This week America celebrates its 236th birthday. To honor the occasion, why not declare your own personal “Financial” Independence Day. To me, financial independence equates to not having to worry about money, so if you are worried about your finances, take these seven steps to economic freedom: Continue reading “7 Steps to Your Financial Independence Day”
She proved me wrong. When my first appointment of the day for a work site personal financial planning session came in, I was skeptical because the first thing she said was that she wanted to retire in six months and she was sixty years old. I raised an eyebrow and told her, “It’s not easy to retire at sixty – in fact it is really tough. Not many people do it these days.”
Continue reading “You Can Retire at 60!”
As the saying goes, April showers bring May flowers and if you live in the Southeast like me, you’ve certainly had your share of showers this spring. As I stare out the window at the falling rain, I’m reminded of the fact that in every financial lifetime, some rain must fall so the bigger question is this: how do I prepare for my financial “rainy day?” Here is a list of five steps you may want to consider taking this spring so that when, not if, the financial rain comes, you’ll be better prepared. Continue reading “April Showers”
One of the biggest challenges I face in my line of work is deciding when to explain things in more detailed technical terms and when to explain them in more understandable “practical” terms. For example, when discussing the income limits for traditional and Roth IRA contributions, most financial professionals will tell you the limits are based on your adjusted gross income (AGI) when technically they are based on your modified adjusted gross income (MAGI). In many cases, such as this one, the difference between the practical and the technical may be so small that it’s just easier to speak in practical terms. The problem is that if you don’t know the technical stuff, it’s easy to make a financial mistake. Continue reading “One of the Biggest Challenges Facing Financial Planners”
At Financial Finesse, we are often asked this very basic question. It seems simple enough. A trust, by its purest definition, is a form of ownership. You can own assets in your name alone, you can own assets with someone else (e.g. jointly), you can own assets by contract (e.g. a life insurance policy), or you can own assets in a trust. There are several benefits to having assets held in trust. For example, when you have a trust, you can control who receives trust assets, when they receive these assets, and what these assets may be used for. Consider the following example:
When I was a child, my father was killed in a car accident. Prior to his death, he provided instructions in his will that basically said if anything ever happened to him, money should be set aside in a trust until each of my two brothers and I turned 18, after which the money would be used to pay for college. Continue reading “When Should I Consider Having a Trust?”
During Thanksgiving, many households (including mine) have a tradition of having each person at the table tell everyone what they are thankful for. It’s in the spirit of this tradition that I’d like to share with you why I’m thankful for estate planning. Continue reading “I’m Thankful for…Estate Planning?”
Around the water cooler at the office yesterday, I was congratulating one of my co-workers on her child’s second birthday. It seems like yesterday when she was pregnant, went into labor a few weeks early at work and we were all running around like chickens with our heads cut off so she almost needed to drive herself to the hospital! It was something out of a “Three Stooges” comedy. She made it to the hospital and everything turned out just fine. Continue reading “Estate Planning: Governor Brown Has Enough To Do”
Whole life insurance has a bad reputation. It isn’t perfect but then again it wasn’t ever meant to be. When used for the right purpose, however, it can fit perfectly into a financial plan when there is a need for life insurance. You hear a lot of talk about the negative aspects of whole life and what it doesn’t do such as: Continue reading “Why I Love My Whole Life Policy”
In my last blog I told you about my neighbors Mr. and Mrs. P. Fortunately for Mrs. P, her next door neighbor is a financial planner, so I’m able to help her during this time of transition. That being said, there are a few things Mr. P could have done to help make his wife’s situation a little easier. Here are some things you can do to help your loved ones cope with your loss: Continue reading “Important Steps to Take When Preparing Your Estate Plan”
The other day I was spending some quality time with a very good friend of mine, enjoying the nice spring weather and having a great time talking about various topics, when as often happens the cell phone rings. After seeing who it was, my friend decided to answer it, gesturing that it would be a short call. Prescient she wasn’t as it turned out to be not only a long call but emotional as well. Now I’m not one to engage in the art of eavesdropping but in this call I did not have to. Continue reading “What are the Minimum Documents I Need for a Basic Estate Plan?”
Have you seen the new show – that re-make of Hawaii 5-0? Here is the premise: A divorced cop (James Caan’s son) from New Jersey moves to Hawaii to be near his young daughter – add some hip native Hawaiian cops and skimpy bathing suits. Doesn’t sound like a winner, does it? Well if you guessed that it was almost unbearable to watch, you were correct. Did I watch the whole show? Yes. I am not sure why but it was a complete waste of time. Continue reading “Financial Education: Estate Planning — Three Things to do in an Hour”
In my last blog, 3 Actions to Take in an Hour to Build Wealth, I pointed out that many of us waste at least an hour a week. I came up with three very important actions that take an hour or less to do but can significantly improve your finances. I am writing this blog immediately after the last one and will predict right here that I will lose the playoffs in my fantasy football league. First of all because my team isn’t that good and secondly because I am not a good manager. I will admit that I have only gone this far by luck. So in other words, I have free time. What will I do with the extra hour? Continue reading “3 Actions to Take in an Hour to Prepare for Emergencies”
