore (@treytonwrites)—a freelancer, financial planning entrepreneur, and creator who produces business advice content—told Passionfruit he personally loves Catch, and started using it due to its automated percentage-based withdrawal system for personal benefits and taxes. He said he started posting about Catch and recommending it to his followers on Twitter, and soon built an amiable online relationship with the company. He said he then made a video breaking down Catch’s services, despite not being affiliated with the company.
“With freelancers, all your income is pretty much variable. … I have a little percentage set to transfer money to a travel savings account so that comes off the top before the money even comes to my personal account, and I have my tax automation set,” DeVore said.
DeVore said he thinks the only downside for Catch is its retirement plan offerings, which he believes are somewhat limited and do not include solo 401K retirement plans, an option with high contribution limits for self-employed people. DeVore has a written financial advice blog about choosing between retirement options as a self-employed person.
Published on April 12, 2022
“I get that some advisers don't believe in [crypto]. But that doesn't mean that you don't learn about it,” says guest Treyton DeVore.
What makes a good financial adviser to the younger generations?
Being “accepting and empathetic of younger clients whose assets are tied to their identity."
AllStreet Wealth co-founders Treyton DeVore and Thomas Kopelman join “On Purpose” with Tyrone Ross to discuss advising the next generation of investors: millennials and Gen Z. This younger demographic stands apart from the older generations in their goals and interests. What should advisers need to know to best serve these clients?
Crypto is a financial vehicle as much as it is an identity to some younger clients. Non-fungible tokens (NFT), decentralized autonomous organizations (DAO) and altcoins are blending finance with community in a new way to which advisers will need to adapt. The guests have developed a strategy for “meeting clients where they’re at” by integrating education into a comprehensive advising experience.
‘There’s always a lot of hype around IPOs’: Read this before buying Airbnb stock
Still, said Treyton DeVore, a financial planner at Piertree Planning in Kansas City, Mo., you should treat a possible Airbnb share purchase like other stock purchases. “Do your research, look at competitors, and understand what you’re investing in with the thought that quarantine and lockdowns won’t last forever,” he said.
“There’s always a lot of hype around IPOs. Don’t let FOMO push you into buying a stock just because everybody else is.”
. . . A retail investor buying Airbnb — or any newly issued stock — should know from the start that investing in an IPO is no get-rich-quick scheme. “The biggest winners in IPOs are generally the early investors who invested in the company before the IPO,” DeVore said.
Even big payoffs that do materialize take time. People who bought up shares of Snap SNAP, 2.11%, the company behind Snapchat, had to wait more than three years even to break even on their IPO purchases, DeVore said. (The company is up 200% in 2020.)
. . . So that’s why a buy-and-hold perspective is vital for anyone who wants to own Airbnb stock, according to IPO and investment experts.
Published in MarketWatch on December 14, 2020
Gen Z & Money: 3 Personal Finance Tips
Contributor Post on Trust & Will
"Born between 1997 and 2015, Gen Z is the first generation to grow up in a digital world. This has created different values and provided them with a different perspective on the world than previous generations. In an environment where millennials have been identified as the poorest generation of all time, Gen Z has an opportunity to learn from prior mistakes and take advantage of the opportunities available in today’s world.
Given that the financial industry has been geared towards wealthy pre-retirees for years, there hasn’t been a widespread adoption of financial advice and guidance for the new generation. In a world where anyone can post financial advice on social media, getting facts and information from trusted sources is becoming even more important and while Gen Z may have different perspectives around money than previous generations, there are still a few timeless lessons that can apply to any generation."
Digital Marketing Made Easy: Advisors Create Catchy Videos And Gain Viewers
Published in Investor's Business Daily on July 30, 2021
Through his videos and blog posts, DeVore says he tries to give perspectives that set him apart from other advisors.
"It can be refreshing and intriguing for someone," he said. "I think that builds trust because I can lay out my beliefs and if someone agrees, it can make sense for them to reach out."
For DeVore, who has produced video content for nearly a year, the process flows smoothly. Each weekly segment, which he calls "Two Minute Tuesday," takes about 45 minutes to develop from start to finish.
He selects a timely topic, such as tax filing tips, on Monday evening. The next morning, he records the video on his phone, edits it on his computer using iMovie software, downloads it and distributes it to Twitter, LinkedIn and Instagram. He usually gets between 500 and 1,000 views.
Consistency drives viewership, DeVore says. Staying top of mind gets easier when you crank out regular video content that anticipates and addresses the audience's concerns.
While production values are important, authenticity matters even more. DeVore dresses casually and strikes an informal, conversational tone.
Recently, he integrated graphics to enliven the video. When mentioning a news story, for example, he showed a headline from an online article.
Following the advice of Gary Vaynerchuk, a digital marketing whiz, DeVore has added subtitles to his videos. This way, viewers can read DeVore's comments if the sound is off.
What Is a Non-fungible Token (NFT)? Definition & What to Know Before You Buy
Treyton DeVore, an investment advisor based in Kansas City, Missouri, who advises clients on digital assets, says you can consider NFTs an especially unpredictable part of your crypto portfolio.
He says even if you hope an NFT will rise in value, the most important thing is to buy things you like from creators you want to support. That way, you still have something you can enjoy if you don’t make money.
“People like collecting things and putting them on shelves in their house so they can show people,” he says. “But with NFTs, if that becomes like your digital collectible, that becomes so much more visible.”
NFTs are sold in many ways, including through private sales, traditional auction houses and online marketplaces.
For most beginners, DeVore says it’s a good idea to start with a reputable online marketplace. Some well-known examples for art include OpenSea and Nifty Gateway. But there may be others depending on what you’re looking to buy. NBA Top Shot, which makes licensed NFTs based on basketball games and players, has its own marketplace, for instance.
Credit Card Debt Being Used for Gifts, Hurting Retirement
Published in InvestmentNews on December 16, 2020
Trips in 2021 are on millennials’ minds, financial planner Treyton DeVore wrote. “Having a younger clientele, I’m starting to see people saving for experiences more than saving for purchases.”
11 Big Investing Mistakes Advisors, Clients Made: Advisors' Advice
Published in ThinkAdvisor on October 19, 2020
"While not a client at the time, this person was under the impression they had an active Roth IRA but this was not the case.
They had opened up the account and made a deposit but were unaware there were still a few more steps to take.
They had not made any investment selections and the money was sitting there much like a saving account.
Luckily this mistake was caught quickly, but it could have been detrimental to their goals if the money was never invested once it was deposited."