Are you ready for retirement? Hope for the best; Plan
for the worst
=The best guarantee for the future is having money
=Financial advisors can't predict the future
=Make a plan for the future or the government will
Pension funds like the one for California
workers (CalPERS) have 63% equities, 23% fixed income and 14% other assets like
real estate, forests, etc. Very little is in risky investments like hedge funds
or gold. By Ian Sender, former director,
Wall Street firm
Annuity sales tactics you should avoid
When sales people hear that their products are expensive—3% a year or more, they claim
that the benefits of death benefit and their sage advice are worth it.
Most annuities never pay death benefits. Tax advantages are less than a regular
investment account. Advice is not useful unless you are investing $100,000 or
more.
Out of five possible stars, 85 percent
of AARP's plans fell into the 3.0-3.5 range, with 8.7 percent in
the 4.0 range and no plans achieving an excellent 4.5 or 5.0 score. In
comparison, 31 percent of non-AARP plans achieved a score of 4.0 or
higher. The highest performing competitors across contracts were nonprofit
health plans, including Kaiser; Gunderson Lutheran Health
System; Baystate Health; and HealthPartners. Certain for-profit plans
also had higher average contract scores than AARP, including Humana and
Aetna.
Compare plans at
www.medicare.gov
Long-term care insurance usage study—Half used for home care
The majority of new long term care insurance claims in 2012
started after the policyholder was age 70. "Over two-thirds (68%) of new
claims began after the policyholder turned 80," a study reports.
"About one-in-four (23.5%) started their claim between ages 70 and 79.
Roughly half of newly opened claimants received benefits for covered home care
services with the rest paying for care in assisted living communities or
skilled nursing homes. The most common reasons for a long term care insurance
claim are Alzheimer’s disease, stroke, arthritis, circulatory issues or
injury." Only 4% of men require institutional care. Consider alternatives:
http://www.amazon.com/Long-term-Care-Insurance-Updated-Edition/dp/148274001X
Car dealers now offer insurance in SC
Love Chevrolet and the Allstate Insurance
Company partnered to open a new agency inside the dealership in Irmo that
will sell a full-range of insurance products, including automotive, home and
life insurance. Called Love Insurance and Financial Services, the
agency is the first of its kind in
South Carolina and
is designed to create a one-stop shop for customers to buy and insure a car. Allstate finished
a pilot program that opened agencies in 11 dealerships across the country
during the past two years. The pilot program was successful, and
now Allstate is expanding the model to other dealerships like Love
Chevrolet. Instead, buy with discounts, directly and save:
http://www.amazon.com/Vehicle-Insurance-Beware-Double-Coverage/dp/1480027634
Wall Street gurus crash and burn—but still make $ millions
by avoiding taxes
Hot hands attract hot money from wealthy, take 2% and 20% of
gains, become rich and lazy, hot money leaves to find another hot hand. The
pattern is typical “bubble” creation so real long-term investors have stayed
away. Those who stay at the party too long, regret it. Our working person’s
pension money is usually the last to
leave. Thus one of the largest “bubbles” is down
8%
in 2013 while their neighbor’s 500 index fund is up 20%. Meanwhile,
Congress still gives the “bubble” people a tax break and we pay for it. Gurus
can’t make you rich:
http://www.amazon.com/Hows-your-Wall-Street-guru/dp/1490533273
401k use is up—average savings rate is over 10%
A survey of American workers cite "saving enough for
retirement" as their greatest financial
concern – but men are paying more attention and taking more
positive action, but
women live longer.
Participants in general are saving more, with the average retirement savings
rate among those surveyed at 10.5%, up from 9% two years ago. Satisfaction with
information from retirement plan sponsors is down sharply (10% in 2013 vs. 30%
two years ago). Men are more likely to have a professional advisor and are more
confident than women in virtually every aspect of retirement planning and
defined contribution investment decisions.
Ensure Your Financial Health with Wealth:
A
Woman's Guide to a $2,000,000
Tax-FREE Wealth Reserve
http://www.amazon.com/dp/1466388293
Is critical illness insurance right for you?
Prudential has just entered the employer market. These policies
say they cover major illness like heart attack, cancer, organ transplant, renal
failure, stroke and coronary artery bypass surgery. But employees are already
covered for all of these causes in their comprehensive health care policy. Pru
says health coverage does not pay for expenses like transportation and day care.
These policies pay “a flat dollar amount, which can be used for anything and
provides an “easy and convenient” way to keep extra protection in place,” Pru
said.
These kinds of policies are just an
expensive savings account that pays you less. You are better off
using your own car and family for these expenses and using the money to buy a
real health policy. Renal failure and
cancer treatments cost much more than any “flat dollar amount” from these
policies. Skip it:
http://www.amazon.com/Health-Insurance-ONLY-right-policy/dp/1480125083
Almost one-fourth of U.S.
drivers feel they’ve come close to causing
an accident while using their cell
phone while driving, according to a new survey.
