Cut your debt before you quit working – Don’t let debts mar your retired life

 

Among all the strategies that the retirees can adopt in order to arrange their finances for retirement, eradicating your unsecured credit card debt is the most important step. All financial planners are of the opinion that carrying debt while retiring is a dangerous financial move as the retirees live on a fixed income level. Don’t imperil your future by draining off your retirement savings while you’re already working as this is one of the biggest financial mistakes. According to the reports of the financial experts, there are many retirees who still carry debt on their student loans and credit cards. Is it better to rush for seeking debt relief when you’re retired or should you be careful while you’re already working so that you can live a debt free retired life? Read on to know some steps that you can take in order to eliminate your debt before you quit working.

  • Stop using your credit cards: Remember that it’s never too late to take steps that can make you debt free. If you’re into the habit of whipping your plastics for every single purchase, you should change this immediately so that you can save money for the long run. If you feel that you can’t afford anything with cash, wait until you save enough money for purchasing that thing than immediately purchasing it with plastic. The more you use credit cards, the more you’ll become liable to repay with the interest rates.
  • Save your dollars: An emergency fund is required when you’re young and if you want to safeguard your retired life against debts, you have to ensure saving money in a savings account. Save at least 10% of what you earn irrespective of the monthly income. You should be able to build the emergency fund so that you can withdraw funds from the account when you don’t have enough cash to make ends meet.
  • Start saving in a retirement fund: If your workplace is offering you with a 401(k) account, are you saving money? If you’re already saving a part of the monthly income in your retirement account, you’re treading on the right track but if you haven’t, don’t delay. It’s never too late to start off with saving money. Irrespective of the matched contribution of your employer, you should keep on saving these pre-tax dollars in the 401(k) account.
  • Determine your retirement needs: Before you take the plunge into saving for your retirement, make sure you determine your retirement needs. It is most likely that the way you spend your life now will be different from that of the way you spend it post retirement. You will probably be staying at home and this will abolish a huge amount of your daily expenses that you may need when you hmm
  • Pay off your debt while you’re working: The most vital step that you need to take is to repay your debt while you’re already working. Get help from the professionals so that you can repay the debt in easy and affordable monthly payments. There are the debt consolidation and the debt settlement companies and getting help from them can easily help you get back on the right financial track.

Nothing can be worse than spoiling your retired life with debts. Take the required steps to save money and accumulate enough funds so that you don’t need to rush to the professional debt relief companies for getting financial aid. Taking DIY debt relief steps is always a better option.

May 10, 2012  Tags:   Posted in: General  No Comments

Understanding Social Security: Social Security and retirement planning

Planning for retirement involves making some critical financial decisions, especially if youll need to depend heavily on Social Security benefits. There are hundreds of ways to calculate Social Security benefits but finding good advice can be difficult. Russ Settle, retired professor of economics at the University of Delaware, and Jeff Miller, a current professor of economics at the University of Delaware are partners in SocialSecurityChoices.com, which provides guidance in calculating Social Security benefits. They sat down with DFM News Shana OMalley to discuss their work and offer their thoughts on the future of the program.

February 11, 2012  Tags: , , , , , , ,   Posted in: General  No Comments

Wealth Advisors – Retirement Income and Distribution

Wealth Advisors – Retirement Income and Distribution Running Time: 4 minutes

February 11, 2012  Tags: , , , ,   Posted in: General  No Comments

Retirement Planning and The Time Value of Money.mp4

How to calculate the required monthly savings in order to achieve a retirement income goal, using a financial calculator and the time value of money.

February 8, 2012  Tags: , , , , , , , ,   Posted in: General  No Comments

UTC ON CNMG FIRST-UP: RETIREMENT IS IT TOO EARLY TO START PLANNING?

