Financial and insurance products have long been key retirement planning components – helping savers mitigate retirement risks and provide retirement income. According to a recent issue of MarketWatch, however, those types of products are getting harder to find as some of the major companies back out of the market.Genworth last week said it will stop selling variable annuities and MetLife decided late last year to stop selling long-term care insurance policies.Why? These are all business decisions based on current economics. But in the case of long-term care insurance, it seems some of the bigger providers got their pricing wrong. Many…
According to a recent issue of Smart Money, “The National Association of Realtor’s Housing Affordability Index, which looks at home prices and interest rates to determine how cost-friendly homes are, shows that 2010 was the best year on record to buy a home since the NAR began compiling data in 1970. And 2011 is projected to be the third most affordable year. In many retirement hotspots, this is particularly true.” It’s not the best time for everyone, since would-be buyers are also would-be sellers, but if you’ve got no mortgage or only a small one on your primary home and…
If you are a parent of an adult child, especially a recent college grad, you may be challenged to help your kids get on their feet financially – especially in today’s tough job market. While most parents are quick to put their kids’ needs first, it’s only prudent to do so in ways that won’t jeopardize your own retirement funding. For a little guidance, U.S. News and World Reports offers a list of ways in which you can help support your adult children without also ruining your retirement funds. 1. Budget for any support you plan to provide. Develop a…
Sometimes the estate tax isn’t all that bad, and according to a recent Smart Money article it may actually be better to choose it over no tax at all! Why would anyone want to subject an estate to taxes if they could opt out? There actually are some pretty sound reasons to consider this. The new tax law gives estate executors (for 2010 estates) the choice between estate taxes and the right to use the new estate tax law. Here’s why some executors may choose to use the new federal estate tax law instead of avoiding estate taxes altogether: stepped-up…
This appears to be a gray area within the VA. Although the law allows medical insurance premiums as unreimbursed medical expenses (UME), some adjudicators will deny LTC premiums. I would certainly submit them and if they are denied, send a notice of disagreement (if they are important to the outcome of the claim). I believe a good argument could be made that they are indeed “medical” insurance premiums, especially in light of the fact that assisted living is now considered to be equivalent to nursing home care for the purpose of pension plus A & A and LTC can be…
A little-known aspect of the Small Business Jobs Act of 2010 is the temporary waiver on fees for some loans guaranteed by the Small Business Administration (SBA). The fees, which can range from two to 3.5 percent of the loan amount, can be substantial on high-value loans. While some business borrowers may not feel the pinch, since the fees are typically rolled-into the financing of the loan and not charged upfront, the fee waivers still account for significant savings – especially if the loan value is high. For example, consider a recent article in the Burlington Free Press, highlighting a…
The suspicion should be nothing new, but Consumers Union and the LA Times recently released warnings about reverse mortgages, and it’s worthwhile to repeat them here. The biggest problem with reverse mortgages is that they can be made to appear too attractive to retired senior citizens, when in fact they can be quite risky. Seniors should be wary of reverse mortgages, rather than be misled by them. Reverse mortgages allow seniors to tap into their home equity for cash or a line of credit, often with the claim that the money needn’t be paid back until the borrower dies….
The speculation won’t be over until the final bill is written up, passed, and signed into law, but with prospects looking reasonably good for the Obama Tax Proposal, it may be time to review your year-end tax planning. Reuter’s is ahead of the game and recently listed their top three suggestions: Timing on deductions and income: If you thought you were going to see increased taxes in 2011, you may have planned to push income forward into 2010 and deductions back into 2011. With the Bush-era tax cuts extended to all income brackets this won’t be the case and…
As you probably know by now, President Obama dropped a bombshell last week with his Republican-backed, compromise tax proposal. It’s not yet law, and is likely to face stiff political opposition, but the results are so far-reaching that it’s worth outlining the bold points of the proposal. (To read more, The Associated Press has a good run-down of the highlights.) The centerpiece of the proposal is the extension of all Bush-era tax cuts for two more years, and this includes the wealthiest tax brackets, with the addition of special programs and incentives to help the average and low-income taxpayer….
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