Over at the Retirement Planning site at About.com, I just posted an article about the best kind of tax deductions: those that come from saving.
Think about it. Most tax deductions require you to spend money in order to obtain the deduction. In my practice, the most common and largest deductions are:
state and local income taxes
mortgage [...]
Continue reading about The best kind of tax deduction – a deduction for saving
One of my relatives recently was charged a substantial fee for rolling his 401(k) plan out to an IRA. In my opinion, that’s total nonsense, even if it’s disclosed. It’s the equivalent of an “account closing fee.” Can you imagine?
You: I’d like to close my account.
Bank: I see you have $100 in your account so [...]
Approximately half of all people cash out their retirement plan when they switch jobs.
You: Well, I wasn’t going to leave my retirement plan at my old company either. My boss was a real jerk.
I don’t know your boss, but –
You: He was a jerk. I jut told you that. Pay attention.
We’ve all had bosses who–
You: [...]
Continue reading about Just because you’re running doesn’t mean you should take the money
Today, I’m featuring a quick compilation of links I’m sure you’ll find interesting:
Bankrate.com recently published a story Should you pay debt before savings? It’s a good write-up of an important question for those living Beyond Paycheck to Paycheck. Plus, I was quoted for the piece.
Social Security recently announced that there will be no increase in [...]
Continue reading about Debt before savings, no inflation, credit card changes
You: You’re watching pre-season basketball?
No. Honestly, I might even watch golf first.
You: What’s wrong with watching golf?
I find it more boring than the prospect of playing it.
You: Wow. So what’s with the “fourth quarter” reference then?
I’m talking about the fourth quarter of the year, which begins today. For better or worse, many companies – especially [...]
Continue reading about Welcome to the fourth quarter: Five suggested tasks before New Year’s
Choosing whether to convert an existing IRA into a Roth IRA is an important decision. Currently, such conversions are limited to people with MAGI’s (that’s modified adjusted gross income in IRS-speak) of less than $100,000. But in 2010, that income restriction goes away. Therefore, virtually everyone will have the opportunity to convert their IRA into [...]
You: Cheesy title.
Monday morning.
You: You too?
Yup. Anyway, I thought I’d take this fine Monday morning to highlight some of my best recent articles from around the web:
Twelve Crazy Myths of Personal Finance was a ton of fun to write. Pretty sure you’ll enjoy it too, evidenced by its selection as an editor’s pick at [...]
Continue reading about Where in the world is Michael Rubdiego?
One of the most common myths of retirement is “Plus, I’m going to get an inheritance.”
You: For you, maybe. My parents still love me.
It has nothing to do with love.
You: Sure it does. If it didn’t, I wouldn’t let half my relatives in my house.
That’s not a good ratio.
You: Tell me about it; I was [...]
Continue reading about Five Reasons Not to Count on An Inheritance in Your Retirement Plan
I recently wrote More Than the 10% Penalty – The Dangers of Early Retirement Account Withdrawals for FiLife, a joint venture between The Wall Street Journal and IAC. The dangers are real, starting with taxes, ending with lost growth and a bunch of other financial pain in between. Before you ask for that distribution check [...]
Continue reading about Five dangers of tapping your retirement money early
One of the best parts of the weekly personal finance carnivals, including this week’s carnival hosted by WiseBread, it the wide variety of personal finance topics covered. In addition, I always take the time to enjoy an article or two that I’ve been meaning to write myself but just haven’t gotten to. This week was [...]
Continue reading about What do extra loan payments, toilet paper, and Monopoly have in common?
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