
Understanding Today’s Financial Environment
Welcome, I’m Michael Hammen, a financial professional and owner of Advantage Financial & Tax Services in West Des Moines, IA. We understand that individuals and households face increasingly complex financial challenges as we navigate our way through life.
A few questions you may have. For example:
Are we saving enough for retirement? How does retirement savings impact my tax situation? How much can I save each year? What can I expect to receive at retirment in the form of income? How can I save on my income taxes each year? Can I save for my kids/grandkids college expenses? How much life insurance do I need? and other simular questions.
Our professionals have years of experience in financial services. We can help answer many of those questions, and assist you moving forward.
Helpful Content

How to Appeal Your Property Taxes
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Insurance Needs Assessment: When You're Young and Single
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Trends in Charitable Giving
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Tax Reform: Before and After
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Social Security Benefits: How Much Will I Receive
Calculating your potential Social Security benefit is a three-step process.
Travel, Without the Baggage
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What Is a Roth 401(k)?
Roth 401(k) plans combine features of traditional 401(k) plans with those of a Roth IRA.
Creative Ways to Motivate Your Employees
Five creative (and inexpensive) ideas for motivating your employees.
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Assess Your Life Insurance Needs
This calculator estimates how much life insurance you would need to meet your family's needs if you were to die prematurely.
Impact of Taxes and Inflation
Estimate the potential impact taxes and inflation can have on the purchasing power of an investment.
Social Security Taxes
Estimate how much of your Social Security benefit may be considered taxable.
Saving for College
This calculator can help you estimate how much you should be saving for college.
Federal Income Tax
Use this calculator to estimate your income tax liability along with average and marginal tax rates.
What Is the Dividend Yield?
This calculator helps determine your pre-tax and after-tax dividend yield on a particular stock.
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5 Smart Investing Strategies
There are some smart strategies that may help you pursue your investment objectives
Your Cash Flow Statement
A presentation about managing money: using it, saving it, and even getting credit.
Principles of Preserving Wealth
How federal estate taxes work, plus estate management documents and tactics.
Investment Strategies for Retirement
Investment tools and strategies that can enable you to pursue your retirement goals.
An Inside Look at Retirement Living
A number of questions and concerns need to be addressed to help you better prepare for retirement living.
Managing Your Lifestyle
Using smart management to get more of what you want and free up assets to invest.
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What Smart Investors Know
Savvy investors take the time to separate emotion from fact.
The Other Sure Thing
Though we don’t like to think about it, all of us will make an exit sometime. Are you prepared?
Social Security: By the Numbers
Here are five facts about Social Security that might surprise you.
Jane Bond: Decoding Diversification
Agent Jane Bond is on the case, discovering how bonds diversify a portfolio.
Inflation and Your Portfolio
Even low inflation rates can pose a threat to investment returns.
Encore Careers: Push Your Boundaries
Ready for retirement? Find out why many are considering encore careers and push your boundaries into something more, here.