Category: Financial Landing 2015

1/14/2015 - Savings Rates Are Anemic, but a Survey Shows They Are Less Paltry Online (NY Times)

It’s a new year, and an improving job market and plunging fuel prices may help free some cash for consumers, allowing them to set some aside in savings. So, where should you put your money? The best rates on personal savings accounts, according to a new analysis from the financial website GoBankingRates, are generally offered… Read more 1/14/2015 - Savings Rates Are Anemic, but a Survey Shows They Are Less Paltry Online (NY Times)

1/13/2015 - Consumer Agency Launches Tool To Help You Find A Cheaper Mortgage (NPR)

Many Americans love a good deal, shopping around to save $10 or $20 on a pair of pants or winter coats for the kids — but when finding mortgages, nearly half don’t even call around to different banks. Three-fourths only fill out an application with one lender. In response, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau is… Read more 1/13/2015 - Consumer Agency Launches Tool To Help You Find A Cheaper Mortgage (NPR)

1/11/2015 - Quite a dilemma: Too young to retire, too old to hire (CNBC)

Older workers fared better during the Great Recession than those in other age groups. Millennials, who were just entering the workforce when the economy turned sour in 2009, were hit the worst. But when older workers lost their jobs, it took them about twice as long to find new ones, according to think tank the… Read more 1/11/2015 - Quite a dilemma: Too young to retire, too old to hire (CNBC)

1/11/2015 - Old 401(k)s: out of sight - and out of money (Chicago Tribune)

Is there any way that America’s current do-it-yourself retirement system won’t be a recipe for complete and total disaster? Think about it: First, we run the whole thing through the cheapskate employers. Then we combine those bosses with a predatory financial services industry that routinely pays millions or even billions in criminal fines as the… Read more 1/11/2015 - Old 401(k)s: out of sight - and out of money (Chicago Tribune)

1/9/015 - When Outside Factors Dictate Retirement Age (The New York Times)

For many, deciding to retire can be as straightforward as reaching Social Security eligibility age or amassing a solid nest egg. But for others mulling over when to stop work, there are other powerful, if less measurable, considerations like life expectancy, changing technological demands of the workplace and fear that age bias will limit continued… Read more 1/9/015 - When Outside Factors Dictate Retirement Age (The New York Times)

1/7/2015 - New law allows cuts in multiemployer pensions (MarketWatch)

When President Obama signed the omnibus budget and spending bill in December 2014, he also signed into law sweeping changes, through the Multiemployer Pension Reform Act of 2014, to private sector multiemployer plans. (The pension-reform measure was folded into the larger omnibus bill.) The most controversial proposal in the pension act allows deeply troubled multiemployer… Read more 1/7/2015 - New law allows cuts in multiemployer pensions (MarketWatch)

1/7/2015 - How Grandchildren Botch the Best-Laid Retirement Plans (Bloomberg)


For people without enough money to retire, one solution seems obvious: keep working. But life often gets in the way. Health issues make it impossible to work, or they lose a job and can’t find another. Here’s another factor that disrupts the best intentions: grandchildren. Women are more likely to retire when their children have… Read more 1/7/2015 - How Grandchildren Botch the Best-Laid Retirement Plans (Bloomberg)

1/7/2015 - The Smart Money is Finally Embracing the Right Way to Invest. You Should Too. (Money)

Since launching the Vanguard 500 fund in 1975, Vanguard founder Jack Bogle has been preaching the gospel of indexing — a plain-vanilla, low-cost strategy that calls for buying and holding all the stocks in a market and “settling” for average returns. He’s so fervent that his nickname in the industry is St. Jack. Read the… Read more 1/7/2015 - The Smart Money is Finally Embracing the Right Way to Invest. You Should Too. (Money)

1/5/2015 - Goodbye, traditional retirement (MarketWatch)

We don’t have a crystal ball, but for those who are retired and those folks saving for retirement, here are a few of the risks and opportunities looming in 2015. “My perspective is that there are several major issues facing the retirement system, but progress in addressing them has been very slow,” said Anna Rappaport,… Read more 1/5/2015 - Goodbye, traditional retirement (MarketWatch)

1/2/2015 - Time to Assess your Financial Fitness (The New York Times)

When the Dow Jones industrial average closed above 18,000 for the first time late last month, you could practically hear the champagne corks popping. Traders wore hats celebrating the occasion, and email news alerts were followed by dutiful articles. If you found yourself cheering from the sidelines, however, you’re in danger of using the wrong… Read more 1/2/2015 - Time to Assess your Financial Fitness (The New York Times)