Your Wealth Reserve: credit reports

Showing posts with label credit reports. Show all posts

Friday, November 5, 2021

Will any of these 55 tax avoiders actually pay the 15% global tax?

Is a traditional 60/40 portfolio right for you?

Savers and investors who tell their advisor that they do not want to take excessive risk are usually given the 60/40 option—60% of their investments are in stocks and 40% are in bonds. If you pay an advisor to pick your stocks and bonds, this traditional portfolio may work for you and let you sleep through the night. When they quit working, their stock holdings are reduced to 30%. But what if you have not saved enough for the retirement you envision? Buffett has suggested a 90% stock 10% cash position for his eventual widow's retirement portfolio. This does not work for most of us since we don’t have the level of assets Buffett’s widow will have. Some of my readers operate on a LOW-COST 70/30 option in retirement since they have a balanced portfolio and large pension/IRA/SS income. Others have been lucky to rely on a “total return” strategy during one of the longest bull markets in history. They try to reduce their taxable income by buying non-dividend stocks like Buffett’s well-diversified firm with no commissions. They built emergency funds to pay for 2 years of expenses to survive a market drop. For most of us, the Target Date funds offer the best compromise for pre- and post-retirement portfolios. The key to success is low-cost funds or securities since we earn more when paying less.

https://www.amazon.com/Warren-Buffetts-Vanguard-Funds-Retirement/dp/1496148592

Should you invest 10% or 20%?

This is a constant question I hear. Answer: it depends. First, more savings is always better since we are living longer and the prices will be higher later. Talk of higher inflation is already moving money from bonds to stocks. Second, if we have time to invest (retirement is 5+ years away), we should be investing in stocks not bonds. Yes, the stock market has already gone up over the historical average of 11% per year but there is no alternative. Savings at under 2% per year will not even cover the price increases for one year let alone for our future. Third, given the historical inflation rate of 3%, we must invest in stock or balanced funds and the cheaper the better. There is no reason to pay 2% commission, fees, trading timing failures to someone who cannot guarantee inflation-beating returns. Most of us have not invested enough during out working years, so starting at 10% and increasing the percentage each time we receive a raise makes sense. Obviously, if your nest egg is low due to low returns or employment pause, you must increase it to stay on track for the future benefits of income. You can run simulations of your final nest egg balance and how long it will last here: https://retirementplans.vanguard.com/VGApp/pe/pubeducation/calculators/RetirementNestEggCalc.jsf

https://www.amazon.com/Your-Plan-Live-Age-100/dp/1548180793

Is AFLAC insurance right for you?

This pays you cash if your accident or illness is covered. You will not receive what you might expect given the premiums you have paid. The insurer pays claims at about HALF what you might expect to receive after your health insurer pays your medical bills. This is an insurance company and they determine how much your payout for an illness or accident will be. Not every situation is covered. For many folks, this is a “forced savings” product. That means you might be better off putting your premium into an emergency fund—a balanced mutual fund at low cost or high-paying bank CD. A disability policy that your employer pays means that the benefit you receive is taxable income to you.

https://www.amazon.com/dont-have-money-Financial-Emergencies/dp/1537636707

Will any of these 55 tax avoiders actually pay the 15% global tax?

The global minimum tax is a way to prevent large multinational corporations from shifting their profits to low-tax countries, such as Ireland (12.5% corporate rate) and Switzerland (8.5% corporate rate). Until now, this has been done by setting up subsidiaries in these tax havens. By maintaining a minimum tax rate of 15% in the vast majority of countries, there is virtually no place remaining (other than Kenya, Nigeria, Pakistan and Sri Lanka, which have not yet agreed to the rate) to shift profits to—particularly from intangibles (patents, trademarks, software, royalties on intangibles). Those who support the tax expect it will boost the global economy and incentivize multinationals to keep more profits—and the tax on them—at home. As it stands now, the tax would only apply to large multinational corporations. This means corporations with profits outside their borders exceeding $868 million. It would not impact the tax rate charged by the corporations’ home countries. Yet another layer of the global minimum tax is for the largest multinationals, with excess profits (profits in excess of 10% of revenue). The tax rate here would be 25%. The law has not yet been enacted by the U.S. So only the little people pay tax and the wealthy pay our Reps to keep it that way.

https://www.amazon.com/Americas-Socialism-Rich-only-little-people-pay/dp/1535218584

Wealthy folks avoid taxes by claiming dual citizenship in city, beach, mountains

You have your choice of 25 capitals and cities around the world where you can acquire residence through investment migration programs. The places are ranked according to 10 main categories that represent the most pressing relocation considerations: lifestyle, tax, education, real estate, health care, security, infrastructure and stability, as well as COVID-19 safety and the relevant investment migration program. All 25 locals are proactively welcoming foreign investors, and while some are clearly leading the pack, each has its strengths and particular appeal. And special companies will help you make it happen. Zurich, St. Helier, Lisbon, Rome, Monaco, Cyprus, Athens, Malta, Kuala Lumpur, etc. Avoid bad weather and taxes.

https://www.amazon.com/Your-Hidden-Wealth-Reserve-Reduce-Taxes/dp/1540435148

Is working as long as you can right for you?

