A week or so ago, the patio furniture on my front porch was covered in pollen. So much pollen, in fact, that I wouldn’t dare to sit down for fear that my clothes would turn green – or that I would begin to start sneezing uncontrollably. It seems that I’m not alone with my spring sneezes. Almost like an uncontrollable allergic reaction – rather than rational thought -- the stock market has reacted to spring with another sneeze. This year marks the third in a row where the S&P 500 experienced a greater-than-10% decline, a move often referred to as a “correction”. In the previous two years…
Do you remember that summer a year or two after you graduated from college? You know, the summer when you attended weddings almost every weekend? It started in June and it seemed that almost all of your hard earned cash was going toward wedding presents for your friends who were tying the knot. Well, June is here again and soon the church bells will be ringing as brides and grooms walk the isle. Here are some financial issues that couples should consider when embarking on a matrimonial journey.1. Discuss your finances before marriage — Start your marriage off on the right foot by having …
Here’s a nightmare for you: You’re backing out of a parking space at the local strip mall when your phone rings and you look away for just a second. No, you haven’t backed into anyone or caused injury to a person; that’s the good news. But… you knocked over a fire hydrant and soon 1500 gallons of water are pouring into the parking lot every single second. You watch in horror as a small lake forms and water begins to flow under the doors of all the stores. By the time the water gets shut off, your minor fender bender has caused your financial ruin. You must replace the hydrant and pay …
More than Numbers - Financial Planning has traditionally been about numbers. How much do I need to save? How many years before I can retire? How long will my money last? And yes, crunching numbers is one part of the financial planning equation. But there’s more to it than that. Some say that financial success is 80% behavior and just 20% numbers.Go back in time for a moment. Imagine yourself back at your very first job; you’re sitting in the conference room listening to the company’s 401k provider talk about the retirement plan. He says, “If you’re 25 years-old and save about $300 …
I received a phone call not long ago from a client of mine who needed to file a claim on his disability insurance policy. He and his wife had gone to the movies on one of their bi-weekly “date nights”. Before the movie ended – while the house lights were still dim -- he got up to get some popcorn, but tripped on a broom an employee had left in the isle. He ended up falling down the stairs and was severely injured. Can you imagine? Who would have thought a date night could end so badly? Disability -- More Common than you might imagine. Let’s face it: Nobody wants to imagine getting sick…
I’ve been in a reflective mood lately. You see, my oldest son turns 21 next month. When he was born, I had a few wishes for his childhood. I prayed that he would be healthy and happy, and I even recall telling my infant son that I hoped he would one day see the Red Sox win it all! As every parent knows, the birth of your first child is a time of great transition. This was certainly true for my wife and me. We had been married for about 5 years before our first was born and during that time, I had started a career in banking and had quickly advanced to Vice President of Commercial …
Imagine for a moment: It’s 10 o’clock on a beautiful Monday morning and you’re sitting at your kitchen table with a freshly poured cup of coffee. Today is your 62nd birthday and you’ve taken the day off from work because you have an important decision to make. The sun is shining across the table and there before you are two papers: One is from Social Security and the other is from your 401k. Here’s the deal: Social security is offering you a lifetime monthly income, but if you accept their offer today, you’ll receive up to 30% less income each month than if you waited until your full …
Social Security touches the lives of almost every American family. It not only provides income to retirees, but also to workers who become disabled, and families in which a spouse or parent dies. But it wasn’t always this way. Here’s what President Franklin Roosevelt said in a radio broadcast on the third anniversary of the Social Security Act in 1938, just a few years after the Great Depression and stock market crash left many older American penniless. “Long before the economic blight of the depression descended on the Nation, millions of our people were living in wastelands of want and …
In the 1979 Academy-Award-winning movie Breaking Away, Dave Stohler’s father goes catatonic when his son offers a refund to a customer who wants to return a car to the family’s used-car lot. “Refund?!, Refund?!”, he screams (you can watch the clip here). These days, shouts about refunds tend to be for joy or relief rather than consternation. Of course, we’re talking about an entirely different type of refund. February is the month when early filers start getting their tax refunds. According to the IRS, the average tax refund in 2011 was about $3,000. For some, this is a good thing – …
When our grandparents retired, most employees received a golden watch and a pension that promised a guaranteed life-time income. Not bad at all! For most working individuals today, however, pensions are a thing of the past and now it is up to each one of us to provide for our own retirement income once we stop working. In the mid-90s, the stock market was booming and our IRA and 401k plans were growing like weeds. But after a difficult decade of little growth in the stock market coupled with high levels of unemployment, many people are finding themselves in their 40s and 50s with …
