This 2007 post reminds that because of inflation the value of cash trends down, encourages you to protect your portfolio against a falling dollar, and reveals an inconsistency with CPI calculations and actual inflation.
Life is volatile, risky, and on average rewarding. Diversification and rebalancing help to protect yourself from the volatility.
I have adopted this card as the primary one in my wallet for groceries and gas.
If the form is accepted, the Social Security Administration will generally not only change your current IRMAA, but they will also use your Projected MAGI for the next several years. Here’s why.
For those over age 59 1/2, you would need to withdraw all funds attributable to basis before your withdrawal would be sourced from Roth IRA earnings and the age of your Roth IRA would matter for taxation.
Later required beginning dates are generally advantageous to seniors, although the complexity surrounding RMD rules is nothing to celebrate.
The Internal Revenue Service announced an administrative transition period that extends until 2026 the new requirement that any catch-up contributions made by higher‑income participants in 401(k) and similar retirement plans must be designated as after-tax Roth contributions.
This whimsical 2004 post uses the hypothetical family business of Belle and the Beast to teach a valuable lesson about passing on the family business to the next generation.
Saving Tuesday is the Tuesday before Thanksgiving. It is a day to squirrel some savings away for your future self.
Here are six reasons you may want to sell for a loss.
We have written on the topic of healthcare reform multiple times, including our 2014 economics of healthcare series which culminates in this article.
While you can only use $3,000 per year of capital losses to reduce your taxable income, you should bank as much capital loss as possible for other future uses.
Yes, but housing is one of many expenses that are subject to a reimbursement limit. Here’s how to do it.
We avoid investments we deem too risky or laden with fees and seek instead a well balanced, low-cost, diversified portfolio.
Fearful of monetary or societal failure, many hope that owning gold will bring them peace of mind. This articles reminds us to get peace of mind a different way.
Your executor will be grateful for an easier way to settle that part of your affairs.
After a cash allocation for spending, we suggest you invest the remainder of your account in appreciating stocks.
Waiting just one year means that you lose a portion of the growth in your traditional IRA to income taxes later.
Instead of waiting, remember that the greatest buying opportunity of your life is always right now.
If you want to be really minimalist about your budgeting, here’s what we suggest: the 65-25-10 rule.
This article gives you the formula to decide how much to offer or if the property is a good deal.
About 4% of elders falling victim to fraud with estimates that over $2.9 billion is lost to elder abuse every year. Being aware of the scams helps to protect yourself.
This 2014 article offers a practical, timeless list of steps to consider after you join your lives together.
A wishlist is a force of thrift both for you to defer your consumption and for your family and friends to ensure that all the value of their gift makes it to your heart.
There is an illusion that the executive branch will handle the collection of all our data with respect and care. I hope that current times can shatter that illusion for you.
If you made a Roth contribution this year, here is a reminder to update your contribution basis records.
This is only a good idea if your financial advisor is covered under the fiduciary duty and is fee-only.
This throwback to Libby’s first article at Marotta teaches us how to be prepared for life’s expenses and plan ahead for all future goals.
This article from 2011 reminds us that if the debt ceiling is reached, the consequences will be large but not entirely harmful.
While it is always true that a recession will come eventually, shifting to bonds whenever one is predicted has serious consequences.
This 2007 post teaches how to use both investment losses and investment gains to good tax advantage.
This series on each Bear Market helps remind us that there is nothing to fear.
This is a summary of the six steps required to create a well-crafted investment plan.
Charles Schwab offers both SIPC® account protection and a FDIC insurance amount for accounts custodied with them.
This 2014 article reminds us: don’t wait until you “have more” or “make extra money” – start saving now! It is worth more.
Saving for long-term care, if done early enough, is not too expensive and helps to protect yourself from this potential financial shock.
This 2014 post reminds us that perhaps we should be more afraid of cash and inflation than stocks and investing.
While you may think that the account owner needs to stay the same, you can easily change the account owner.
Doubling your retirement is not a fast process. It is the slow and steady practices of daily financial diligence.
If you receive Social Security benefits, the portion of those benefits which will be taxable depends on your income. The taxable portion can be anywhere from 0% to a maximum of 85% of your benefits.
This 2016 post has been our most popular search result recently for good reason. After the 2020 COVID bear market, this article is a comforting bit of math.
There are different tables and formulas used to calculate your RMD divisor based on your particular circumstances. This is a calculator for the three most common.
This 2004 post has ten timeless rules for small businesses to maintain their financial balance.
Want to do the new year well? Here is a month-by-month guide for setting financially healthy habits.
Schwab has recently required that everyone with older checkbooks reorder new ones. This recent guide should help you with this process.
Inflation has at least four grievous effects on our economy. This 2014 article explains them.
Staying fully invested is an important part of your financial plan. Yet still, there are at least five reasons to hold cash.
Old financial news read with 20-20 hindsight helps remind us that this is what markets do.
A recovery after a significant downturn in the markets is often marked by steep growth. If you sell and flatline, you will likely miss the market’s natural recovery and thus your own personal future recovery becomes very difficult.
You learn a lot by the discipline of reading old news.