March 2009 - Posts
US News & World Report - March 27, 2009
The retirement-fund business is reeling from huge mutual-fund losses and investor withdrawals. Fund executives point to overall market declines to defend their performance. They have logical explanations for
Read More
Silicon Valley Business Journal - March 27, 2009
Nearly 55 million older Americans enrolled in certain government programs will get a one-time, $250 payment from stimulus funds in a move that will inject $13 billion into the economy.
The funds
Read More
The Orlando Sentinel - March 27, 2009
Once shunned by many as too risky, reverse mortgages have made a comeback as some cash-strapped seniors tap their home equity to replace savings battered by Wall Street's meltdown.Sales of reverse mortgages have
Read More
Earthtimes - March 25, 2009
Reverse mortgages have become an increasingly important financial tool for people 62 and older who want to remain in their home and fund their retirement. And, with 78 million Baby Boomers approaching retirement, interest
Read More
PR Newswire - March 24, 2009
California Couple Leverages Government Stimulus Program to Purchase a New Home
ATLANTA, March 24 /PRNewswire/ -- Generation Mortgage Company(TM) closed its first Home Equity Conversion Mortgage (HECM) to aid seniors in
Read More
NewsOK - March 22, 2009
In a recent column I talked about the positive reasons for postponing retirement. But to a lot of folks today, merely postponing retirement now seems like a pipe dream. As they’ve watched their net worth decline, some are convinced
Read More
The Associated Press - March 23, 2009
Wall Street gave the new bank rescue plan an enthusiastic embrace. Whether it will actually work — restoring solvency to the banks, restarting lending and ultimately lifting the economy out of recession — is far
Read More
CBS News - March 22, 2009
Many folks are putting off retirement because of their shaky portfolios. Stephanie AuWerter, Contributing Editor for SmartMoney.com, has some advice for keeping your retirement on track. If you're nearing retirement, before
Read More
The Salt Lake Tribune - March 20, 2009
Here are three basic tax planning tips to keep in mind concerning retirement:
Withdrawals from 401(k)s are taxable income » They are taxed at your regular income tax rate once you retire. That can work out well
Read More
US News & World Report - March 18, 2009
Stocks are rallying, bonds are soaring, and your mortgage rate could fall again now that the Federal Reserve has agreed to take on billions worth of new Treasuries and other securities to support the ailing
Read More
The Consumerist - March 19, 2009
In its recent annual report to the Mortgage Banker's Association, the Mortgage Asset Research Institute described three emerging mortgage fraud schemes that are either new or increasing in popularity.
Foreclosure
Read More
US News & World Report - March 16, 2009
It’s difficult to predict what your health care expenses will be in retirement. Jack Dickinson, 65, thought he was one of the lucky ones. His 34 years as a General Motors sales and marketing manager came with
Read More
The News Press - March 15, 2009
Richard Wylie had a reversal of fortune two years ago - but don't worry, he's doing better than before.
Wylie, 75, a retired Cape Coral police officer, got a reverse mortgage on his house under a program regulated by
Read More
US News & World Report - March 12, 2009
Do you remember 2007? Baby boomers, although they were never prolific savers, were optimistic about their retirement prospects. The stock market was trending upward nicely and home values were inflating fast.
Read More
The New York Times - March 16, 2009
Over the centuries, the United States has been most conspicuous for one trait: manic energy. Americans work longer hours than any other people. We switch jobs more frequently, move more often, earn more and consume
Read More
Center for Retirement Research at Boston College - March 17, 2009
When to claim Social Security is one of the most important decisions Americans make when approaching retirement. Currently, retirees can choose between claiming at the Full Retirement
Read More
CNN - March 15, 2009
As the country frets about extricating itself from the financial mess, there is one group of Americans to whom the rest of us owe the most sincere words of apology.
That group consists of the oldest of our fellow citizens -- the
Read More
The New York Times - March 13, 2009
A recent report suggests that the housing-market slump is hitting baby boomers particularly hard: many middle-aged homeowners had been so seduced by the rising prices of years past that they failed to save for retirement
Read More
US News & World Report - March 13, 2009
In October 2008, the Congressional Budget Office reported that stock market turmoil wiped out roughly $2 trillion of Americans' retirement savings over just 15 months. Since then, the stock market has continued
Read More
Chron Business News - March 9, 2009
Many people entering retirement envision a life of fun and relaxation, but the opposite can be true. Without the social contacts that come from reporting to an office everyday, some retirees feel isolated. Others feel
Read More
Dallas News - March 8, 2009
If you are in your 50s or early 60s, you're in the Peril Period. And the Worst-of-All-Possible-Worlds appears to be happening. Everything – home value, 401(k) and job – is going down the drain just as you're getting really
Read More
Newsday - March 8, 2009
For a growing number of older Americans, the housing slump has changed the concept of "aging in place" from a lifestyle choice to the only choice.The nearly frozen residential real estate market in many parts of the country has
Read More
The Atlantic - March 2009
My father was a child of the Great Depression. Born in Newark, New Jersey, in 1921 to Italian immigrant parents, he experienced the economic crisis head-on. He took a job working in an eyeglass factory in the city’s Ironbound
Read More
Associated Press - March 6, 2009
From a one-time $250 payment to a 50 percent increase in the limits for reverse mortgages, there are some housing-related items in President Barack Obama's stimulus plan that potentially can help seniors maneuver through
Read More
Center for Retirement Research at Boston College - March 3, 2009
Introduction
The maturation of the 401(k) system and the enactment of the Pension Protection Act of 2006, which made 401(k) plans easier and more automatic, were expected to enhance the
Read More
Bloomberg - March 3, 2009
The Chicago Transit Authority retirement plan had a $1.5 billion hole in its stash of assets in 2007. At the height of a four-year bull market, it didn’t have enough cash on hand to pay its retirees through 2013, meaning it
Read More
USA Today - March 2, 2009
A major corporate operator of assisted-living facilities and its founder were accused of a massive securities fraud Monday in what the Securities and Exchange Commission charged was a scheme that raised $300 million from investors
Read More
US News & World Report - March 2, 2009
Some retirement savers want advice to help them choose the best investments or to actively manage accounts. Customer service call centers and websites at financial services companies have received record numbers
Read More
Chicago Tribune - February 27, 2009
Less than a year after getting into the branded mutual fund business, Allstate Corp. has pulled the plug on its Allstate ClearTarget funds.
The Northbrook-based seller of home and auto insurance and financial products
Read More
CreditCards.com - March 2, 2009
Are Social Security and private pensions exempt from garnishment?
Dear Credit Guy,I have recently retired and have only my Social Security and a private pension. If I quit paying my credit cards, can my Social Security
Read More
Post-Tribune - March 2, 2009
Unnoticed among the bigger pieces of economic legislation in Congress this year is a bill that promises to help rewrite the relationship between consumers and their credit card companies.
The proposal -- the Credit Cardholders'
Read More