Month: November 2010

It’s hard to believe than another holiday season is upon us. With all good intentions, most of us will make a promise to ourselves that we will shop early and shop smart. But unfortunately, in most cases, life's routines and little emergencies usually force us to shop at the last…

After lots of money printing and pandemic relief stimulus payments (free money) by the Government over the last few years, things are starting to look more bleak with high inflation, global conflict and rising energy prices. All these portend to signs of a recession in the not too distant future,…

Medicare, the federal health-insurance program for seniors 65 and older and their caregivers, is going to see some changes in the coming year thanks to mandated annual adjustments via the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) based on the record 2023 Cost of Living Adjustment (COLA). The following is…

Each year more people are becoming victims of identity theft. When this happens, it could take years for the person to regain their rightful identity and their good credit standing. And the bad news is that identity thieves are getting much more sophisticated about identity theft and will stop at…

Things are different now. Decades ago when you took a job, you stayed with that company for a long time, often for life. Today, studies show that the average American holds over eight jobs between the ages of 18 and 45. Because of that, many are asking the question during job…

The AARP recently released it's auto insurance premium review which provides a good benchmark for checking whether the auto insurance you are paying is consistent with national and state averages. If it is not, then you should be looking to for a better rate with your current provider or find…

Ask yourself this question. What is your most important and valuable asset? Think about it for a minute. Is it your house? Your savings or your 401(k) retirement plan? Your sports car or rare memorabilia? While all of these things are both important and valuable, none of them truly represent…

To tackle America’s growing national debt problem, President Obama put together a task force earlier this year to look at options on how to cut government spending, implement tax reform and improve the effectiveness of federal entitlement programs. The deficit reduction commission co-chairs (Erskine Bowles and Alan Simpson) put forward…

Flexible Spending Accounts (FSA) have been around for a while now and many families use them as a tax advantaged way to save for health care and dependent care related costs. However every year various limits associated with FSA accounts are reviewed by the IRS and adjusted based on statue or for…

The Federal Reserve will soon allow banks with strong enough capital cushions to raise dividends, making them much more attractive to local and foreign investors. Only banks that satisfy new capital requirements from global regulators (Basel III) and domestic regulators (Dodd-Frank), will be able to raise dividends.  The potential for…

Christmas spending during the pandemic was relatively low in comparison with other years, but that’s all set to change this Christmas as Americans return to spending money. According to the National Retail Federation (NRF), shoppers are ready to part with their cash this holiday season and have forecast record retail…

[Update] You can now see the most up-to-date 401K/403b, IRA and Roth IRA limits here The IRS has released the latest 401k, 403b, IRA and other retirement/thrift plan contribution and income limits. With COLA remaining unchanged again this year, 2011 plan limits have also remained largely unchanged for the third year in a row.…