Saving money is often easier said than done, but it doesn’t have to be difficult. Setting clear goals can motivate you to take action, focus on what’s important and steer clear of overspending.
Category: Retirement
Price war among brokerages offers opportunity for investors
This Thursday, June 16, 2016, file photo shows a sign outside of a Fidelity Investments office in the Century City section of Los Angeles. On Tuesday, Feb. 28, 2017, Fidelity became the latest company to cut its fees in an ongoing industry battle that’s helped mom-and-pop investors keep more of their own dollars.
How to determine whether ita s best to prepay the mortgage or build up cash reserves
In your columns, you often take the position that homeowners are best off prepaying their mortgage. I understand where you are coming from and admit that I used to counsel my clients the same way.
World’s Biggest Pension Fund Posts Record $92 Billion Gain
The world’s biggest pension fund posted the biggest quarterly gain in its history as Japanese stocks surged and a plunge in the yen boosted overseas investments after Donald Trump’s election victory. The Government Pension Investment Fund returned 8 percent, or 10.5 trillion yen , in the three months ended Dec. 31, increasing assets to 144.8 trillion yen, it said in Tokyo on Friday.
Are you saving enough for retirement?
Interpretation of the news based on evidence, including data, as well as anticipating how events might unfold based on past events But equally troubling is the fact that many people don’t have a target amount in mind. They are blindly throwing money into a retirement account.
Save or splurge? Making the most of your tax refund
Tax refund time is here. Last year the IRS issued 111 million refunds, with an average refund of $2,860.
Doubts grow over stock marketa s Trump-inspired surge
President Donald Trump acknowledges the crowd after he addressed the Conservative Political Action Conference at the Gaylord National Resort and Convention Center February 24, 2017 in National Harbor, Maryland. While American stock markets have enjoyed a good run since Trump’s election, there are beginning to appear some concerns over whether the so-called “Trump Effect” will last.
Two in 3 Americans will never retire at this rate
Less than one-third of Americans are saving money in their 401 s and other workplace retirement accounts, according to an analysis of tax records by Census Bureau researchers. Although nearly 80 percent of Americans work for an employer that offers retirement programs – whether a 401 , 403 or something else – only 32 percent of workers sign up for such accounts, according to a working draft of the study by Michael Gideon and Joshua Mitchell.
Will your pension be there when you need it?
Members of the International Brotherhood of Teamsters and supporters rally outside the Capitol in Washington. Millions, including these protesters, are at risk of losing their retirement savings if the Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation becomes insolvent.
The Ultimate Retirement Account for the Self-Employed
Self-employment definitely has an upside. You have a lot more control over your life when you work for yourself.
The Best Investments for an IRA
An IRA is a fantastic way to build long-term wealth, but it can be tricky knowing which stocks or ETFs are best to own in one. There are thousands of publicly traded companies and ETFs to choose from, and they don’t all deserve a spot in your portfolio.
What Happens to an IRA When Its Owner Passes Away?
IRAs were created to help people save enough to meet their financial needs in retirement. But often, people die before they’ve completely used up their IRA money.
3 Social Security Misunderstandings That Could Cost You
Social Security helps millions of seniors stay afloat financially once they retire. But without a clear understanding of how the program works, you could be in for some unpleasant surprises once you come to rely on those benefits.
Are Your Retirement Savings Crash-Proof?
During the bear markets of 2000-2002 and 2007-2009, the S&P 500 Index lost 49.1% and 56.4%, respectively. As a result, it’s estimated that investors lost trillions of dollars during those two downturns.
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Financial literacy and money management are important life skills. Unfortunately, most people never study this in school, leaving many young adults ill-prepared to deal with their finances as they enter the work world, often in their early twenties.
58% of Americans Are Making This Huge Retirement Mistake
When most of us start planning for retirement, we think about things like what our living costs will be and how much money we’ll have access to. Many of us, in fact, get so focused on how much we are or aren’t saving that we fail to make one critical move: creating a will or living trust.
The Best Retirement Account You Don’t Know About
An HSA combines the best features of all the various tax-advantaged retirement accounts available. If used correctly, money goes in tax-free, grows tax-free, and comes out tax-free.
3 Tax Mistakes You Don’t Want to Make
With tax season rapidly approaching, many of us are starting to gather our paperwork and work on hammering out our returns. But in reality, tax planning is something you should focus on year-round, and not just during the first few months of the year.
10 Frequently Asked IRA Questions
Individual retirement arrangements, or IRAs, are actively used by only about one-fifth of Americans. While many people have valid reasons for not using an IRA, like having a 401 at work, one of the most common reasons given for not contributing to an IRA is a lack of knowledge about this type of account.
5 Tips for Investing in Your 30s
In your 20s, funding your 401 might have sounded like a good goal for your 30s. Now that your 30s are here, you may be nervously noticing the countless articles on the virtues of investing in your 20s .
Trump, Wall Street, Strive to Make Securities Fraud Great Again
A federal judge Wednesday ruled against opponents of the Department of Labor’s fiduciary rule. But the fight isn’t over.
Retirement Planning? Couples, Mind the Age Gap
As you approach retirement together, that age gap becomes a factor in decisions about when you retire and when you take Social Security, and in planning how much money you need to save and how it should be invested. Especially if the younger partner is a woman, an age difference can mean you need your money to last longer.
