financialfre

It isn’t always easy to save for retirement, in part because, for many people, it is far enough away that we don’t feel any sense of urgency. One possible solution? Make the future feel closer. You can start this process by asking what future benefit could be provided by choosing where you put your retirement […]

We were recently asked a question that led us to believe this week’s topic might be useful to many of you. While most of us are aware of how Social Security works, here are the five most important things every married couple should know about Social Security.  1) Nothing keeps you from getting your own

Last week, we spoke about RMDs and we were then asked to take it a step further and talk about the issue of leaving an IRA to beneficiaries once you have begun to take your annual distributions. With an Inherited IRA, you may either need to take annual distributions no matter what age you were

For many investors entering their 70s, diligently contributing to and saving in tax-deferred retirement accounts must soon turn to making mandatory annual withdrawals. That’s because the government requires retirees to take required minimum distributions (RMDs) from such accounts after a certain age. Retirees may find RMDs to be a bit daunting, partly because of the

An interesting study performed by the Center for Retirement Research at Boston College delved into the concept of lifespan variation, and why it provides valuable information about mortality beyond life expectancy. “It is precisely this uncertainty around the average lifespan that gives rise to “longevity risk” – the possibility of living an unusually long time

Are you the kind of person who likes to make lists? You might see the use in this list of “five easy steps for financial fitness.” #1 Create a budget; #2 Manage your debt; #3 Create a plan that keeps you disciplined in all kinds of markets; #4 Prepare for the unexpected; and #5 Protect

All too often when we need to find an important financial document we can’t remember where we put it. Keeping important documents up to date and accessible is essential. Even after you finalize your will and have decided what your financial plans are, there is one more important step to take: organizing those documents, having

No, you’re probably not imagining it. 69% percent of Americans surveyed by Lending Tree in 2023 reported they’d paid an extra fee when using a credit card for a purchase. A smaller, more recent survey by WalletHub put that figure at 79%, with 85% of the participants saying that credit card charges made them feel

Have you heard this phrase? It is often used to refer to the anxiety and stress that people feel in the years leading up to retirement. While it is common to feel a sense of stress with any major change, many feel a higher level of anxiety as they approach retirement due to the various

It is important to think about your risk/reward ratio tolerance–terms like “conservative” and “risky” can mean different things to different people which is why it is necessary to think it through. This way, you can also get a feel for what level of risk is necessary to try to obtain a return on your investment,