Should we be concerned? Should the Fed respond? Prices are rising. In February, the Consumer Price Index advanced 0.5%. That follows increases of 0.4% in December and January. This doesn’t exactly represent runaway inflation –to give you some perspective, the CPI rose by almost 1.1% per...
When should you hire one? What should you look for? Is doing your own taxes getting to be more and more of a challenge? Are you thinking of hiring someone to do it for you? Are you wondering if that will be worth the cost? There are...
Killing Several Birds with One Stone. In planning for your retirement, you may face several financial issues. Maybe you’d like to generate retirement income, but don’t want to pay capital gains tax on investments you’ve held for several years. Perhaps you’d like to minimize your income...
Before you make any extra mortgage payments, consider some factors. Should you own your home free and clear before you retire? At first glance, the answer would seem to be “absolutely, if at all possible.” Retiring with less debt … isn’t that a good thing? Why...
Create a pool of healthcare dollars that will grow in any market. How will you pay for long term care? The sad fact is that most people don’t know the answer to that question. But a solution is available. As baby boomers leave their careers behind, long...
Rolling the dice on returns. When a man walks into a casino in Monte Carlo and rolls a pair of dice at the craps table, he has a 1 in 36 chance (62=36) of the dice lying face up in any particular combination. He knows this because...
A new perception has taken hold: “independent” is better. That search often leads them to a fee-based or fee-only financial advisor. A pleasant alternative to Wall Street. A paradigm shift is happening, and the traditional brokerage houses are lagging. While old-school “stock brokers” have gone the way...
Resist the temptation. Fight the urge. Fight for your future. Recently, you may have heard about a spike in 401(k) withdrawals. The evidence is not merely anecdotal. Fidelity Investments recently issued its 2010 overview of the 401(k) accounts it administers and found that 22% of participants...
September is National Life Insurance Awareness Month When was the last time you looked at your life insurance coverage? Why not do it now? September is as good a time as any – in fact, this is National Life Insurance Awareness Month. The non-profit Life and...