Better Financial Education

Look Beyond Absolute Wealth to Focus on Your Relative Wealth

 

 

 

 

Welcome 

Our focus ... to get you to, and through, retirement.

How to structure yourself so you may outlive your money.

How we see personal finance depends on what you want to do with your money and time. Our job is to help you become efficient and effective with both. Below is how you and I view money through the lens of what you are trying to do with it.

What is important to us is ... how do you see money? Everyone sees money differently, so the first thing is to be sure we understand you by narrowing the examples below to just those that are important to you. How this is done is described on the next page.

 
 
 The fundatmental question we help you answer: How do you accumulate, manage and ultimately live on your hard earned resources over your lifetime?
 
 
Website organization ...
 
The website pages are organized to help you answer the following:

 

1) The basic pages, like this one, cover the type of information you see "Above the Surface" a visual presentation of the topic.

2) The second type of page covers information in deeper detail and are labeled on this website as (BTS) for "Below the Surface" ... for more written details on the topic.

3) The third type of page provides the background and resources for those who want to learn more about the topic. Whenever you link to another website you are going deeper, by going to an outside reputable source, for a much better understanding of that specific topic (example: Featured Links page).

 

How we work together.

 

Cost of Retirement

Use this calculator to estimate how much income and savings you may need in retirement.

IRA Eligibility

Use this calculator to determine whether you qualify for the different types of IRAs.

Life Expectancy

Knowing your likely life expectancy is an important factor in making long-term financial plans.

Mortgage Refinancing

Determine whether you should consider refinancing your mortgage.

More Calculators →

HOT TOPIC: Why Global Investors Are Worried About European Debt

European officials are working on a bailout deal to help debt-laden Greece avoid default, but some are worried a broader eurozone financial crisis may be waiting in the wings. How likely is a Greek sovereign debt default, and how could it affect European and U.S. financial markets?

Another Year, Another AMT Patch

The 2010 Tax Relief Act adjusted AMT exemption levels for 2010 and 2011 to help prevent an estimated 21 million middle-income taxpayers from being subject to the alternative minimum tax. Will Congress enact another patch for 2012?

Federal Estate Tax Is Much Lower — For Now

The federal estate tax was repealed in 2010, then reinstated by the 2010 Tax Relief Act with new provisions for 2011 and 2012. This article discusses the temporary provisions, the options for estates of 2010 decedents, and potential changes in future years that could subject many more estates to the federal estate tax than under current law.

Leaving Your Home Out of the Retirement Equation

Plummeting home prices and increased borrowing cut U.S. home equity by more than 60% during the Great Recession — and housing prices have not yet recovered. This article considers the potential drawbacks of depending on home equity to help fund retirement.

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