Category: Financial Planning

  • 5 tips for naming beneficiaries

    Designating beneficiaries for their accounts lets investors control who gets how much of the account’s distributions when they die. As Mike Hoelzl explains in a MONEY TALK VIDEO, naming beneficiaries can help cut confusion, delays and expenses for distributing funds. He offers five tips to consider. […]

  • Emergency lessons from a 40-year-old deuce

    By Joel Dresang What strikes me now about that $2 bill in my wallet is the value of being prepared for an emergency. If you know you can cover a worst-case scenario, you have one less worry weighing you down. You can enjoy the here and now a little better. You’re afforded the luxury of…

  • Retirement spending: Safe rates

    Retirees often are advised to set a withdrawal rate for their investments. In a MONEY TALK VIDEO, Art Rothschild explores when to consider varying the rate. […]

  • Procrastinate your way to retirement ruin

    By Joel Dresang The Center for Financial Literacy, at Boston College, calls procrastination “the number one barrier to making retirement more secure.” […]

  • Trusted contacts for your sake

    Why it makes sense to name a Trusted Contact

  • Retirement spending with heirs in mind

    Strategies for tapping retirement accounts can vary when investors expect to leave money behind. As he explains in a MONEY TALK VIDEO, Dave Sandstrom says retirees should plan to consider the consequences their withdrawal choices might have on their beneficiaries. […]

  • Get online with Social Security

    Added security is one more reason everyone who’s eligible should establish an online Social Security account. The sooner you set one up, the harder it will be for an imposter to set one up in your name or using your Social Security number. […]

  • How to be safer online: Email

    Email has become an increasingly popular and effective tool for identity thieves and fraudsters. As part of a series of MONEY TALK VIDEOS, Jason Scuglik offers tips on how to use email with an eye on protecting your personal financial information. […]

  • What’s in your wallet: Family talks

    By Joel Dresang In most families, money talk is taboo. Parents are about as comfortable talking about finances as they are talking about death. Yet, as we dream and plan and make decisions in life, it helps to have a sense of what we can afford – whether it’s holiday gift shopping or determining when…

  • Overstuffed: You can’t take it with you

    By Joel Dresang What will become of all the stuff we have been accumulating when we’re done with it – which, for many of us, is when we’re done? If you have ever been involved with clearing someone’s residence because of a death or downsizing, you know you don’t want to impose that burden on…