One of the biggest regrets some folks have is not seeing their co-workers on a regular basis. Many say they plan to get together but somehow it never happens. The benefits of working, even part time, are many. Many feel lost in retirement since their lives revolved around their mates at work. ‘Friends for life’ is how they describe those they have seen for 5, 10, 20 years. Unless you are working in a coal mine or warehouse, you should stay connected to your network. 1^st health benefits of seeing your group and receiving health care benefits can’t be discounted. Working requires using your body parts. The old saying, “use it or lose it” is true for many retirees. You may enjoy many more years with family and friends when you are active. You don’t have to gym or golf or run to stay healthy according to new research. Walking is fine. 2^nd because you are called upon to make decisions—any decision—you will ward off the onset of some possible memory or dementia problems. You won’t get stuck watching TV, playing computer games or staring at the monitor all day. You may even increase your skills in case you want another career. 3^rd you can spend more money. In fact, adding more to your nest egg will provide you with peace of mind. Your SS benefits will be greater since every year you do NOT take benefits adds 8% to your payout. You can work and take extra benefits after your Full Retirement Age without penalty. After age 70, your benefits do not grow larger but they may have doubled from the amount you would have received at age 62. If you are still working and contributing to FICA after FRA, your benefits are recalculated each year. So instead of $1,463.80 a month you could receive $2,975.00. Eventually, you will have to withdrawal funds from your 401k, IRA, etc so you need to plan your spending.

https://www.amazon.com/What-your-RMD-much-spend/dp/1718946716

Can you live on dividends alone?

Some investors accumulate enough stocks that pay dividends they can live on them as retirement income. The list of so called Dividend Kings provides a broad selection of stocks with a solid history of dividend payments. You know many of these firms already: Coke, 3M, J&J, but there are many not well known. Now you have mutual funds and ETFs of these stocks. The downside to ever increasing dividend income is dividend tax. To become a Dividend King, a company must have at least 50 consecutive years of dividend increases. Because of that high standard, it likely doesn’t come as a surprise that only an exclusive list of firms make the list. In 2021, there are just 31 Dividend Kings. This strategy provides the value tilt to your portfolio—growth stocks are light on dividends. “Dividends can offset losses if the market is declining and help with inflation.”

Make your plan complete: https://www.amazon.com/Your-Retirement-Spending-Plan-enough/dp/1461084016

**********ACCOUNTABILITY**************

Like 1776, this period is a test of democracy—We rejected an "American fascist" once

Our Jan 6 ‘Truth and Reconciliation Commission’

“The coup is ongoing”

Sentence for overthrow government: free to do it again

Judge: “attack on democracy ... unparalleled in American history.”

GOP aided and abetted the coup attempt

Supremes: overturn 700-year tradition restricting weapons in public?

How Govt wastes our money:

Manchin cancels paid leave for family health: women have baby on lunch break?

Manchin demands getting his way or gut services and structures: coal pays $491,949

Too little too late: countries to stop cutting trees by 2030: why wait?

Supremes: the bullies, mafia, criminals will be packing on/under the streets of New York

8,000 Air Force Service Members Miss Vaccine Mandate Deadline: 5,000 turn to religion

Navy Cmdr runs sub into mountain in SCS: Tesla autopilot or just incompetence?

SCAMS/SPINS:

Trump: take away Pulitzer Prize from newspapers I hate; “I am the chosen one”

Supremes TX ban: women can just “stop having sex” to avoid pregnancy decision

Supremes: TX sets up vigilante law: $10,000 if see abortion, illegal sex, devils, books,etc

TX to ban books from teens if “psychological distress”: can’t read of sex, race, etc

TX leaves Covid decision to parents but book & birth decided by TX gov: my rights?

Arbery trial: GA jury of all white men: judge admits “discrimination” already: fair trial?

Fake news is easy to poison our lives: Covid, immigration, pipe bombs to scare us

Fake news created by only 10 publishers: study shows who does most wrong info

Attempted overthrow of US government Jan 6 now called just ‘riot’: misinfo?

