Mentor Monthly Missive – April 2014

Mentor Monthly Missive – February 2014

Mentor Monthly Missive – December 2013

Keep them current!

A recent Supreme Court case illustrates the importance of regularly reviewing beneficiary designations for life insurance and retirement accounts. In the case, Warren named Judy, his wife in 1996, as the sole beneficiary of his $125,000 life insurance policy. In 1998 they divorced, and Warren married Jacqueline in 2002. In the glow of blissful weddedness, […]

The 1 Percent Solution

Some might call it “nil” – but it can make the difference between happiness and misery in your future. It’s the 1 Percent Solution, and it simply means boosting your retirement savings by a single percentage point a year. You’ll hardly miss the money (and you’ll get a tax break, too). If you do this […]

Signup time

It’s the time of year when employers open up their benefits plans to changes and new enrollments. To make the most of their benefits dollars, employees should consider carefully their personal circumstances in light of benefits available. This year they should pay special attention to health insurance coverage. The ACA (Obamacare) has required a number […]

Two things to like

As a financial adviser, I like at least two things about the Affordable Care Act (Obamacare). Both relate to the fact that anyone who is willing and able to pay for health insurance will be able to get it: First, Obamacare will foster entrepreneurship. I hear frequently from people who’d like to start their own […]

What Big Data knows

Big Data is the next big thing. Big Data collects information about us and sells it to businesses that want to market products and services to us. Big Data is huge nowadays. Big Data is supposed to know everything about us, from the types of cars we drive to how many children we have in […]

Reverse mortgages

The word on the street has been that reverse mortages are better deals today than they were years ago. I just saw an illustration for a reverse mortgage on a $380,000 home that included upfront fees, including mortgage insurance, of $16,279. A better deal? Better than a poke in the eye with a sharp stick. […]

Hitting bottom

Like a sick alcoholic, Illinois has fallen into an abyss. Unfunded pension liabilities grow by millions every day. The state’s credit rating is the worst in the country. Housing values are stuck somewhere around 30% below their peak. Real unemployment is high. Politicians dither. Every time I read another piece of bad news about Illinois, […]

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