WEEKLY QUOTE“Education is the transmission of civilization.” – Will Durant WEEKLY TIP In search of a sizable tax deduction? One idea: donate clothes, electronics and other household items to an IRS-approved charity before 2012 arrives. There are free online tools that can help you keep track of itemized deductions. WEEKLY RIDDLE Seven people...
A way to give without a great deal of bureaucracy. So, you’d like to make some major charitable contributions, but you don’t want to create a family foundation - with its paperwork and management commitment and the possibility of squabbles. Is there an alternative? Yes, there is....
WEEKLY QUOTE“A lie can travel halfway around the world while the truth is putting on its shoes.” – Charles Spurgeon WEEKLY TIP Dropping a landline and just using your cell phone might save you as much as $300 annually. Using a broadband phone system might give you even greater savings. WEEKLY RIDDLE Alexandra’s...
Two-thirds of us have no financial plan for retirement. 64% of Americans have no retirement financial strategy at all. That’s right – no plan whatsoever to build wealth or keep it . That finding comes from the 2009 National Consumer Survey on Personal Finance conducted by...
WEEKLY QUOTE“People always call it luck when you've acted more sensibly than they have.” – Anne Tyler WEEKLY TIP Visiting the mall or the grocery store when you are depressed or hungry may encourage you to spend excessively and run up a tab you regret. WEEKLY RIDDLE We all have one, and even...
While the idea of retirement has changed, certain financial assumptions haven’t. We’ve all heard about the “new retirement”, the mix of work and play that many of us assume we will have in our lives one day. We do not expect “retirement” to be all leisure....
A summary of what you need to know. Don’t wait until New Year’s to join a Medicare plan. The open enrollment period ends early this year, and many Medicare beneficiaries may not realize it. In fact, 97% of seniors in a recent poll conducted by UnitedHealthcare...
WEEKLY QUOTE“Accept no one’s definition of your life; define yourself.”– Harvey Fierstein WEEKLY TIP If you pay your real estate taxes instead of your mortgage lender, you could pre-pay some 2012 taxes this year to qualify for a deduction on your 1040. WEEKLY RIDDLE Gerald Ford was our 38th President, but he...
A recap of contribution limit and phase-out adjustments. The IRS has announced cost-of-living adjustments to IRAs and employer-sponsored retirement plans for 2012, so here is what you need to know about the newly altered contribution limits and phase-outs for these plans. 401(k) & IRA yearly contribution limits....
WEEKLY QUOTE“The trust of the innocent is the liar’s most useful tool.” – Stephen King WEEKLY TIP Income from stock options and bonuses could put you into a higher tax bracket for 2011. If that is a problem, consider deferring that income until 2012. WEEKLY RIDDLE A sudden noise startles a gopher, an...