How to Avoid the Next Financial Emergency

How to Avoid the Next Financial Emergency

At a speech in Washington a few weeks ago Federal Reserve Chair Janet Yellen declared that a large number of American families are “extraordinarily vulnerable” to financial setbacks because they have few assets to fall back on.  To them, a financial crisis is a month or two without a paycheck.  By contrast, she went on…
Read more

Delay Social Security? An Easy Way to Decide

One of the most heatedly debated questions regarding Social Security (SS) is when to start.  You have the option of initiating benefits as early as age 62 or as late as age 70.  The longer you wait, the greater the monthly payment you will receive over your lifetime.  If you are married, there are various…
Read more

How to Spend More Than You Earn

The Wall Street Journal (WSJ) recently ran an article about affluent individuals and families who, despite large six-figure salaries, managed to pile up a huge amount of debt.  They cited one woman who had accumulated $300K in debt despite earning more than $200 a year.  Reader responses, unsurprisingly, were variously indignant, angry, and puzzled.  Many…
Read more

Use Retirement Accounts To Pay For College?

When it comes to saving for college, most people think about setting up a 529 College Savings Account.  However, you can also use individual retirement accounts (traditional IRA or Roth IRA) as well as 401(k) plans to pay for most college expenses.  But you have to make sure to follow the rules carefully; otherwise you…
Read more