Retirement Watch Weekly
Should You Keep Your Mortgage or Pay it Off?
A home is the most valuable asset owned by most Americans. A key and confusing financial issue for many is how to manage the home equity. Proper management of the equity can increase net worth and enhance one’s life style. Managing home equity means determining the trade off between a mortgage and unencumbered home equity. […]
Estate Planning Mistakes – How to Avoid Mismanagement of Inheritance by Heirs and Beneficiaries
Many estate plans ultimately fail. The problems are not with the plans. The owners spent a fair amount of time and money preparing and executing the plans. The problem with many estate plans is the final stage. The heirs are not prepared to receive the wealth. So they mishandle it. Or they did not know […]
How To Avoid Costly IRA Mistakes
Though set up to help regular people save, IRAs are fraught with complicated tax rules. Missteps can be made without the owner knowing it until it is too late to correct the problem. The result often is higher taxes and penalties. Sometimes the result is reduced IRA options. Here are some little-known but very common […]
Discount Brokers: Changes and Updates
Changes have been sweeping the world of discount and mutual fund brokers. Just a few years ago the brokers were re-trenching and, in many cases, chasing away customers they considered unprofitable. Higher fees and minimums were the order of the day. Those trends are reversed at most discount brokers, and additional changes are occurring. One […]
How to Put Together a Disaster Recovery Document Kit for your Estate Plan
The 2005 hurricane season caused many people to focus on an issue that had seemed remote. But millions of people realize they are more vulnerable to disasters than they had thought. A surprise to many people is that the potential damage to their persons and property is not the only concern. Personal information and documents […]
Factors to Consider when Using Home Equity as a Retirement Fund
Is home equity the mainstay of your retirement fund? Apparently it is for a number of people. Both anecdotal evidence and some consumer surveys indicate that a number of Baby Boomers plan to “retire on the house.” The plan is especially prevalent along the coasts and in resort areas. These are the areas in which […]
How to Estimate Your Life Insurance Needs
Most people have the wrong amount of life insurance. Some have too much; others have too little. Life insurance coverage often is wrong because most people enter the process believing that they need one life insurance policy. They might consider term and whole life, and perhaps a few of the other types of policies. They […]
Tax Cuts and Tax Increases
A new tax law passed Congress just before Memorial Day. It contains important tax breaks and tax increases for investors and others. We gave the highlights last month. In this month’s visit we will delve into more details of the newly-enacted law, known as Tax Increase Prevention and Reconciliation Act of 2006. The major provision […]
