Personal Finance

Guarding Against Identity Theft

Guarding Against Identity Theft Take steps so criminals won’t take vital information from you. America is enduring a data breach epidemic. The latest annual study of the problem from Javelin Strategy & Research, a leading financial analytics research firm, says that 16.7 million people across the nation were impacted by I.D. theft in 2017 – an all-time high.1 The problem is getting worse – much worse. Last year, 30% of U.S. consumers were alerted about data breaches by firms holding [...]

By |2018-11-02T13:45:46-04:00October 30th, 2018|Cybersecurity, Personal Finance|Comments Off on Guarding Against Identity Theft

Are Your Beneficiary Designations Up to Date?

Are Your Beneficiary Designations Up to Date? Who should inherit your IRA or 401(k)? See that they do   Here’s a simple financial question: who is the beneficiary of your IRA? How about your 401(k) or annuity? You may be saying, “I’m not sure.” It is smart to periodically review your beneficiary designations. Your choices may need to change with the times. When did you open your first IRA? When did you buy your life insurance policy? Was it back [...]

By |2018-11-16T11:50:42-05:00October 2nd, 2018|Personal Finance|Comments Off on Are Your Beneficiary Designations Up to Date?

Retirement Questions That Have Nothing to Do With Money

Retirement Questions That Have Nothing to Do With Money Think about these matters before you leave work for the last time.  Retirement planning is not entirely financial. Your degree of happiness in your “second act” may depend on some factors you cannot quantify. Here are a few of those factors as well as the questions they may end up provoking in your mind.  Where will you live? This is a major factor in retirement happiness. If you can surround yourself [...]

By |2018-08-24T11:33:17-04:00August 23rd, 2018|Personal Finance, Retirement|Comments Off on Retirement Questions That Have Nothing to Do With Money

Why Having a Financial Professional Matters

Why Having a Financial Professional Matters A good professional provides important guidance and insight through the years.  What kind of role can a financial professional play for an investor? The answer: a very important one. While the value of such a relationship is hard to quantify, the intangible benefits may be significant and long lasting. A good financial professional can help an investor interpret today’s financial climate, determine objectives, and assess progress toward those goals. Alone, an investor may be [...]

By |2018-07-09T14:34:58-04:00July 5th, 2018|Investing, Personal Finance|Comments Off on Why Having a Financial Professional Matters

Managing Student Loan Debt

Managing Student Loan Debt  A review of some options for federal and private loans.  Are you dealing with student loan debt? Have you explored ways to try and restructure it or have it forgiven? No one wants to carry five figures of education debt into middle age or retirement, but some do. The burden is not just financial. Last fall, the Madison Capital Times asked student loan borrowers in the state of Wisconsin how they felt about their education debt. [...]

By |2018-06-08T11:45:54-04:00June 8th, 2018|Personal Finance|Comments Off on Managing Student Loan Debt
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