Self-Insureing for Future Long Term Care A recent column, “Should Federal Employees Self-Insure for Their Future Long Term Care,” discussed why some federal employees and retirees may want to consider self-insuring for their future long term care (LTC) costs. Some suggestions for self-insuring were made including an employee’s setting aside a portion of their Thrift…

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I Don’t Believe Inflation is Just 6.5% Right Now (And I’m Thinking You Probably Don’t Either). On Thursday, the Bureau of Labor Statistics released the latest consumer price index report for December, which showed an annualized inflation rate of 6.5%. This means that the federal government thinks prices have increased 6.5% since one year prior. Does…

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Workers Say Inflation Is Now the No. 1 Obstacle to a Comfortable Retirement Hoping to retire, crack open a book and relax on the beach sometime soon? Not so fast. The soaring prices you’re seeing at the grocery store, gas pump and — well, everywhere, really — may complicate things. Inflation is now the top obstacle standing in the way of…

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Birmingham's Reverse Mortgage Guy

Reverse Mortgage Information for 2022 The reverse mortgage is a fantastic product, but it’s not the right solution for everybody. Is it right (or wrong) for you? In this article, we’ll cover key reverse mortgage information for 2022 to help you decide if a reverse mortgage is the right solution for you.  There is quite a…

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Experts say the 4% rule, a popular retirement income strategy is outdated PERSONAL FINANCE KEY POINTS The 4% rule, a popular strategy to gauge withdrawals from one’s retirement portfolio, won’t work as well in coming decades due to lower projected stock and bond returns, according to a Morningstar paper published Thursday. The withdrawal rate should…

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Retirement Insecurity 2021 A new report finds that across party lines, Americans are worried about concerns about their financial security in retirement. The vast majority of Democrats (70 percent), Independents (70 percent) and Republicans (62 percent) agree that the nation faces a retirement crisis. There also is bi-partisan agreement that the average worker cannot save…

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Why Home Equity Matters Why Home Equity Matters. Home equity—the current value of your home minus your mortgage balance—matters because it helps you build wealth. When you have equity in your home, it’s a resource you can borrow against to improve your property or pay down other high-interest debts. However, it’s also volatile because home…

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Danger: Aging Parents Overspending, Running Low, And What You Can Do Briana called AgingParents.com in distress. She was feeling panicky and angry. Her 80 year old mother, Rhonda, had just bought another new car she could not afford. Briana explained that her mother’s funds were limited, but she kept insisting on living the life she…

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FINANCIAL ADVISORS. How to Become an Elite Financial Advisor: Practice (Business) Management Have you read something like the following roughly 1,237 times in the last few months? “Financial advisors are under immense pressure, particularly with the paradigm shift of 2020. They must provide value to their clients and differentiate themselves from other advisors.” We too…

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Financial Advisors View Changing Slowly about Reverse Mortgages being a longevity tool. Reverse Mortgages Seen By Advisors As Option Of Last Resort Time was, reverse mortgages were anathema to financial advisors. One big reason was self-serving: Since the loans provide an income stream, they meant less client money for advisors to manage—and from which to…

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