social security benefits

At least once  a year, if not more, you visit the dentist and doctor to make sure everything’s working properly – why not give your finances the same opportunity? As we approach the busy holiday season, it’s easy to let attention slip from personal finance. If you find yourself barreling toward the end of 2009 [...]

The following article contains information about the Internal Revenue Service (IRS)’s officially released 2009 federal income tax brackets. You’ll need this information to prepare and file your 2009 tax return in early 2010. To the extent that the information in this article helps summarize the changes in Federal Income Tax, you should consult the official [...]

Recent economic mess and stock market decline left many people wondering if they’ll have enough money for their retirement. Many will just have to adopt a more frugal lifestyle, but some people are lucky enough to have the option of delaying their retirement. If you are in this latter group of people, here are several [...]

“When should I take Social Security?” is the first question everyone faces when contemplating retirement. More than 50% of all men and women start taking benefits at 62. By age 66, well over 90% of all men and women are taking benefits according to the Center for Retirement Research at Boston College.
The Break Even Approach
The [...]

Reverse mortgages are one way senior homeowners who are 62 years and older may be able to tap the home equity.  A reverse mortgage gives the homeowner money they need without having to leave the house and without having to repay the loan until the owner dies, the home is sold, or the house is [...]

I am currently in Alexandria, VA visiting my sister for her husband birthday. The drive out from New York on Friday was terrible. The afternoon rain caused several accidents, combine that to road constructions and Friday traffic, and we have a recipe for an 8-hour drive. There were several stretches on our drive that I [...]

Last week, I wrote about Social Security, specifically about some of the useful information I culled from the Social Security Statement for my mom. There was an interesting comment from a reader, ToughMoneyLove, regarding the benefit of delaying your retirement because the Social Security Administration gives you 8% bump in benefits each year. Here’s that [...]

On Friday, I received my Social Security Statement and looked closely at it for the first time. Although, I have been getting these statements for years, I have never paid too much attention to them until now. The reason? My mom is turning 65 this year, and I need to figure out her options.

Some Facts [...]

Annuities are insurance products designed to help you invest for retirement and provide supplemental income during your retirement. The most common form of annuity is income annuity where the investor pays the insurance a sum of money in exchange for a series of regular payment for a period of time, up to a lifetime contract.
What [...]

Kent Irwin, who recently wrote a guest article: Is Suze Orman Right, Can You Be Your Own Financial Planner?, sent me a free license to use his eFinPLAN online financial planning software. In this post, I am going to provide you with my initial experience, and I will follow up with a second post to [...]