Ways to avoid money arguments

8 Tips for Avoiding Money Arguments

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Financial issues in a relationship can be complex and challenging. It’s likely you’ll encounter some point in time where you want one thing and your partner wants another. In such situations, wouldn’t you prefer to avoid a money argument? But how do you keep the peace without giving up what’s important to you? Use these strategies to avoid an argument and negotiate your position effectively: 1. Refrain from taking offense. When you see your partner is getting “hot … Read More

financial valentines

Ways to Avoid Relationship Debt

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It’s tricky. How do you draw the line so you can protect your finances from relationship debt without creating a confrontational situation? Start by being aware of what it is and how it can creep into your life. Relationship debt is the situation when one person in a relationship becomes liable for the debts incurred by an ex-partner. I’m raising the issue for discussion because I have started to see more relation debt fallout … Read More

Market Move Dow Jones Big Numbers in Perspective

When Markets Move: Putting Big Numbers in Perspective

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Driving home yesterday evening, this is what I heard on the radio… Host leads with great emphasis in her voice, “The stock market was hammered today with The Dow Jones Industrial Average dropping over 326 points. Stocks fell sharply after a disappointing report on U.S. manufacturing and ahead of a busy week for economic indicators.”   Then in a more matter-of-fact, by-the-way-tone, she went on to say, “The S&P was down 40.7 and the Nasdaq was down … Read More

Coins

Develop Your Spending Perspective: Wants versus Needs

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Whenever I’m helping clients get clear about their spending we start by breaking their expenses down into two core categories: needs and wants. It seems pretty simple. Needs are things we must have to survive, such as food, water, shelter. Wants are things that we would like to have, but could live without. In theory, it’s an easy concept to understand. But in practice, it’s not so straightforward because people categorize spending based on … Read More

home buying what is escrow

Buying or Selling a Home? Understand the Escrow Process

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Over the last few months, I have talked with quite a few people that are thinking about buying or selling a home in the coming months. They want an idea of what they should do to prepare for it. Beyond my financial “dollar and cents” guidance, I like to layout the home buying/home selling process so they are prepared for the different steps that need to be cleared. If you have never gone through … Read More

can i deduct student loan interest

Is my student loan interest deductible?

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Question: ” Is my student loan interest deductible?” Answer: Assuming you meet certain requirements, you may be able to claim all or part of the student loan interest that you’ve incurred during the year. Generally, a qualified education loan is a debt you incur to pay qualified higher education (undergraduate and graduate) expenses for yourself, your spouse, or a dependent at an eligible educational institution in a program that leads to a degree. The IRS … Read More

group life insurance converting to individual coverage

Can I take my life insurance policy with me when I leave my employer?

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Question: “Can I take my life insurance policy with me when I leave my employer?” Answer: Quite often you can transfer your group life insurance coverage to an individual policy with the same  insurance company when you leave your employer. You should check with your employer to see if your group life insurance contract offers a conversion privilege available to all employees who are insured under the employer’s group plan.  A conversion privilege will be … Read More

long term care insurance

Helping Parents Select Long Term Care Insurance

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Question: “My parents have told us they’re buying long term care policies. Can you explain how these policies work so we can help them review their options?” Answer: It’s great that you are able to assist them.  The first thing to know is that you need to educate yourself on this subject as there is no such thing as a standard long-term care insurance policy. Some policies are comprehensive (including most group LTC policies), … Read More

financial story round up

Weekly Round Up

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Here are my favorite stories, tweets and blog posts for the week. Enjoy and have a great weekend! How to Avoid Travel Scams this Summer from bargaineering.com Market Forecasting Isn’t Like the Weather  by @behaviorgap from NYTimes.com How Millenials Are Changing the Economy from MoneyNing.com Going Back to School is not Always the Answer from ThirtySixMonths.com Why Changing Your Behavior is More Important than Having a Budget from krantcents.com        

When simple financial questions need more than simple answers

The Devil is in the Details: When Simple Financial Questions Need More Than Simple Answers

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Last week I was interviewed for the article: What Do You Do After Maxing Out Your 401(k) and IRA?  that appeared in Yahoo Finance’s Financially Fit, Ask Farnoosh.  They had questions from two readers and I thank them for including my comments. To give you more of my thoughts on the two scenarios,  I wanted to share them here because I find it’s easy for most of us to want simple answers so we keep our … Read More

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