Wendy Bishop, Manager Research & Product Development, UTC and Omar Holder, Manager Sales & Promotion, UTC; look to the future in a discussion of how UTC can prepare you Retirement. CNMGs FIRST-UP: Tuesday 14 June 2011

February 5, 2012  Tags: , , , ,   Posted in: General  No Comments

Repairing the American Retirement Dream – Bifurcated Retirement

A new retirement planning tool introduced by EnTrusted.in for all Americans that serves to: 1) minimize Americans fears of outliving ones retirement funds, 2) simplify the retirement planning process, and 3) arm retirees with an effective weapon in fighting long-term care costs and its burden on families.

January 28, 2012  Tags: , , , ,   Posted in: General  No Comments

Gaby Goddard, Editor-in-Chief of AARP Viva on Women & Retirement

Candace Rose of CandieAnderson.com was joined recently by Gaby Goddard, editor-in chief and vice president of AARP Viva, to discuss steps women of all ages need to take to prepare for retirement as part of the AARP Decide. Create. Share. initiative.

January 22, 2012  Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,   Posted in: General  No Comments

Retirement Income & Distributions — Getting to Know Your Taxes

Learn about reporting different types of retirement income and the rules around withdrawals. Brought to you by The Tax Institute.

January 21, 2012  Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,   Posted in: General  No Comments

Ray Lucia’s Ask Ray: Decumulate Properly?

Have question for Ray? Visit www.raylucia.com and click Ask Ray. Your question might even be featured on the show.

January 19, 2012  Tags: , , , , , , , , ,   Posted in: General  No Comments

Three Important Ways to Prepare for Retirement

While youre busy with todays concerns, it can be hard to think about what may occur years in the future. But its important to think about how you want to live in retirement and develop a strategy to get there – and the sooner you get started, the better.

January 19, 2012  Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , ,   Posted in: General  No Comments

Worst States for Retirees in 2012

Connecticut. Illinois. Vermont. Take your pick. Robert Powell joins The News Hub to discuss the worst places in the country to retire.

January 17, 2012  Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , ,   Posted in: General  No Comments

IFA.tv: Taking the Work Out of Retirement – Episode 10 – Segment 2

ifarcs.com – http – IFA Retirement Specialist John Resurreccion discusses how to make the investment process simple for 401(k) participants and plan administrators. He reviews IFAs Quick Guide to Index Portfolio Selection, introduces the "set it and forget it" solution, and discusses the importance of providing support to plan administrators.

January 16, 2012  Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,   Posted in: General  No Comments

Investing strategies That Can Earn 10-27% safely

 

In this official video preview of The Elevation Group, Paul Haarman talks about Tax Advantages of the Rich. The old-school retirement strategy for the middle class of finding a financial advisor, and developing a diversified portfolio of mutual funds for the long-term is dead. Over. Over the past three years, Ive seen too many people in their 60s and 70s lose their ability to retire because the value of their nest-egg was tied to the stock market, and thats been an extremely valuable lesson learned. The only thing the market is good for these days is speculative, short-term trades. Im a risk-taker by nature, but Id have to be certifiably insane to park my “retirement money” into the market right now. To find out more about Mike Dillard and The Elevation Group click here.

Wall Street is broken. Washington is corrupt. Your wealth, (what you have now AND whatever you make in the future)
It’s under attack. Need proof? Tell me — how did you 401K/IRA, mutual funds or stocks do last year? Not so good? Or
non-existent returns?

The top 13 mutual funds based on a CNN survey got 0.25% in 2011 so far. Your savings account is paying more. and it’s
GUARANTEED interest. Something is severely wrong with how you can save, protect and grow your money in these economic
times. But you can escape this financial mess.

Over the last twelve months, my good friend Mike Dillard has gotten on the plane and flew all over the country looking for self-made millionaires, under-the-radar businessmen and quiet entrepreneurs who have net worths of at least $10 million to $1 billion. He had one simple question for them: “How do you protect and even grow your money during this economic crisis?” HINT: It’s not on Wall Street. They do what Mike calls “black box” strategies. To see their answers click here.