Allstate cutting benefits to employees to raise stock price
It named cost-cutting as one of its top priorities for 2013,
and is reducing some retirement and life insurance benefits in a move that it
says will boost its book value per share to $2. The changes include a new
formula to calculate pensions, as well as ending retiree life insurance
benefits for current employees.
America
has more than 44 million workers (27,500 private-sector pension) that are now
receiving reduced checks from the government
pbgc.gov/
because their employers cancelled their pensions. Make your own:
http://www.amazon.com/dp/1466367466
Employees pick less-expensive high-deductible health plans
Liazon survey says that when given the choice between a
conventional employer-sponsored health plan and a less-expensive
high-deductible or preferred network plan, 60% of employees chose the
lower-priced plans. "HSA plans encourage individuals to take an active
role in their health care decisions while stretching their health care
dollars." Buy only what you need:
http://www.amazon.com/Health-Insurance-ONLY-right-policy/dp/1480125083
You don’t get what you pay for—even for the “professionals”
State pension plans that pay higher fees don't get better
returns for their employee plans. According to a BenefitsPro,
"The
10 states paying the highest
fees - a median rate of 0.61% - posted annualized five-year returns of
1.34%. In comparison, the 10 lowest-paying states paid a median rate of
only 0.22% and garnered 2.38% returns." If pension funds would just
stick low-cost
index funds, they
would have returns of 7% for 5 years. Don’t pay for what “professionals” can’t
deliver:
http://www.amazon.com/Wealth-Without-Wall-Street-Commissions/dp/1442168137
New York health exchanges offer 50% drop in premiums
Health insurance premiums will drop by about 50% on average
for consumers in
New York who buy
new plans through a state-run marketplace created by the Affordable Care Act. The
state approved plans to be sold by 17 insurers, including UnitedHealth Group
and WellPoint, the industry’s two biggest carriers, according to a statement
today by New York Governor Andrew Cuomo. The lowered rates mean that starting
Oct. 1, a New York City resident who now pays at least $1,000 a month for
insurance will be able to buy coverage for as little as $308, according to
rates posted by governor’s office.
http://www.healthbenefitexchange.ny.gov/
Why is your LPL Financial advisor raising your fees?
Your broker or advisor who uses LPL will be hit with new
fees because of the way the firm is regulated. They can pass the costs on to
you. You can leave and move your assets to a low-cost firm like Schwab,
Fidelity or Vanguard. Try doing it yourself. All these firms have licensed
advisors on salary who pass on economies of scale to you:
http://www.amazon.com/Wealth-Without-Wall-Street-Commissions/dp/1442168137
When hell freezes over?
4 senators want Wall Street banks to separate their 'high-stakes
gambling' units from your savings and checking. Banks don’t want to give up
your ‘cheap’ deposits. The bill sponsored by Senators Elizabeth Warren, John McCain,
Maria Cantwell, and Angus King would separate traditional banks that offer
checking and savings accounts insured by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp.
from “riskier financial institutions.” The latter category includes companies
involved in investment banking, insurance, swaps dealing, hedge funds and
private equity, according to the lawmakers' statement released yesterday. Some
former bankers support the bill but previous attempts have failed. No current
bank lobbyists are for it, so it has no chance to pass even the Senate.
Follow the Money host in jail
Patrick Kiley's radio voice was softened after being
convicted of scamming hundreds of people who were victimized in the Ponzi
scheme. He hosted "Follow the Money," broadcast on many Christian radio
channels.
Senators pretend to be outraged by high gas prices
Lawmakers grilled representatives of oil producers and
refiners seeking an explanation for a rise in gasoline prices at the pump amid
a boom in
U.S.
oil production. Remember when we were told there was low supply so prices were
high. Guess what, now the oil companies send the oil to places where the prices
are higher so we all pay more anytime the oil companies want to raise profits.
It is called monopoly capitalism and the Senators benefit in their dividend
accounts. Laughs on us.
http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2013-07-16/senators-grill-refiners-over-high-prices-amid-oil-boom.html
Credit bureau that has notorious errors in data, to verify
income for ObamaCare
Equifax will be paid $ millions to verify incomes of people
who apply for federal subsidies to buy health insurance. Regulators will never
fix the way bureaus keep reselling their errors no matter what you do.
Two Americas
Planned Parenthood informed staff at three of its facilities
in Texas that they would be
closing. Out of the three Planned Parenthood clinics that are closing, only the Bryan clinic performs abortions. “In recent
years, Texas politicians have
created an increasingly hostile environment for providers of reproductive
health care in underserved communities. Texans with little or no access to
health care services have been deeply affected by state budget cuts to programs
provided by Planned Parenthood health centers and dozens of others that
provided lifesaving cancer screenings, well-woman exams and birth
control," said a spokeswoman.
Who owns your account now?
Lincoln Benefit Life to Resolution Life (GB)
Allstate will discontinue issuing fixed annuities and its
agents will sell other products.
IAN
41 Watchung Plaza, B242
Montclair, NJ
07042
973.746.2014
