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Using Low Interest Rates to Cut Your Taxes

November 1, 2011

Low interest rates put a crimp in your investment income, but they can help reduce your income, estate, and gift taxes. Treasury rates and mortgage rates recently hit record lows, and that means the rates the IRS uses to calculate taxes on different strategies also were at all-time lows. Around the middle of each month […]

Comparing Annuities and Bond Ladders

November 1, 2011

Which is better: an immediate annuity or a bond ladder? I’m asked that frequently these days, and the frequency increases as more Baby Boomers inch closer to their  post-career years. First, let’s define terms. A bond ladder is constructed by purchasing a portfolio of bonds that mature in different years. The simplest ladder is equally […]

estate planning

How to Close a Major Gap In Most Estate Planning Strategies

November 1, 2011

Some people with estate plans do some-thing that is almost as bad as not having a plan. They avoid key decisions in their plans. The result can be the same as having no estate plan: Potential problems for loved ones, including loss of wealth and family disharmony. Once people start on an estate plan, they […]

estate planning

Writing Family Love Letters for Estate Planning

November 1, 2011

The typical result of an Estate Planning strategy is a collection of legal documents with sterile discussions of trusts and property distributions. It need not be that way. Your estate planning and your legacy can be enhanced by adding to your plan documents that are more personalized and speak directly to your loved ones. Certainly […]

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November 2011

November 1, 2011

December 1, 2011 11:15 a.m. Responding to the Central Bankers’ Big Move Central bankers made a big splash Nov. 30 with coordinated announcements to make dollar loans available to European banks at lower interest rates. Global markets in risky assets responded with large gains. Here’s my take. There’s been a quiet run on European banks […]

Social Security – The Issue They Won’t Discuss

October 31, 2011

You won’t hear many politicians discussing Social Security these days, and probably even fewer will next year. But changes are occurring in the program. Not long ago, the trustees of the Social Security Trust Fund were projecting that tax revenue would exceed benefit payments for some years to come. Things have changed. According to The […]

IRA, 401(k) Sponsors Can Offer Investment Advice

October 28, 2011

The Department of Labor issued new regulations last week that allow fiduciaries of 401(k) plans and IRAs to offer investment advice under some circumstances. The law prohibits such advice, but the DOL carved out some exceptions. Fiduciaries may offer advice, beginning Dec. 27, if their compensation doesn’t depend on the investment recommendations or they use […]

Why Many Personal Finance Decisions are Wrong

October 27, 2011

I regularly encourage Retirement Watch readers to fight their intuition when making personal finance decisions. The actions that people are most comfortable with and that are instinctive often are bad decisions. I know that from seeing the decisions people make and from conducting detailed, independent research before making a recommendation in the newsletter or web […]

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