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You've probably heard how important it is to establish and maintain an emergency fund. Unfortunately, most people don't fully realize this until a money emergency is upon them. Are you financially prepared for a leaky roof? How about a broken-down car? If you lost your job, how long would you be able to support yourself and your family until you got a new one?

An emergency fund is money that you've set aside to be used in these critical situations, be it to handle a minor home repair or to pay for something more serious, like medical bills. Despite the clear importance of having an emergency fund, however, more than three in five Americans have accumulated no savings for unforeseen expenses, according to a recent Bankrate report.

If you are one of the 60% who don't have an emergency fund, I've outined 4 easy ways that you can prepare for the unexpected:

The IRS recently released an update to its federal estate tax regulations, relaxing the rules on making a late portability election to a descendant's estate.

Currently, the federal estate tax exemption is $5.4 million, meaning that when a person dies, they will only pay federal estate tax (up to 40%) if the value of their estate exceeds $5.4 million. In 2011, the IRS introduced a concept called 'portability' to the federal estate tax exemption, and has now added an additional rule to allow for a late portability election. Here's what you should know:

You may not be quite ready to sell your business yet, but if you're considering the possibility, now is the right time to start planning. As I've discussed in previous blog posts, selling your business is a process, not an event. One of the most important parts of that process is determining the value of your company.

So how do you know what your company is worth? Many deal values are simply multiples of Adjusted EBITDA, so it's critical to understand what this number is, and how to arrive at it. Here are the top 4 things you should know about EBITDA and how it relates to the sale of your business:

You've worked long and hard and are nearing retirement age. Like many other baby boomers, with your kids out of the house and a surplus of empty space and time, you may be thinking about moving. To help you make up your mind—or make your transition go as smoothly as possible—we've compiled this list of tips.

The Construction Financial Manager, or CFM, plays a vital role in the success of any construction company. In an industry where competition is high and margins are small, it's critical to monitor, report on, and make decisions around accurate financials.

Wondering if your CFM is contributing to your profitability? Here are 4 things a good CFM should be doing:

President Trump recently unveiled the "2017 Tax Reform for Economic Growth and American Jobs", which calls for tax cuts and simplification for both individuals and businesses. Currently, the plan contains broad principles, with specific details to be determined in the coming weeks.

While we wait for the details to be finalized, I've summarized the major changes outlined in the current proposed plan. Here are the top 10 things you should know:

Many of our clients are turning to CRR for outsourced CFO services, to help them manage their finances and accelerate their growth. Hiring a part-time, or "fractional" Chief Financial Officer (CFO) gives smaller businesses access to a professional with years of experience and an outside perspective, while avoiding the high annual salary that a seasoned, full-time CFO would typically require.

A part-time CFO can help your company focus on they key financial elements that will take your business to the next level. Do you think a part-time CFO could benefit your business? Here are 7 key characteristics to look for during the hiring process:

I help many of our clients manage their bookkeeping using QuickBooks, and I've found that regardless of the business type—recreation, manufacturing, technology—certain best practices apply across the board.

These five best practices are the fundamentals that I believe will keep your bookkeeping environment organized, efficient, and accurate:

Many of my clients have questions about Medicare. How much will it cost? When should I enroll? What are my options? The process for enrolling in Medicare is surprisingly easy, but there are several options you'll need to consider.

To shed some light on the topic, I've put together Medicare 101: A guide to enrolling in the Medicare plan that is right for you. 

In a recent workshop that CRR hosted, I joined several industry-leading experts to walk our clients through the process of selling their business—from tax, legal, marketing, and financial planning perspectives.

For those of you who weren't able to attend, I've summarized a few of the key discussion points that came up during the workshop.