Turn your intent into a commitment.   Goals give you focus. To find and establish your investing and saving goals, first ask yourself what you want to accomplish. Do you want to build an emergency fund? Build college savings for your child? Have a large retirement fund by age 60? Once you have a defined…

Why are investors and economists getting nervous about Treasury yields?    What is the yield curve, and why is the financial media writing about it? Here is a brief explanation, starting with a clarification.   A yield curve is really an X-Y graph projecting expected rates of return for equivalent-quality bonds with different maturity dates.…

What are the keys in planning to grow wealthy together?   When you marry or simply share a household with someone, your financial life changes – and your approach to managing your money may change as well. To succeed as a couple, you may also have to succeed financially. The good news is that is…

A look at how variable rates of return do (and do not) impact investors over time.    What exactly is the “sequence of returns”? The phrase simply describes the yearly variation in an investment portfolio’s rate of return. Across 20 or 30 years of saving and investing for the future, what kind of impact do…

Save and invest, year after year, to put the full power of compounding on your side.   Have you been saving for retirement for a decade or more? In the foreseeable future, something terrific is likely to happen with your IRA or your workplace retirement plan account. At some point, its yearly earnings should begin…

Some things to think about as you get started with your strategy.   First, look at your expenses and your debt. Review your core living expenses (such as a mortgage payment, car payment, etc.). Can any core expenses be reduced? Investing aside, you position yourself to gain ground financially when income rises, debt shrinks, and…

Some good reasons to retain it.   Do you need a life insurance policy in retirement? One school of thought says no. The kids are grown, and the need to financially insulate the household against the loss of a breadwinner has passed.   If you are thinking about dropping your coverage for either or both…

You may be surprised to learn what is and is not covered.    If you have a homeowner’s insurance policy, you should be aware of what the insurance does and does not cover. These policies have their limitations as well as their underrecognized perks.   Some policies insure actual cash value (ACV). ACV factors depreciation…

In the coming months, they will reach retiree mailboxes.   New Medicare cards will be mailed out between now and next April. They have an 11-digit I.D. number instead of your SSN, and they are made of paper rather than plastic. This new 11-digit number is called the Medicare Beneficiary Identifier (MBI). If you have…

Driver history is just one factor; there are many others.   Your auto insurance payment is not just based on your driving history. Assorted variables come into play that have nothing to do with your accident record or your experience behind the wheel.   Where you live counts. If you reside in a congested big-city…