Retirement Watch Weekly
How to Ensure Inflation Protected Lifetime Income with Annuities
As the Baby Boomers age, financial services firms are interested in meeting their needs. One need is for guaranteed lifetime income that replaces old-style defined benefit plans. Another need is for that income to retain its purchasing power over the years. Some investment advisors used to say that owning stocks for the long term met […]
How to Avoid Frequent IRA Mistakes
Mistakes and over-sights by IRA owners prevent their heirs from maximizing the after-tax benefits of the accounts. The source of many problems is the IRA beneficiary form, a document to which most IRA owners devote only a minute or so. This form should be an important element of an estate plan, and some IRA owners […]
Charitable Gifts: New Rules
The Pension Protection Act of 2006 changed the rules for deducting charitable contributions. You need to know these rules or contributions that were deductible in the past will not be deductible on your 2007 return. Cash donations. It used to be that for cash contributions of less than $250, you did not need a receipt […]
April 2007
April 27, 2007 10:00 a.m. Supporting the Stock Market What is pushing stocks higher? Analysts have been expecting a substantial correction for some time. It was only two month ago that pessimism was reigning, and many believed a substantial correction was underway. Yet, the Dow is hitting record highs, and the S&P 500 is not […]
Simple Ways to Build Bullet-Proof Trusts
Estate planners love trusts. They solve many problems and help achieve goals. In recent years, trusts have moved from the estate plans of the very wealthy into the plans of many families. Too often, however, trusts operate as bombs that explode and shred estate plans. Fortunately, there are simple steps that will avoid the common […]
How to Build the Family Venture Capital and Loan Fund
Most people want to help their children and grandchildren, but they want to provide more than money. One goal is to ensure the future generations are hard-working and productive citizens who have initiative. Another goal is to perpetuate the family’s values. One of the values in some families is entrepreneurship. By encouraging entrepreneurial activities in […]
Know the Financial Scams that Target Seniors
Older Americans have most of the money, and crooks know that. So do people who operate within the law but beyond the usual definition of ethical, selling people products that aren’t appropriate for them. That is why we have a number of ill-suited financial products specifically pitched at those 55 and over, and especially at […]
Medical Expense Options for Retirees
A recent survey of America’s wealthy revealed a surprise. Those in households with more than $250,000 in investable assets said that their greatest financial concern is health care costs. These Americans believe that medical expenses are more likely to affect their savings and investments than terrorism, rising energy prices, taxes, and the state of the […]
