Small Biz Health Insurance Deal Won’t Last Long
Do you own – or work for — a small business that doesn’t provide health insurance? Fewer than half of all small businesses – with from two to fifty employees – offer a health plan. But in the next few...
View ArticleOpen Enrollment for Medicare & Part D
Medicare now has about 60 million enrollees, split roughly two-thirds in traditional Medicare Parts A and B (plus Part D and supplements) and one-third enrolled in the more comprehensive Medicare...
View ArticleTime to Take Stock
If your retirement funds are invested in the stock market, you simply can’t afford to ignore the signals the market is sending. Any decisions about selling, or buying the dips, must depend on your own...
View ArticleTIPS Tackle Inflation
We shouldn’t be surprised when inflation returns to impact our lives — both in our spending decisions and in our investment decisions. After all, the conditions are ripe. First the Federal Reserve...
View ArticleBright Start is “Golden”
Morningstar has assigned its top Gold rating to the Illinois Bright Start 529 College Savings plan, for the second year in a row. Only four 529 plans were given the gold designation, out of 62 plans...
View ArticleFix Your IRA and 40l(k) Now
Here are three things you must do now to make sure your IRA or 40l(k) accounts don’t get caught in the year-end crunch — and that you’re well prepared for 2019. A few weeks ago, you received your third...
View ArticleGive Generously — and Wisely
Did this year fly by faster than ever? The holidays are here again. And now that we have expressed our thankfulness, we enter into the season of generosity. Despite changes in the tax code that make it...
View ArticleHoliday Gifts for Kids – 2018
Every year at this time I write a column suggesting money smart holiday gifts for children. The goal is to find entertaining and educational gifts that won’t be broken or forgotten in a few weeks but...
View ArticleYear-End Tax Tips under New Tax Law
Thinking about income taxes is different this year because of the new tax laws. For some people, tax time will be easier and less costly. They will get a $12,000 standard deduction for an individual...
View ArticleChicken Money Now!
“Chicken money” is money you can’t afford to lose. It’s that simple. The amount of chicken money you need depends on your overall financial situation, stage in life, and risk tolerance. Just about...
View ArticleBalance Transfer Cards: Denting Debt
One steep recession and 10 years later, Americans are once again buried in credit card debt. The latest Federal Reserve figures show that there is now nearly $1.3 trillion in credit card debt...
View ArticleSavage Truths About the Market
This is a perfect time to reflect on some Savage Truths that sadly must to be relearned in every economic and stock market cycle. —Perspective is essential to investment success. And it’s almost...
View ArticleStarting Over in the New Year
Don’t look back! If the calendar can start over, so can you. In every aspect of life — but particularly our financial lives — if we keep looking backward we will find ourselves headed in the wrong...
View ArticleGold, Again?
Is this the time to hedge your financial bets and buy gold? It’s always important to have some price perspective. As of this writing, gold is trading at $1,291 per ounce, far below its all-time high of...
View ArticleLearn to Trade
There’s a vast difference between traders and investors, although both have the same goal: to make money in the markets. An investor typically has a longer-term perspective when she or he makes basic...
View ArticleTaxes: To Itemize or Not?
Have you noticed that one part of the federal government that isn’t shutting down is the Internal Revenue Service? While employees are being forced back to work without pay to process refunds, they...
View ArticleOnline Money Management Tools
The first step toward reaching your financial goals is knowing where you stand now — and at all times. And there’s nothing like personal finance software and apps to give you that kind of power over...
View ArticleEmployers Help Pay Student Loans
The best new benefit that companies are offering employees is help in paying down their student loans. It’s a growing trend among employers seeking to attract and keep talented young workers. Many...
View ArticleDealing with Student Loan Debt
The $1.5 trillion dollar student loan burden weighs heavily on graduates, their parents and the economy. Here are some resources to help you deal with this debt starting immediately after graduation...
View ArticleDealing with the Debt Epidemic
Too many Americans are living on the edge, burdened with debt that grows like a cancer and made vulnerable by a lack of savings to deal with emergencies. And this sad situation coincides with the...
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