Finance

• Get Real: The Family CFO Retirement Plan

  The real question when it comes to retirement savings isn’t “How much should we save?” it’s “How much can we save?” It’s impossible to estimate accurately what you’ll need in retirement and how much to save monthly in order to have that cash. But you can try to align your savings with your priorities (saving more if retirement is a higher priority, less if it’s a lower one). And you can make smart decisions about how to make the most of that savings.

• How Should We Plan For Retirement?

  When it comes to imagining our retirement, most of us are in uncharted territory. People in their twenties and thirties today will live longer than any generation in history. If they retire around age sixty-five they’ll need to keep supporting themselves for two or three more decades—longer than any other generation has ever gone without working.

• Passion and Pensions: How to Balance Money Matters and Dating

  Regardless of how many relationships you’ve had, it is always difficult to manage the financial issues of dating. Different money management styles, income and debt levels are just some of the money matters that the two of you may need to balance.

• Money Matters

  For some odd reason, most humans have a reflex reaction to tragedies like divorce: they go shopping. While theraputic outlets are recommended, this doesn’t mean the local clothing outlets. Every year, thousands of men and women are left in dire financial straights as the result of a divorce. Before you go buy that new bread maker or flat screen television, take a look at these tips to help prevent you from ending up financially injured:

• Mushy About Money?: Being Smart, Not Sentimental About Your Finances

  Let’s face it, balancing your checkbook is never going to be foreplay. Many couples avoid discussion of financial issues because they feel it deters from the romance in their relationship. Research shows that arguments over money are one of the leading causes of marital problems and divorce. But being smart about what you spend and save is critical to a balanced relationship.

• How Mortgage Prepayments Work

  I once heard a financial planner say you can reduce the numbers of years it takes to pay your house off. She said that if you make one extra house payment a year, you could reduce a 30-year mortgage to 22 years and a 15-year mortgage to a 12 years. Can you please explain how this works?

• Tax Relief for the Common Man

  On May 28, 2003, amidst considerable acclaim, President George W. Bush signed the Jobs and Growth Tax Relief Reconciliation Act of 2003. Most prominent among its numerous provisions was the lowering of tax rates, particularly on dividends and capital gains.

• Mortgage Fees – What Should You Pay, What Shouldn’t You?

  Unless you’re in the mortgage industry or obtain home financing on a regular basis, mortgage fees and terms can be confusing, and downright frustrating. Mortgage and financing terms are like another language, much like the “legalese” used by lawyers.