Mike has collected over 15 safe, reliable and proven wealth strategies that safely return anywhere from 10.5% to 27% annually. He calls them “black box strategies” because it seems like only the ultra-rich know about them. even though nearly ANYONE can use them. (They just don’t know about them). One of these “black box” strategies has tripled his money since 2008. Another puts his money in a tax-sheltered, hidden-from-creditors vehicle that pays 8-10% annually with a guaranteed principle (meaning, it NEVER goes below what you put in). Yet another shows you how you can safely, reliably make 27% annually for the next 20 years. And finally, even if you don’t think you have “extra money” to invest… You need to watch this video Mike just put together… Why?

Because he’ll also introduce you to someone who can “crack open” your IRA/401K and put it in better investments than what Wall Street prescribes you (i.e. mutual funds that don’t perform and steal 1.5% management fees every year even when they lose money) Mike is revealing FOUR of these “black box” strategies for FREE here:

P.S. All four of the “black box” strategies above has very little to NOTHING to do with Wall Street. The ultra-rich are smart enough to stay away from that filthy swamp. They use out-of-the-box thinking instead. You can too.
investments, investing, earn an income, retirement income

December 9, 2011  Tags:   Posted in: General  No Comments

Use The Mutual Fund Investment Proceeds To Eliminate Debt

 

Investment is a virtue. And, when it comes to investing, nothing can match the returns offered by the equities market. In fact, it has been seen time and again that over the long run, investment in the equities market outweighs any other form of investment. But, investing in the equities market is very risky too. Chances are also high that you may lose huge amount of money while investing in the stock market. This is because of the high risks associated with investing in the stock market that many of you do not dare to directly invest in the equities market. Instead, they prefer to participate in the equities market indirectly, in the form of investing in the mutual funds. Many of you use the proceeds generated from investing in the mutual funds to get out of debt.

In case of mutual fund investments, the professional and highly experienced fund managers associated with the asset management companies are responsible for investing your money in various asset classes so as to offer you the best returns. There are certain benefits of mutual fund investments which are listed below.

Offers diversification

One important tip of become successful in equity market investing is diversification. In mutual fund investing, the qualified fund manager is responsible for investing your money in various portfolios so that you obtain the best of returns. The fund managers invest your money in various stocks of different sectors and bonds. This reduces the risk of loss, in case of a collapse.

Highly liquid

One of the important benefits of mutual fund market is that it is highly liquid in nature. In other words, the liquidity feature allows you to enter and exit the market quite easily. You can sell mutual fund in a very short notice. However, you need to take into consideration the charges associated with selling your fund.

Highly divisible

One important advantage associated with mutual fund is that you can buy mutual funds in very smaller denominations. Even you can purchase very small units of mutual funds through monthly purchase plans. This feature has made investing in the mutual funds very easy.

Professional management help

In mutual fund investment, your money is managed by professional fund managers. The professional fund managers invest your money in well researched stocks and bonds so that you get the best returns.

Because of numerous benefits associated with mutual fund investments, many of you are treading this route. The income generated from investing in this market can be used to get out of debt.

November 16, 2011  Tags:   Posted in: General  No Comments

Investing for Retirement

Retirement may be a long way off for you – or it might be right around the corner. No matter how near or far it is, you’ve absolutely got to start saving for it now. However, saving for retirement isn’t what it used to be with the increase in cost of living and the instability of social security. You have to invest for your retirement, as opposed to saving for it!

Let’s start by taking a look at the retirement plan offered by your company. Once upon a time, these plans were quite sound. However, after the Enron upset and all that followed, people aren’t as secure in their company retirement plans anymore. If you choose not to invest in your company’s retirement plan, you do have other options.

First, you can invest in stocks, bonds, mutual funds, certificates of deposit, and money market accounts. You do not have to state to anybody that the returns on these investments are to be used for retirement. Just simply let your money grow overtime, and when certain investments reach their maturity, reinvest them and continue to let your money grow.

You can also open an Individual Retirement Account (IRA). IRA’s are quite popular because the money is not taxed until you withdraw the funds. You may also be able to deduct your IRA contributions from the taxes that you owe. An IRA can be opened at most banks. A ROTH IRA is a newer type of retirement account. With a Roth, you pay taxes on the money that you are investing in your account, but when you cash out, no federal taxes are owed. Roth IRA’s can also be opened at a financial institution.