Retirement Account Managers Required to Put Clients First
Retirement account managers can be required to put their clients’ interest first, a Texas federal judge ruled in a second case upholding Obama administration rules. Thwarting an industry-backed effort to block the requirement, the ruling follows an earlier decision by a judge in Washington that all financial advisers handling retirement accounts must meet a fiduciary standard.
Capital One vs. Interactive Brokers: Finding the Best IRA Broker
Individual retirement accounts can be an excellent way to save for retirement. Some offer tax-free growth while others are tax-deferred , but all of them offer more choice in how you invest for the future.
It’s too late for Trump to stop this financial rule
President Trump on Friday signed a memo asking the Labor Department to review the fiduciary rule, which requires brokers working with retirement savers to put the interest of their clients ahead of their own. Rules and regulations exist to let us know what behaviors we should expect from the people we do business with.
This Roth IRA Benefit Could Be its Biggest Drawback
There are lots of great reasons to love Roth IRAs. Not only do they allow your assets to grow on a tax-deferred basis, but once you reach retirement, your withdrawals are tax-free.
4 Smart Retirement Moves You Can Make Today
Whether retirement is a few years or a few decades down the road, it’s never too early to put some thought into what lies ahead. Here are four things you can do right now to take control of your retirement.
Investors are worried about Wall Street rollbacks by Trump
President Trump last week signed a “presidential memorandum to delay the Labor Department’s rules that require financial professionals to put their clients’ interests ahead of their own.” Last week, Trump signed a “presidential memorandum to delay the Labor Department’s rules that would require financial professionals to put their clients’ interests ahead of their own,” The Post’s Renae Merle wrote .
Brokers for IRAs: Comparing Capital One and Merrill Edge
There’s no way around it: Where you open an IRA matters to your investment portfolio, and it affects more than the price you pay. Brokers offer different investment menus, research capabilities, and tools to help you plan for retirement.
Bad News: You May Be Overestimating Your Retirement Plans Performance
There’s a reason a dollar invested today is worth more than that same dollar in the future. Thanks to the beauty of compounding , the money you invest today can grow into a larger sum over time as long as you choose the right investments.
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It’s estimated that only 41% of Americans use a budget to keep tabs on their spending. But having a budget will only get you so far if you don’t commit to sticking to it.
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It’s estimated that only 41% of Americans use a budget to keep tabs on their spending. But having a budget will only get you so far if you don’t commit to sticking to it.
Fidelity vs. Merrill Edge: Brokers for Opening an IRA
It’s easier than ever to open an IRA and start saving for retirement. Picking which brokerage firm you should use to open the account is easier said than done, however.
Buying an Annuity for Retirement Makes Sense — Sometimes
The use of annuities inside a qualified retirement plan or IRA has been a controversial practice among financial planners for the past few decades. But new innovations have been added to annuities in recent years, and this has changed the rules of the game in the minds of many planners who once saw annuities as unfit investments for their clients’ retirement assets.
Retirement in 2017: 5 Stats Everyone Should Know
If you read the financial news often, you may have heard about the “retirement crisis” many Americans are facing. While it’s true that the average American doesn’t save nearly enough for retirement, the good news is that this is a fixable problem.
Required Minimum Distributions: Do I Have to Take My IRA Cash?
Tax-favored retirement accounts like IRAs and 401 s can save you thousands of dollars in taxes over the course of your career, because they offer tax deferral on the income and gains that your investments produce while they’re inside the account. However, the IRS doesn’t let you get away with tax-deferred growth forever.
U.S. Labor Dept. Responds to Trump’s Fiduciary Order
National Economic Council Chairman Gary Cohn, center, and White House Senior Adviser Jared Kushner, right, listen as President Donald Trump speaks while hosting breakfast with business leaders in the Roosevelt Room of the White House. ( The U.S. Labor Department is looking into delaying the implementation date of its new fiduciary rule governing the advice that brokers can give about retirement investments, it said on Friday, after President Donald Trump called for a review that could ultimately lead to scrapping it.
The Fiduciary Rule: Pros and Cons
On February 3, 2017, President Donald Trump signed an executive order that asks for a Labor Department review of the fiduciary rule, which will almost certainly delay its implementation beyond the currently-scheduled April 10, 2017 date. Here’s what you need to know about the fiduciary rule, and why there is strong opposition to it within the financial industry.
Trump to target long-awaited rule meant to protect retirement savers
FEBRUARY 03: U.S. President Donald Trump delivers opening remarks at the beginning of a policy forum with business leaders chaired by Blackstone Group CEO Stephen Schwarzman in the State Dining Room at the White House February 3, 2017 in Washington, DC. Leaders from the automotive and manufacturing industries, the financial and retail services and other powerful global businesses were invited to the meeting with Trump, his advisors and family.
What Is a Death Tax, and Will You Have to Pay One?
If the two things that are inevitable in life are death and taxes, then it’s probably no surprise that someone figured out how to impose taxes after the grave. In the U.S., there are actually two different kinds of “death taxes”: the estate tax, which is levied by the federal government and certain states, and the inheritance tax, which is levied by only a handful of states.