#1-718574 Understanding family attitudes towards money may improve financial decisions and reduce financial stress. People inherit more from their parents and grandparents than big feet, eye color, self-discipline, a passion for sports, or an artistic bent. Most also assume their families’ ideas and attitudes toward money. Money beliefs are often passed down from generation to generation, along with great grandma’s quilts, ancestral photos, and family culture.1 Researchers call these inherited money mindsets ‘money scripts.’ These...
A tight housing market is leading many young adults to postpone purchasing a home, choosing instead to go the rental route. Many simply don’t want to be encumbered with a mortgage and all of the responsibilities that go with home ownership. As a renter, it’s tempting to think that all of your responsibilities and worries shift to your landlord; however, you’ll be in for a shock if the building you’re living in is damaged by...
Pat and Kelly, new parents, made a couple monthly budget adjustments upon the arrival of their first child. First, due to the added cost of day care and dependent health insurance, they decreased the amount they were saving for a house. And second, they agreed to review their life insurance needs. Pat’s sister suggested they buy $500,000 life insurance policies like she and her husband did when their child was born. Given the disparity in...
Buying life insurance usually starts with trying to determine how much and what type you should buy. You will probably need some help making those decisions, so following is some insight on how to choose an agent who can help you make a smart life insurance buying decision. All life insurance agents are required to be licensed by the state where they intend to make sales and to take continuing education courses. Agents selling variable...
Generally speaking, conversations about life insurance revolve around whether you should buy term or permanent insurance. However, every decision to buy life insurance begins with deciding what is the right amount of life insurance. And, integral to determining the right amount of life insurance is understanding the role of your Social Security Survivorship Benefit (SSSB). What is the Social Security Survivorship Benefit? If you qualify for Social Security and pass away, a SSSB may provide...
Accumulating wealth turns out to be a double-edged sword for business owners. It certainly has its privileges, but it also comes with additional risk exposures. In a 2011 Zogby survey, 92 percent of people with a high new worth indicated concerns over the possibility of home invasions, muggings, kidnapping, and even random street crimes. Not mentioned widely was the ever increasing risk of cyber crime, which can do serious financial, reputation and identity damage. One...
The Markets It’s a good time for a gut check. Last week, after sliding lower for four days, the Standard & Poor’s 500 Index recouped some of its losses on Friday. The reasons behind the week’s poor showing were diverse. Barron’s reported: “The market is so discombobulated right now that it can’t even decide what it’s afraid of. What do we mean? When the Standard & Poor’s 500 index suffered its first correction since the...
The enactment of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (TCJA) represents “the most sweeping overhaul of the U.S. tax code in more than 30 years.”1 For millions of Americans and businesses it means an altered financial and investment landscape with new opportunities and challenges in the years ahead. Keep in mind, however, that the information in this material is not intended as tax advice, and may not be used for the purpose of avoiding any...
Vacation season is almost upon us and, for many Americans who haven’t traveled abroad in several years, their vacations have been years in planning. However, even the best laid plans can quickly come unraveled if you don’t take some extra measures to ensure that your finances are protected before you leave on your trip. Your vacation planning checklist needs to include these essential steps of how to protect your finances while traveling on vacation: Stick...
There’s a good reason there’s an estimated 74 to 96 million owned cats and 70 to 80 million dogs in the U.S. With wagging tails, slobbery kisses, and little whiskers that make for adorable Instagrams, pets give us that warm, cuddly feeling inside. They are part of our families and some of our best friends. But, they can also be a substantial part of a personal budget, especially since it (hopefully) is a long-term commitment...
The term beneficiary crops up every now and again. Usually you’ll see it on an insurance form or hear about it in relation to a will, but despite the nonchalance we toss the term around with, beneficiaries are incredibly important. Let’s break down the details on how and why beneficiaries matter. What’s a beneficiary actually mean? A beneficiary can be anyone—a person or a nonprofit organization like your church or the local homeless shelter—who you...
The digital world has transformed professional industries in unique ways that prior to internet access would have been impossible. Doctors can monitor patients remotely, lawyers can offer counsel online, software can complete your taxes for you, and even financial investments and advertisements can be made without any face-to-face contact. To some this would sound ludicrous and to others it sounds convenient, but one thing is for certain—the robo-advisor is another option that’s here to stay...
