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By Jessica Groskopf, Nebraska Extension Agricultural Economist For many farm and ranch families, bringing children or grandchildren into the operation is the ultimate goal. Successfully bringing additional family members into the operation may require some creativity, as all parties need to maintain a viable standard of living. This series of articles will highlight ideas and tactics for bringing another family member into the operation. One tactic is to provide new family members with monetary compensation, such as an hourly wage or salary. Th...
If you’re an investor, you no doubt pay a great deal of attention to your stocks, bonds and mutual funds. But you shouldn’t forget another key element of your financial strategy: cash. Cash is part of any financial strategy and investment portfolio, but how much have you thought about the different uses of cash, and how much you really need? Consider these four key purposes: • Unexpected expenses and emergencies – If you face an interruption in employment, you need an extensive home repair or you encounter an unplanned medical expense, you may...
One of the rewards for working over several decades is the ability to contribute to tax-advantaged retirement accounts, which can help provide needed income for you when you do retire. As the years went by, you may well have accumulated several retirement accounts, such as IRAs and 401(k)s or similar employer-sponsored plans. But you might find it advantageous to consolidate these accounts with a single provider. Consolidating them can provide you with several potential benefits, including these: • Less confusion and clutter – If you have mul...
As you go through life, you will likely have long- and short-term financial goals. But how will your strategies for meeting your long-term goals differ from those needed for your short-term ones? If you’re like most people, your biggest long-term goal is achieving a comfortable retirement. And for this goal, a common strategy is putting away money in tax-advantaged retirement vehicles, such as your 401(k) and IRA. So, how should you go about preparing for shorter-term goals, such as a family vacation, home renovation, wedding or major p...
If you have a family member who has been diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease, or is starting to show symptoms, you will face some real challenges. Navigating the Alzheimer’s experience involves a long journey, and there’s no easy answer for how you can cope with your emotions. But you can at least address some of the financial issues involved to help give yourself a greater sense of control. Here are some moves to consider: • Plan for care costs and identify insurance coverage. The list of Alzheimer’s-related medical expenses is long and inclu...
Benjamin Franklin once said, “If you fail to plan, you are planning to fail.” But as you chart your financial course, what steps should you take to help you keep moving forward to where you want to go? Consider these suggestions: • Establish and quantify your goals. Throughout your life, you’ll have short-term goals, such as an overseas vacation or a home renovation, and long-term goals, the most important of which may be a comfortable retirement. You’ll want to identify all your goals and put a “price tag” on them. Of course, it’s not alwa...
You may have heard that you can simplify your investment strategy just by owning index-based or passive investments. But is this a good idea? You’ll want to consider the different aspects of this type of investment style. To begin with, an index-based investment is a vehicle such as a mutual fund or an exchange-traded fund (ETF) that mimics the performance of a market benchmark, or index — the Dow Jones Industrial Average, the S&P 500, and so on. (An ETF is similar to a mutual fund in that it holds a variety of investments but differs in tha...
Once again, it’s the season for football games and back-to-school activities. And if you work for a medium-size or large employer, it will soon be open enrollment season – the time of year when you can review your employee benefits and make changes as needed. What areas should you focus on? Actually, it’s a good idea to pay close attention to all your benefits. Some of the offerings may have changed from last year — and you might have experienced changes in your own life, too, which might lead you to look for something different from your ex...
There are no shortcuts to investment success — you need to establish a long-term strategy and stick with it. This means you’ll want to create an investment mix based on your goals, risk tolerance and time horizon — and then regularly review it to ensure it’s still meeting your needs. In fact, investing for the long term doesn’t necessarily mean you should lock your investments in forever. Throughout your life, you’ll likely need to make some changes. Of course, everyone’s situation is different and there’s no prescribed formula of when and how...
You probably won’t see it on your calendar, but September is Life Insurance Awareness Month. And it is indeed important to be aware of the importance of life insurance. Are you adequately insured? Many people aren’t. About 40% of Americans face some type of life insurance gap, either because they’re uninsured or underinsured, according to a 2021 survey by the research and advocacy groups LIMRA and Life Happens. The need for life insurance is pretty straightforward: If something were to happen to you, would your family be able to continue their...
It’s no secret that this has been a tough year for the stock market. But if you own bonds, you may also have some concerns. What’s happened is that the Federal Reserve has been raising interest rates to fight inflation. This can cause the value of your existing bonds to drop, because investors will want to buy the newly issued bonds that pay the higher rates. Still, bonds continue to offer you some key benefits. For one thing, as long as you hold your bonds until maturity, you’ll continue to receive the same interest payments. Also, bonds...
If you’ve been contributing to an IRA, you’ve chosen a great way to save and invest for retirement. All IRAs have potential tax benefits and a range of investment possibilities, but not all IRA providers offer the same features. So, if you decide that your current IRA provider is charging higher fees than you’d like, or perhaps doesn’t offer as many investment choices as you want, then you might choose to move your IRA assets to another provider. How should you go about making this switch? Here are some options to consider: • Trustee-t...
