A growing number of Americans are moving towards a "cashless" society. As a result, credit cards are being used more often than ever — especially by those with higher incomes.1 Credit cards are no longer viewed solely as a debt instrument for cash-strapped individuals. Instead, they are prized for a variety of benefits, such as earning rewards and travel perks, protecting purchases, building credit, and gaining additional insurance coverage. Reap the rewards Using a rewards … [Read more...]
Can You Put the Brakes on Rising Auto Insurance Premiums?
When your auto insurance policy renews, chances are that your premium will be going up, possibly by a lot. Rates vary by state and location, but nationwide, premiums increased more than 20% between May 2023 and May 2024.1 Higher vehicle prices and repair costs (including parts and labor), more accidents, a rising number of fraud cases and lawsuits, and severe weather events have affected the bottom line of insurers, leading to across-the-board rate hikes. That's not good news for your wallet, … [Read more...]
How the Typical American Family Pays for College
The typical family uses a combination of income, savings, grant aid, and loans to pay for college. For the past several years, income and savings from parents and students have consistently covered about half of the total cost, with grant aid covering about one quarter of the total cost and loans covering most of the remainder. Starting a college fund early and aggressively looking for grant aid from colleges can help families reduce the amount they may need to borrow. A net price calculator, … [Read more...]
Eight Great Investing Quotes
Investing can be daunting, whether you are experienced or a beginner. Even if you feel confident about your investing strategy, it can be easy to lose focus or make decisions based on emotion. Here are eight quotes from successful investors, economists, and other insightful thinkers that may help provide perspective and focus for your own investing strategy. "The individual investor should act consistently as an investor and not as a speculator."1 — Benjamin Graham, investor, … [Read more...]
It’s Complicated: Inheriting IRAs and Retirement Plans
The SECURE Act of 2019 dramatically changed the rules governing how IRA and retirement plan assets are distributed to beneficiaries. The new rules, which took effect for account owner deaths occurring in 2020 or later, are an alphabet soup of complicated requirements that could result in big tax bills for many beneficiaries. RMDs and RBDs IRA owners and, in most cases, retirement plan participants must start taking annual required minimum distributions (RMDs) from their non-Roth … [Read more...]
Bon Voyage!
With the COVID pandemic receding in most areas of the world, Americans are traveling again. U.S. citizens took more than 98 million international trips in 2023, just short of the pre-pandemic level of 99 million in 2019 and almost three times higher than the 33 million low in 2020. Here are the regions they visited. Source: National Travel and Tourism Office, 2024 Link to Printable PDF: 2024 07 July Newsletter IMPORTANT DISCLOSURES ERB FINANCIAL offers Securities … [Read more...]
Watch for These Hazards on the Road to Retirement
On the road to retirement, be on the lookout for hazards that can hamper your progress. Here are five potential risks that can slow you down. Traveling aimlessly Embarking on an adventure without a destination can be exciting, but not when it comes to retirement. Before starting any investing journey, the first step is setting a realistic goal. You'll need to consider a number of factors — your desired lifestyle, salary/income, health, future Social Security benefits, any … [Read more...]
Mixing It Up: Asset Allocation and Diversification
Asset allocation and diversification are so fundamental to portfolio structure that it's easy to lose sight of these strategic tools as you track the performance of specific securities or the dollar value of your investments. It might be worth considering how these strategies relate to each other and to the risk and potential performance of your portfolio. Keep in mind that asset allocation and diversification are methods used to help manage investment risk; they do not guarantee a profit or … [Read more...]
After the Loss of a Loved One, Watch Out for Scams
Scam artists often prey on those who are most vulnerable. Unfortunately, this includes individuals who have recently lost a loved one and are easily taken advantage of during their time of grief. Scammers will look for details from obituaries, funeral homes, hospitals, stolen death certificates, and social media websites to obtain personal information about a deceased individual and use it to commit fraud. A common scam after the loss of a loved one, often referred to as "ghosting," is when … [Read more...]
Financial Regrets
A 2023 survey found that about three out of four U.S. adults had a financial regret. The most common were not saving for retirement early enough, taking on too much credit card debt, and not saving enough for emergency expenses. It's probably not surprising that the weight that people placed on these and other regrets varied by generation — and regret about not saving early enough for retirement was higher for those closer to retirement age. Source: Bankrate, July 19, 2023 (categories not … [Read more...]
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