Year-End Charitable Gifting What should you keep in mind as you donate? Are you making charitable donations this holiday season? If so, you should know about some of the financial “fine print” involved, as the right moves could potentially bring more of a benefit to the charity and to you. To deduct charitable donations, you must itemize them on I.R.S. Schedule A. So, you need to document each donation you make. Ideally, the charity uses a form it has [...]
End-of-the-Year Money Moves Here are some things you might want to do before saying goodbye to 2017. What has changed for you in 2017? Did you start a new job or leave a job behind? Did you retire? Did you start a family? If notable changes occurred in your personal or professional life, then you will want to review your finances before this year ends and 2018 begins. Even if your 2017 has been relatively uneventful, the end of [...]
Good information from Bottom Line Personal's interview with Adam Levin, JD: Protect Dead Relatives from ID Theft Dont assume that the risk of having your identity stolen lasts only as long as you are alive. More than two million dead Americans become victims of identity theft each year. To an identity thief, the recently deceased are ideal targets. Unlike the living, the dead never notice that they are being victimized and dont take steps to stop these crimes. There is [...]
Avoiding the Cybercrooks How can you protect yourself against ransomware, phishing, and other tactics? Imagine finding out that your computer has been hacked. The hackers leave you a message: if you want your data back, you must pay them $300 in bitcoin. This was what happened to hundreds of thousands of PC users in May 2017 when they were attacked by the WannaCry malware, which exploited security flaws in Windows. How can you plan to avoid cyberattacks and other attempts [...]
Is a Home an Investment? From one perspective, the answer is yes; from another, no. When you buy a home, are you investing? If you buy it to flip it or buy it as a rental property, the answer is yes. If you buy a home simply to live in it, the answer may be no. Your home is an expression of your lifestyle, a wonderful setting for your life, and a place you can enjoy in privacy and comfort. [...]