If you’re like most people, your work has been a central part of your life. So, wouldn’t it be nice to have the flexibility to decide when you no longer want to work? Many people of retirement age have achieved this type of control. In fact, two-thirds of workers ages 65 and older say they work primarily because they want to, not because they have to, according to a 2021 study by Edward Jones and Age Wave. But that means that one-third of workers in this age group feel financially compelled to work. This doesn’t necessarily mean they disli...
In just a few weeks, students will be heading off to college – and parents will be getting out their checkbooks. Without a college-bound student in your home right now, you might not be thinking much about tuition and other higher education expenses, but if you have young children, these costs may eventually be of concern – so how should you prepare for them? It’s never too soon to start saving and investing. Unfortunately, many people think that they have a lot of “catching up” to do. In fact, nearly half of Americans say they don’t fee...
When many people hear the words “estate planning,” they assume it’s just for the wealthy. But that’s not the case because everyone can benefit from an estate plan. And when you’re creating one, you’ll want to avoid some common mistakes. Before we look at those mistakes, let’s go over what estate planning is designed to accomplish. Essentially, an estate plan allows you to pass on your assets in the way you desire. But it can also specify other actions, such as naming someone to care for your minor children if you were no longer around....
We all want to live long lives. We all expect to live long lives. But are we financially prepared for this longevity? Before we get to the issue of preparation, let’s look at a couple of interesting findings from a 2022 survey by Age Wave and Edward Jones: • The surveyed retirees said, on average, they expect to live to 89, and they said the ideal length of retirement is 29 years. • When asked if they want to live to 100, nearly 70% of the respondents said “yes.” The main reason for this desire for long life? To spend more years with their fam...
If you know how important it is to invest for your future, but you’re unsure of the road to follow, you may want to get some guidance and direction from a financial professional. But if you’ve never worked with one before, what can you expect? Here are some things to look for: • Assessment – A financial advisor will assess your current financial situation – assets, income, debts and so on – but that’s just the start. These days, advisors recognize the need to view their clients’ lives holistically. Consequently, you will see questions like...
Next week, we observe Independence Day, an opportunity to celebrate all the liberties we enjoy in this country. Of course, there are different types of freedoms – such as financial freedom, which can open the doors to many other opportunities. What steps can you take to gain your financial independence? Here are a few suggestions: • Save, invest … and repeat. There’s really no shortcut to achieving financial freedom – you do have to save and invest for many years. And that means you should take full advantage of the opportunities available...
You could spend two, or even three, decades in retirement. So, to pay for all those years, you’ll probably need to take full advantage of your retirement accounts. And in 2022, you may have expanded opportunities to deduct retirement plan contributions on your tax return. Before looking at what’s changed this year, let’s review the key benefits of these accounts: • Traditional IRA – You typically contribute pretax (deductible) dollars to a traditional IRA, and your earnings can grow tax-deferred. • Roth IRA – You invest after-tax dollars in a...
As an investor, you can easily feel frustrated to see short-term drops in your investment statements. But while you cannot control the market, you may find it helpful to review the factors you can control. Many forces affect the financial markets, including geopolitical events, corporate profits and interest rate movements – forces beyond the control of most individual investors. In any case, it’s important to focus on the things you can control, such as these: • Your ability to define your goals – One area in which you have total control...
You might enjoy owning your home – but the mortgage? Not so much. In fact, you might want to do everything you can to pay it off as quickly as possible. But is that always the best strategy? In one sense, your mortgage can be considered a “good” debt because it’s backed by a tangible asset – your home – that has real value and may even gain further value. Furthermore, by historical standards, you’re probably paying a pretty low interest rate on your mortgage, so you’re getting a lot of benefit – a place to live and a potentially appre...
When you hear the word “budgeting,” your first thought might be that it’s mostly for young people starting out in their careers and adult lives. Yet, budgeting can be important for everyone, no matter their age. And even if you feel that you’re in pretty good financial shape, with a reasonable amount of savings and investments, you can still benefit by establishing a budget or improving your current one. Here’s what budgeting can do for you: • Give you feelings of control – Not knowing where your money is going can be bewildering....
Life doesn’t always go as planned. For example, you might think you’ll retire at 65 or later, when you’ll be eligible for Medicare. But if you retire before then, how will you pay for your health care? Without insurance, you risk incurring thousands of dollars of expenses if you are injured or become seriously ill. And if you must pay for these costs out of pocket, you might have to dip into your IRA, 401(k) or other retirement accounts earlier than you had planned – which could result in a less desirable retirement lifestyle than you had env...
If you want to provide educational opportunities for your children or grandchildren, you may want to consider investing in a 529 plan. In recent years, this plan has gotten more flexible, and potentially more powerful, than ever. A key benefit of a 529 plan is that earnings are generally tax free, provided the money is used for qualified educational expenses. As the owner of the plan, you can essentially name any beneficiary you want, and you’re free to change the beneficiary as needed. Contribution limits are quite high, so you can put away c...
If you reach retirement with a significant amount of assets, you’ve done a great job of saving and investing. But now comes another challenge – making that money last. You might think that this task, as important as it is, won’t be as hard as accumulating the money in the first place. Yet, a sizable number of people have reached a different conclusion. In fact, 36% of retirees say managing money in retirement is more confusing than saving for retirement, and 56% say they wish they had budgeted for more unexpected expenses in retirement, accordi...