Other Financial Topics
Calculators
- Cash Flow Analysis
This Cash Flow Analysis form will help you weigh your income vs. your expenses.
- Estate Taxes
Use this calculator to estimate the federal estate taxes that could be due on your estate after you die.
- Federal Income Tax
This calculator can help you estimate your annual federal income tax liability.
- Home Affordability
Estimate of the maximum amount of financing you can expect to get when you begin house hunting.
- Loan Payoff
How much will it cost to pay off a loan over its lifetime?
- Long-Term Care Self Insurance
Will you be able to afford nursing home care?
- Savings Goals
How much do you need to save each year to meet your long-term financial goals?
Newsletters
- A Financial Wellness Plan Can Help Pave the Road to Retirement
This article outlines four elements of financial well-being and offers suggestions to strengthen financial wellness.
- All-in-One Funds: Targeting Time or Risk?
This article discusses target-date funds and lifestyle funds, with the more common of the two based on time horizon rather than risk.
- Big Data for Smaller Players
Read how small businesses use software services to help streamline operations, understand customers, optimize websites, and find new markets.
- Five Tips to Follow When Applying for a Mortgage
Historically low interest rates have driven record homebuying. This article provides some ideas to consider when applying for a mortgage.
- Five Tips to Regain Your Retirement Savings Focus in 2021
This article presents five steps that could help focus and enhance a retirement savings strategy in 2021.
- Four Things Investors Should Know About Stock Splits
If you’ve wondered what stock splits are and what effect they might have on your investment portfolio, this article covers the basics.
- Full House: Adult Children Coming Home
If your adult children have returned to your once-empty nest, these tips might help promote a peaceful and productive living situation.
- Gift vs. Inheritance: Consider the Tax Difference
When deciding whether to gift assets now or transfer them to heirs at death, you need to understand step-up in basis and tax consequences.
- HOT TOPIC: High-Frequency Indicators: Where to Look for Signs of Recovery
This article discusses various high-frequency indicators economists use to monitor the pandemic’s impact and the economic recovery’s progress.
- HOT TOPIC: Pandemic Relief Measures and Your Tax Return
This article discusses various tax issues stemming from the two tax relief bills passed in 2020 in response to the pandemic and how they may affect you.
- HOT TOPIC: Revisiting the 4% Rule
For years, the “4% rule” helped retirees make their savings last, but now a more aggressive withdrawal strategy might be the new norm.
- HOT TOPIC: Rising Inflation: Where Will It Go from Here?
Read about the causes of the recent inflationary trend. Does it represent a short-term phase or the start of a longer-term acceleration in prices?
- Income Investors May Find Closed-End Funds on Sale
Do you know the differences between open-end and closed-end funds? This article compares the two.
- Money Market Funds in a Low Rate Environment
Did you know there still may be reasons to hold money market mutual funds despite low yields? Read this article to find out more.
- New Fed Policy Suggests Low Rates for the Long Term
The Fed now seeks to control inflation through the benchmark federal funds rate. Find out what this means for investors and consumers.
- Portfolios Get Personal: Growing Interest in Socially Responsible Investing
This article discusses socially responsible investments that may enable the pursuit of financial returns and make a positive global impact.
- Prepare Your Finances for the Next Emergency
The pandemic has underscored the importance of a well-stocked emergency fund. This article offers tips for building up a cash reserve.
- Putting Your Nest Egg in Three Baskets
Find out how understanding sequence-of-returns risk could help you develop a three-prong distribution strategy for retirement.
- Real Estate for Income and Diversification
Are you familiar with REITs and why they can help diversify a portfolio? Read this article to learn more.
- Sequence Risk: Preparing to Retire in a Down Market
This article offers a strategy that may help address sequence risk — the danger of poor investment performance at the outset of retirement.
- Should You Pay Off Student Loans Early or Save More for Retirement?
Wondering whether you should pay off student loan debt today or save for the future? Here are some considerations to help make the decision.
- Social Security Spousal Benefits
This article offers an overview of spousal benefits, which could make a big difference in funding retirement for a married couple.
- Take Advantage of Deductions for Business Investments
A look at bonus depreciation and Section 179, plus CARES Act changes that may benefit companies that reconfigured spaces for safety reasons.
- Watch Out for These Financial Pitfalls in the New Year
Financial opportunities and potential pitfalls can appear at any time. Here are common money mistakes to avoid at various stages of life.
- When You Can’t Speak for Yourself
Discover how a living will and durable powers of attorney for health care and finances can help ensure your wishes are carried out.
- Working While Receiving Social Security Benefits
Do you understand the Social Security retirement earnings test and how it may affect your current and future Social Security benefits?
- Your Business: Could You Benefit from a Roth Conversion in 2020?
This article focuses on the potential short- and long-term tax ramifications of a Roth IRA conversion.
- Your Business: Minimum-Wage Laws in the Spotlight
As more states increase the minimum wage, small businesses may start feeling the economic impact. Read this article for some coping tips.
- Your Business: Reasons to Keep Personal and Business Finances Separate
Find out why it’s important to draw a line between business and personal finances, especially for credit, tax, and personal asset purposes.
Research Articles
- Am I Prepared for Long-Term Care Expenses?
The odds of needing long-term care increase as you age. Prior planning can help protect you from financial ruin.
- Do I Need Disability Income Insurance?
Knowing the basics of a disability income insurance policy is a good first step toward protecting your family.
- History of the Federal Estate Tax
Careful estate planning is still one of the most important ways to manage and protect your assets for your heirs.
- How Can a Living Trust Help Me Control My Estate?
A living trust can help control the distribution of your estate upon death.
- How Can I Benefit from a Charitable Remainder Trust?
A designated income beneficiary could receive payment of a specified amount from a charitable remainder trust.
- How Likely Am I to Need Long-Term Care?
If you were to suffer an illness or disability that required long-term nursing care, would you be covered?
- How Long Will It Take to Double My Money?
Before making investment decisions, it is helpful to determine the real rate of return on the investment.
- How Will I Pay Estate Taxes?
If you believe your estate will be subject to estate taxes, consider how your heirs will pay the bill.
- United States Tax History
United States tax law is a constantly changing landscape. The latest major piece of tax legislation is the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017.
- What Are Some Tips for Managing My Money?
A sound cash management program uses a disciplined approach: accounting, analysis, allocation, and adjustment.
- What Are the Pitfalls of Probate?
The probate process can be lengthy and complex. There are strategies you can use to help avoid the probate process.
- What Is Tax Deferral?
There can be a substantial benefit to deferring taxes as long as possible.
- What Key Estate Planning Tools Should I Know About?
Wills and trusts allow you to spell out how you would like your property distributed, but they also go beyond that.
- What Savings Alternatives Are Available?
There are a number of savings alternatives that could help you earn a reasonable rate of return.