Another popular type of retirement account is the 401(k). 401(k’s) are typically offered through employers, but you may be able to open a 401(k) on your own. You should speak with a financial planner or accountant to help you with this. The Keogh plan is another type of IRA that is suitable for self employed people. Self-employed small business owners may also be interested in Simplified Employee Pension Plans (SEP). This is another type of Keogh plan that people typically find easier to administer than a regular Keogh plan.

Whichever retirement investment you choose, just make sure you choose one! Again, do not depend on social security, company retirement plans, or even an inheritance that may or may not come through! Take care of your financial future by investing in it today.

September 6, 2011  Tags:   Posted in: General  No Comments

Retirement Money

When people talk retirement planning they are generally referring to financial planning. This is very important to
some, and other like to think they’ll worry about it at the time.

How much is enough? That will depend on the lifestyle you are going to plan on having once retired.

Some place a set amount into a retirement fund eack week. Others make investments, and real estate can be a very real
choice under the circumstances.

One you retire, sell the house, and you have your money. Sounds easy doesn’t it?

Even a combination of savings and investments can be looked at if you don’t want all your eggs in one basket. It does
make more sense to have more than one avenue for growing retirement funds.

The basic idea is to think about what age you might retire, and what you spend now to live a year. Naturally inflation
will dictate that what you get for your money now won’t be as much in twenty years.

So try and be realistic without pushing the panic button. Research your options, you can get in a financial adviser
or use the resources on the internet.

Decide what lifestyle you want to live when you retire and try and get the tools inplace to achieve that. Are you
willing to sell the family home? Do you want to travel? Is a retirement village good for you?

Once you know you can begin to find out how much you might need.

September 6, 2011  Tags:   Posted in: General  No Comments

Retirement–when to plan for it

Retirement planning is much like funeral planning, in that people tend to put it off for another day. But it really
does make the best sense to get in and start reasonably early.

This not only allows you to see how you will be doing financially, but you can make a retirement action plan as well.

Have a very close look at your superannuation plan and the money you are putting in. How much will you have once
retired? What are your options for payout?

Considering inflation and your lifestyle will you have enough to live on and do the things you want to do. A
financial adviser can be a great asset for these type of forecasts.

For this it’s really never to soon to check in, perhaps in the last ten years before retirement you can plan to top up
your retirement fund.

If you haven’t bothered much with putting money into your plan, then start to do so. The more you can get into it the
better.

Activities and time planning is another important area. You might want to save for the trip of a lifetime, will your
retirement be a full or semi?

It might be a wonderful thought to be sitting back everyday with your feet up, but if you are accustomed to an active
work life, you’ll get bored fairly quickly.

So think as basic as everyday activities you can do. Gardening, sports, art, travel, craft, woodwork etc can all
bring a new dimension into your life.

September 6, 2011  Tags:   Posted in: General  No Comments

Why It makes Sense To Put Money Away Sooner

Well, it just does. The sooner you invest money the longer it has to mature. You can double your investment if you put
away a set amount for ten years starting at age 25 than at age 35.

So you see, saving for retirement doesn’t have to be a slog forever. If you can invest $5000 a year for ten years from
the age of 25 to the age of 35 you will have upwards of about $800,000 when you retire at 65.

So the earlier you start the better. This is something you have control of, you don’t have to save forever, a good ten
year plan is fine. Get around the financial institutions and check out their options. Lump sum payments can get you more interest at
times.

One thing is for sure, you’ll be spoilt for choice, but do choose wisely and use a well known company. If you make a
bad choice, no one will be there to help.

Your retirement money is your responsibility. Get onto it as soon as possible. But honestly, even putting something
aside at age 55 is better than waiting until you are 65 and worrying about it.

If you need 30,000 a year to live on then you’d better get cracking! But be realistic, money can come partially from
social security pension, perhaps your employer has a pension scheme, maybe you are going to have a small
business to generate some cash to live on. Savings can make all the difference to your quality of life.

September 6, 2011  Tags:   Posted in: General  No Comments