Tag: savings

If looking ahead to retirement makes you a little nervous, you’re not alone.

Only about half of Americans (51 percent) who haven’t reached retirement predict that they will be financially comfortable once they get there, according to a Gallup survey.

For some, those potentially uncomfortable retirement years are decades away. But for the Baby Boom generation, retirement either already arrived or will in the next decade or so, prompting many Boomers to wonder whether they are prepared for their looming date with destiny.

Healthy love and compatibility in any relationship are wonderful qualities that can take you a long way. If your attitudes about money matters don’t match, however, warning bells could be ringing.

Have you had "The Talk" yet? You know, that talk about money?

Have you talked about those taboo topics like a personal budget, spending and debt issues? Do you know where that special someone in your life stands when it comes to savings, planning and overall financial awareness?

Among the many disruptions caused by Covid-19, the delays in courtrooms around the country are chief among them. In Los Angeles county alone, there are more than 32,000 immediate hearings in the family law court system that are now backlogged. It could take a minimum of a year or possibly up to four years for those headed for a divorce courtroom trial to have their cases heard. The wait does not have to be as long as many might think though, if they take their trial to a retired judge. Divorcing couples can take advantage of what is becoming a popular trend to speed up the divorce process. And, in the long run, costs and attorney’s fees could run 50% less. With this choice, indeed, the time it would take to get to a full-blown trial heard in a public courtroom could be drastically reduced.

Melissa Byers and Rich Rauh began stashing away money in 529 college savings accounts for their sons not long after they were born.

When their older son graduated from the University of California, San Diego, a public university, he still had money available in his account. But their younger son, who elected to go to Chapman University, a private and much costlier school, needed more than what was in his 529.

So the couple, who live in Lake Forest, California, took advantage of the flexibility they initially admired in 529 plans: They simply changed the beneficiary on the account from one son to another—without facing any taxes or penalties.

With the holidays rapidly approaching, many couples are faced with an increase in spending. We all know money doesn’t grow on trees, especially during this season. Moreover, in today’s economic climate, many people are funding their holiday shopping with credit cards, causing them guilt and numerous financial resolutions come January 1.

No matter what stage you are in a marriage, the amount of money needed to survive the holidays can rack up. Newlyweds may find themselves with additional gifts to buy for in-laws and double the amount of holiday dinners to attend.

NEW YORK (Reuters) - A couple of years ago, Emilie Hunt had to go to the emergency room with a stomach virus. The bill took a huge chunk of money out of her savings, more than $800, and kept her from saving for a couple of months.

"I'm really bad at planning for unexpected expenses," she said. "And instead of cutting other expenses, often the first money I cut is what would go into savings."

In a nation that debates nearly everything, this topic creates almost no disagreement. Americans aren’t saving anywhere near enough for retirement, setting the stage for a potentially dreary time ahead for many when they reach the closing act of their lives. In fact, a study by the Economic Policy Institute found that almost half of American families have no retirement-account savings at all.

While the widespread-savings shortfall is a given, a consensus is trickier to find when it comes to advice on just how much of your weekly salary you need to stash away if you want your retirement to be secure.