This year, forget about New Year’s resolutions; they don’t work. A 2007 study published in the Journal of Clinical Psychology showed that 88 percent of all resolutions ended in failure. Sure, the first two weeks usually go great, but by February, people start falling off the wagon and before long most find themselves back where they started, and sometimes even further behind. Still, approximately half of the US population makes New Year’s resolutions each year. Among the most popular are weight loss, exercise and better money management. As the writer of a personal finance column, you …
Americans are living longer than ever before and that means that more people are finding it necessary to get help with normal daily tasks like bathing or dressing. Often it is the adult daughters of aging parents who find themselves needing to provide this type of assistance for mom or dad. At other times, a home health aide or visiting nurse can be hired to offer help in the home a few times a week. Frequently, full-time care becomes necessary and this can be performed either in the home or in a full-time nursing facility. Whether long-term health care is provided by family members, a …
Last week, a checklist used by astronaut James Lovell was sold at auction for $390,000. You’ll remember that the Apollo 13 mission to the moon nearly ended in disaster when an oxygen tank exploded and caused the computer guidance system to lose power. More than 200,000 miles above Earth, Apollo 13 commander Lovell used this checklist to make some critical calculations that allowed the crew to know their position in space and make a safe return to earth. Lovell’s checklist led to what many describe as NASA’s finest hour. So, what does this have to do with a personal finance column? Well, …
President George Washington designated November 26, 1777 as the first Thanksgiving Day recognized by the US government. In the years that followed, each state scheduled its own Thanksgiving holiday at different times, until Abraham Lincoln made it an ongoing National holiday. His proclamation read, “I do therefore invite my fellow citizens in every part of the United States, and also those who are at sea and those who are sojourning in foreign lands, to set apart and observe the last Thursday of November next, as a day of Thanksgiving and Praise to our beneficent Father who dwells in the …
It used to be that there were two types of people in the world: the haves and the have-nots. Today, there are three: the haves, the have-nots and the have-not-paid-for-what-they-haves. While we might smile at this description, it really isn’t funny. One of the most important, if not most difficult, principles of finance is to spend less than you earn. So how do you do that in today’s economy? Many folks focus on trying to cut costs; they skip their morning Starbucks in favor of coffee brewed at home, for example. But really, how much does this help when gas prices go through the roof? …
Outraged about bank fees? You’re not alone. Citizens Bank recently started charging me $3 per month to mail my monthly bank statement. Bank of America recently announced they would soon start charging $5 per month for using their debit card. And just last week three large banks were sued for allegedly colluding to fix ATM fees. Add to these costs, overdraft fees, phone transfer fees, inactive account fees and you’ll see that it’s a veritable fee for all! According to an April study by the Pew Charitable Trust, checking accounts at the 10 biggest U.S. banks had a median 49 different types of …
There’s a different routine in my house these days. I’m writing this on the first day of school for my younger two boys and over the past few weeks my older two sons have gone to their respective colleges (VCU in Richmond and MassArt in Boston). The lazy days of summer are over and the kids are going to bed early and getting up at the crack of dawn. And with the older boys out of the house, there is no more having to wait up until they’re safely in the driveway after a night out with friends. It’s great! For many families, the beginning of the school year marks the start of new routines…
The huge swings in the stock market last week may seem all too familiar. Perhaps you’re worried about a repeat of the 2008 financial crisis. Before you dump your holdings and run for cover, consider this surprising fact. According to the Employee Benefit Research Group, most retirement plan account balances have bounced back to pre-2008 levels. Account balances didn't recover entirely from the strength of the market -- those automatic paycheck deductions helped a lot too. Investors who cashed out and remained on the sidelines missed out on the profitable years since the crash. Still, …
With so much attention and angst focused on the debate in Washington over the US debt ceiling these past few weeks, it is no wonder the financial markets continue to bounce around. It seems that TV financial experts and entertainers (financial “expertainers”) often exaggerate events in the marketplace and thus excite the emotions of investors who are swayed by fear. This emotional ping-pong game results in illogical investment behavior, such as buying at market highs and selling at market lows. The wise investor learns to look past the colorful adjectives that describe daily market swings …
The Tour de France is said to be the largest spectator event in the world with an estimated attendance of over 10 million people. The attendance swells because the race isn’t a single day event -- it actually takes place over 21 days and covers more than 2,000 miles. The most popular stages are the ones that see the riders climbing the French Pyrenees or Alp Mountain passes. This week, the Tour is in the high mountains and the combination of gorgeous scenery, a colorful peloton and tens of thousands of cheering fans is a sight to behold. For the past several years the race has been broadcast …
