My Bank Wanted to Charge $504 in Fees: Here’s What I Did

I recently returned from vacation to find two baffling letters from my bank, which I’ll call Goliath Global Bank. For reasons the bank chose not to disclose, I was informed that it was converting my savings and checking accounts in ways where I’d now b… Continue reading

8 Policy Changes to Let Older Workers Work Longer

Most government policy proposals addressing Americans’ financial insecurity about retirement focus on boosting retirement savings. Tweaking 401(k) rules, creating mandatory universal retirement savings plans, that sort of thing. But there’s another app… Continue reading

Second Acts to Profit From the Longevity Economy

Are you looking for a second act in a growth field? Consider the longevity market — services and products targeting people over 50. The opportunity is enormous. According to AARP, the economic activity of Americans 50+ is the equivalent of the third la… Continue reading

Make the Retirement Planning Reality Check Work for You

(The following excerpt is from Retirement Game-Changers: Strategies for a Healthy, Financially Secure, and Fulfilling Long Life, by Steve Vernon. Published by Rest-of-Life Communications. Copyright © 2018. All rights reserved. The book is available at … Continue reading

3 Questions to Ask to Assess Your Asset Allocation

With more frequent spikes in market volatility, after nine years of a bull market — and the 2008-‘09 bear market a not-too-distant memory — it’s understandable to have your stomach churning and be asking…what’s next for the market? One thing we know is… Continue reading

How to Avoid the Retirement Freak-out

(This is an excerpt from the book THE DUMB THINGS SMART PEOPLE DO WITH THEIR MONEY by Jill Schlesinger. Copyright © 2019 Jill Schlesinger. Reprinted by arrangement with Ballantine Books, an imprint and division of Penguin Random House LLC. All Rights R… Continue reading

Elder Financial Abuse: Why Banks and Advisers Are Stepping Up

If you’re worried about your parents becoming victims of elder financial abuse, you’ll be cheered to hear that financial advisers, brokers and banks are taking serious steps to detect and halt the fraud. That’s due to new rules from the brokerage indus… Continue reading

What Could Help Women Facing Financial Challenges for Retirement

The financial challenges women face to achieve financial security in retirement can be huge, as a Senate Special Committee on Aging hearing and an Employee Benefit Research Institute (EBRI) briefing last week demonstrated starkly. And with the rising c… Continue reading

Why Retirement Planning Is Different From Financial Planning

During my working years, I paid for three independent financial planning sessions — the last after the 2008 financial collapse, to assess the damage. But only when my employer of 20 years wiped out my job in a budget cut in 2017 did I experience the re… Continue reading

What 401(k) Savers Don’t Know About Their 401(k)s

After spending the past few years building Dream Forward, a financial firm selling 401(k) plans with the first artificial intelligence (AI) chatbot dedicated to retirement, we thought it would be interesting to track the most common questions we heard … Continue reading