mortgage
AARP recently conducted a survey to find out where people want to live when they retire. You may think a warm-weather climate topped the list, but the No. 1 place was right where they are now. More than two-third of respondents — 69 percent — said they want to stay in their homes and the communities where they currently live.
It’s bad enough that everyday citizens file more complaints to the Federal Trade Commission about sleazy debt collectors than about any other consumer scam. Now, another government watchdog agency reports that military personnel are especially popular targets of collector abuse — often for debts they don’t owe.
We all want our children to be successful and happy. And though being financially fit won’t make anyone happy in and of itself, it can at least take away money stresses and allow the kids to pursue happiness. Just in time for Financial Literacy Month, three journalists from the Wall Street Journal offer 10 great tips in the video below.
For many boomers, the empty nest seems more like the empty bank account. After college, kids boomerang home for a few months or years, driving up monthly household expenses. Even when they leave, they often return to the “Bank of Mom and Dad” for help with costs from new cars to camp for the grandkids.
In the aftermath of the 2008 recession, boomer parents were besieged by millennial children boomeranging home to reclaim an old bedroom.
Recent research shows that most African Americans/blacks age 50-plus use financial products, such as checking accounts and savings accounts. But only 1 in 10 use retirement planning products, such as a 401(k) plan or individual retirement account (IRA). Millions of Americans haven’t saved any money for their golden years, and millions of others haven’t saved nearly enough. According to the Federal Reserve, the median balance of retirement accounts totals less than $60,000, and many African Americans/blacks have saved even less.
Many in the financial services industry will advise you not to pay down your mortgage. I can’t disagree more. Why? Because a mortgage is essentially the inverse of a bond:
Jean Chatzky has a few choice words for how most folks describe their relationship with money: Confusing. Frightening. Chaotic. Stressful. Precarious.
Older Americans are carrying more mortgage debt and have accumulated less home equity than their peers a decade earlier, according to a report by the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau.
Whether you're nearing the end of your working life or still several decades away, Americans all share the same financial fear: Will I have enough money to retire?