Financial Planning
Options for the Unbanked
Several media sources report that 1 in 12 households or 10% of Americans today do not use bank checking accounts, but use cash for everything. Most people have had checking accounts at some point. Some have had to close them because they never learned to manage them well. Others closed accounts [...]
Financial Diligence Is Required More Now Than Ever
Various news sources last week reported that inflation-adjusted median incomes haven’t increased since 1995. The recession is partly to blame, since many higher paying white-collar jobs are gone. Over the past 20 years many factories have moved overseas, so higher paying blue-collar jobs are [...]
Pros and Cons of Being Rich
In the back of our minds, it seems as if a lot of us have a desire to be rich. This thought reminds me of Tevye. The central charachter in the Tony (10) Award Winning Play, and Oscar (3) Winning Movie, Fiddler on the Roof, Tevye shows us his interesting story about poverty and wealth.
This Broadway [...]
Important Personal Finance Rates 8/3/12
These are the numbers that I find helpful to know, so that I can see general trends in the market, things that affect personal finances such as future costs of gasoline and interest rates, and jobs numbers so I can see what might be happening as we work our way out of the Great Recession. Friday to [...]
What is the worst financial advice you have been given?
Someone once gave me advice when I was young and eager in business, to live just below my means. Have a nice car and loan to go with it, and other niceties of life, I was told that this would motivate me to succeed. He said that living on the edge this way would keep me hungry to work hard. One of [...]
When to Pay off Your Mortgage
There is quite a bit of miss-information when it comes to whether someone should pay-off their mortgage. On one hand it is wise to have as a goal to someday have a mortgage free home, especially as one enters the retirement years, and minimizing of cash flow and simplification are goals. Many [...]
Money Etiquette: 6 Mistakes to Avoid
The other day Dave Ramsey’s newsletter had the Money Etiquette: 6 Mistakes to Avoid, I thought they were pretty good, funny and worth sharing. Dave’s newsletters are really good and worth signing up for (they’re free):
Tipping poorly.
Dear Mr. Bad Tipper: Nothing says, “Thank you for taking my [...]
Important Personal Finance Rates 6/29
Friday to Friday: Important week-ending personal finance rates compared from last Friday to today 6/29/12, 4pm EST. Mortgage rates up tick a little, but rates are still great for refinancing homes. The stock market was quite volatile but finished up, good for those invested in stocks. Crude oil [...]
Counting on Inheritances
Many people are counting on receiving an inheritance, therefore they don’t adequately make good financial plans. It isn’t unusual for some to not fund their retirement plans, because they think their parents are well off and will leave them enough money to live on. Parents though may not have as [...]
How to Revive the Economy, Op-ed
The opening quote in Ron Kitchen’s book Community Capitalism is “The best social program in the world is a well-paying job with health care benefits and a retirement program (Ewing Kauffman).” struck me hard in light of the constant negative or trivial din in the media.
The top story almost every [...]
Memorial Day
John 15:13 Greater love has no one than this: to lay down one’s life for one’s friends.
Today we remember and are thankful for those in American history who have defended our country home and abroad in war.
Listed here is a partial list of the wars and conflicts. No one is able to list the [...]
Mega Lottery – Mega Rip Off
There has been a lot of news the past few days about the $600+ million Mega lottery. If people knew the facts, they would never spend the money. It is crazy to see all of those people lined up with pockets full of cash to buy a chance at winning. Consider the facts:
Tax on the poor: The majority [...]
Can You Be Your Own Financial Planner?
This is a question that troubles some financial advisors, however looking into the question a little deeper may reveal opportunities.
Everyone by default is really their own financial planner. Regardless of the extent of help they receive from professionals, the consumer ultimately is the goal [...]
Special Alert-Barron’s “America’s Top 1000 Financial Advisors”
You may have heard financial advisers advertise their top Barron’s rating on the radio, but have you wondered what it means? If so read this great article from another blog…
Commingle Personal and Business Finances? Never!
Today’s post comes from Mary Hunt of Debt Proof Living, and author of 7 Money Rules for Life
Dear Mary, I am reading your book, “Debt-Proof Living,” and have begun tracking my expenses. I have a home-based business. Should I include business expenses or just personal expenses in the tracking? Lucy, [...]
10 Financial Tips for people with Chronic Health Conditions
In 1989 and 1991 we had our two babies at a cost of $10 each. We made a $10 co-pay at the first pre-natal visit, and all expenses including birth up through the baby’s 3-month checkups were covered by that first co-pay. Few people, perhaps other than Senators, receive health care today at such a [...]
A Review of Monte Carlo Simulation
Conventional retirement projections in most retirement financial planning software packages and calculators looks at everything the moment you enter it, such as your goals, assets, benefits, and expenses coupled with assumptions for taxes, rates-of-return and inflation. Since this is just a [...]
Is Your Pension Secure?
Pensions are a little rare today, so rare most people don’t really know how they work. Pensions also known as Defined Benefit retirement plans, pay someone a percentage of their income when they retire, based upon age, years of service, wage history and the design of the plan. Millions of people [...]
Social Security Retirement, to Be or Not to Be?
Social Security Retirement Benefit, or shortened to SSRB for this article, is a major cornerstone for most Americans. Many people wonder: how it works, whether it will be there for them when they are eligible, will it change, and should their plans include the assumption that it will be there for [...]
Do You Have a Financial Compass?
Many people do not have a financial compass, and they are constantly blown around by the financial winds of the day. The winds come from many directions; the demands of our personal and business needs, wants, emergencies, the emotions of the stock and bond market, and from sales offers from a wide [...]
9 Steps to Master Your 401(k)
Your employer-provided retirement plan (e.g., 401k) is one of the most important pieces of your financial plan — yet it is often misunderstood and under-utilized. Master your retirement plan to retire early, on time, and achieve financial success. During this time of year, either 4th quarter or the [...]
Savings, CDs, Money Markets and Linked CDs
Many people ask me about savings accounts, money markets and CDs, and the latest version of CDs, market linked or index CDs:
Q. Most financial experts say that we should accumulate 3 – 6 months of income or expenses in a safe savings account, for emergencies, such as job loss, uninsured damage to [...]
Large Lawn Mower Expense Avoided
A couple of weeks ago my 1998 42″ Craftsman Lawn Tractor model # 917.271021 with a 15.5 hp Kohler engine, decided to empty its transmission fluid on my back yard. The transmission case somehow got a crack in it, and it is too old and costly to replace. I was not happy with the thought of forking [...]
Financial Roadblocks
1: Negative Spending
Have you created a budget and do you stick to it? If not, you may be spending more money than you make. People who have created a budget have a good idea of their monthly income and expenses and can accurately diagnose their financial condition. Other signs of negative [...]
Financial Tips for Blended Families
A great number of families today are no longer traditional; often they are remarriages from divorces or deaths, later in life marriages or remarriages, which often have her/his and our children. Each may bring their own ways of doing things- which may be good or bad, financial problems and money [...]
What is a financial plan?
A lot of people wonder what a financial plan really is. Not everyone knows what they are so I thought I’d write this post to cover it.
A financial plan is a written document, compiled by financial planning software, that takes into consideration your present financial situation and your future [...]
