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11/23/2015 - What’s the Difference Between Good Debt and Bad Debt? (Money)

The word “debt” can incite feelings of dread, panic, and fear, but it doesn’t always have to. There is such a thing as good debt. For instance, certain debts help you build value, like debt you’d go into to buy a home or get an education Bad debt is any kind that doesn’t have a… Read more 11/23/2015 - What’s the Difference Between Good Debt and Bad Debt? (Money)

11/21/2015 - Many unhappy returns (The Economist)

“KEEP your eyes on the stars,” said Teddy Roosevelt, “and your feet on the ground.” America’s can-do spirit keeps its economy moving forward, but over-optimism can be harmful, especially if it leads people to make promises they cannot meet. If investment returns are lower in coming decades than they have been in recent ones, that… Read more 11/21/2015 - Many unhappy returns (The Economist)

11/20/2015 - BlackRock Warns of ‘Unintended Consequences’ From New Obama Retirement Proposal (The Wall Street Journal)

BlackRock Inc., the world’s largest money manager, is expected to push for broader changes to U.S. retirement law because of concerns about the “unintended consequences” of a new Obama administration plan designed to boost the savings of small business employees. The suggestions, included in a new policy paper reviewed by The Wall Street Journal, are a response… Read more 11/20/2015 - BlackRock Warns of ‘Unintended Consequences’ From New Obama Retirement Proposal (The Wall Street Journal)

11/20/2015 - Fidelity Joins Growing Field of Automated Financial Advice (The New York Times)

Fidelity Investments is flirting with the investment robots. Fidelity is testing its own automated investing platform, which it is calling Fidelity Go. The move puts the company into head-to-head competition with so-called robo-adviser start-ups like Betterment and Wealthfront, as well as traditional players like Vanguard and Schwab that recently began offering similar services. The Fidelity details are listed… Read more 11/20/2015 - Fidelity Joins Growing Field of Automated Financial Advice (The New York Times)

11/19/2015 - New Social Security Strategies for Couples: The New Rulebook (The Wall Street Journal)

Congress recently put an end to a pair of Social Security claiming strategies that couples have used to add tens of thousands of dollars to their lifetime retirement incomes. Now, spouses who want to maximize their benefits will need to become familiar with the next-best claiming strategies. Read the full article in The Wall Street Journal.

11/18/2015 - In retirement, seniors reinvent themselves as volunteers (The Washington Post)

According to the Corporation for National and Community Service, 18.7 million people over 55, or more than a quarter of the total, do volunteer work. They contributed about 3 billion hours of service every year between 2008 and 2010. The information collected by the agency, which supervises AmeriCorps, Learn and Serve America and other service initiatives,… Read more 11/18/2015 - In retirement, seniors reinvent themselves as volunteers (The Washington Post)

11/17/2015 - For Women, Income Inequality Continues Into Retirement (NPR)

Poverty does not treat men and women equally, especially in old age. Women 65 years old and older who are living in poverty outnumber men in those circumstances by more than 2 to 1. And these women are likely to face the greatest deprivation as they become older and more frail. Read the full article in NPR.

11/17/2015 - Bad Debt Collectors and Their Prey (The New York Times)

All states have laws that are intended to prevent debt collectors from driving families into destitution. But those laws, some of which date to the distant past, have been rendered ineffective by debt collectors using new and devious ways to win court judgments that allow them to seize debtors’ paychecks or bank accounts. Last week,… Read more 11/17/2015 - Bad Debt Collectors and Their Prey (The New York Times)

11/17/2015 - We’re Living Longer. That’s Great, Except for Social Security (The New York Times)

As people live longer, they spend a larger fraction of their lives in retirement, collecting benefits. As large government programs go, Social Security retirement benefits are extremely simple: The program takes money from working people and gives it to retired people. This simplicity is great in that it makes it easy to see the magnitude… Read more 11/17/2015 - We’re Living Longer. That’s Great, Except for Social Security (The New York Times)

11/16/2015 - Chip Credit Cards Give Retailers Another Grievance Against Banks (The New York Times)

The new chip cards are at the center of a growing dispute that has pitted two of America’s most prominent industries — banking and retailing — against each other, and pulled in attorneys general and even the Federal Bureau of Investigation in the process. But the debate involves more than whether consumers will be adequately… Read more 11/16/2015 - Chip Credit Cards Give Retailers Another Grievance Against Banks (The New York Times)