Trump: VA election of GOP gov was ‘fraud’: GOP win with ‘racist education’ ideology

Q delusion: QAnon believers Lemmings outfitted with “Trump-Kennedy 2024” shirts

Kenneth Welsh NJ caught stealing $3M tricked WellsFargo client accounts

Xlear caught claim nasal spray prevents COVID "without … evidence"

Tech Support Scams No. 1 Phishing Threat: pop-up alert disguised brand names

scammers claimed from Amazon, IRS, SS: takes over computer for ‘refund’ to rob

Tactics Scammers Use to Lure Consumers based on science

GA GOP paid by robocallers to allow unlimited voicemail on our phones: tell him NO!

Big banks caught fixing ATM fees: pay fine and continue as usual: no jail time

Scams using your phone ID: Google Voice verification: use your phone ID as scam tool

Dealers caught overcharging for car loans even with great credit: pay $59K for $29K car

CA passenger assaults plane crew: flight diverted: give assaulters parachute; flight go on?

Tesla recalls 12,000 vehicles: bad software may stop car on a dime when you don’t want

Tesla autopilot trial: kills Banner by running into semi truck it did not ‘see’ at night

Jobs

Biden: Pope called me a ‘good Catholic’ and blessed my rosary?: US bishops deny Host

Unemployment comp NOT taxed: IRS sends 430,000 refunds $510 million for 2020.

FL women get prize for killing big shark: what fun! “We kept the tail, the head”

Denied job or rental or credit bec/ credit bureaus have wrong history on file for you?

Who owns your account now?

GOP or Trump Mafia? Another Trump critic is silenced: Gonzalez fears for family

How to separate the info from misinfo: you can learn to tell the difference: https://newslitproject.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_stGsEmUpTGKuxLoxKkvEeA

ESCAPING FEDERAL TAX PENALTIES

Best college savings plans: 529 state choices rated

Vax effectiveness falls 50% in 6 months: study 800,000 complete

Miracles:

Conner Doss and Kane Daugherty saved bus driver with quick thinking action

Covid kills priest so congregation gets vaccinated in his honor

ObamaCare is more affordable in 2022 so more folks have health care

We have now melted the Earth “back to the Stone Age in some places”

Chile desert glass sheets from fireball exploding just above sand 12K years ago

Two condor chicks had hatched from unfertilized eggs: females can only make males

Finding a replacement for battery power: batteries are bad for environment

First oral covid-19 treatment pill approved in UK for UK test: replace costly antibody

We can apply for Medicare online: https://blog.ssa.gov/apply-for-medicare-online

We can apply for Social Security online: https://www.ssa.gov/benefits/retirement/

We can apply for health care online: https://www.healthcare.gov/

IAN

41 Watchung Plaza, B242

Montclair, NJ 07042

973.746.2014

www.InsuranceAdvisorsNetwork.com

Alerts available at http://dankeppel.blogspot.com/

Friday, October 29, 2021

Is your 401k robbing you blind?

Survey: “I wish I had learned more about financials”

Many respondents wish they had taken the time to learn more about financial products. We are all very busy and don’t get a chance to learn more about making and keeping money. And yet, for many, the amount of money we have later makes a big difference in our lives. I was lucky. After working a few different jobs, including managing a small health bureau in NYC government, I managed a small operation in a Wall Street firm. I had a crash course in annuities, mutual funds, and insurance. I learned about the products brokers and advisors sell to the public. The most important lesson I learned was which products to buy and which to avoid. I have put that information into short reads that most folks can follow and succeed with. Unless you are wealthy and need special tax advice, I found that the simple products are best. You can understand them and pay much less than those products and services with all the fees, commissions and charges my industry uses to get rich. Pay less; keep more.

Take your discounts: https://www.amazon.com/Insiders-Guides-Discount-Financial-Services/dp/143480593X

Is Impact Investing right for you?

Social and environmental focus while you grow your portfolio sounds good. But most companies you may support are not pure plays. For example, Ben and Jerry’s was famous for its social and environmental concerns but it is owned by Unilever of UK which has a questionable environmental history. Labels such as socially responsible investing and impact investing are often used synonymously, alongside other terms like ethical investing and sustainable investing. They usually refer to a similar idea: Using your investing dollars to make a positive difference in the world. But my idea of “positive difference” and your idea can be different. For instance, some investors with particular religious ideas may invest in companies like Hobby Lobby since they have a strong religious mission. One of those missions is Museum of the Bible, a non-profit run by the Green family. Internal staff had warned that some items bought by the Museum had dubious provenance and were potentially looted from Iraq. Several shipments of the artifacts were seized by US customs agents in 2011, triggering a years-long struggle between Hobby Lobby and the federal government that culminated in a 2017 civil forfeiture. As a result of the case, Hobby Lobby agreed to return the artifacts and pay a fine. 3,800 items seized from Hobby Lobby were returned to Iraq in May 2018. In March 2020 the Hobby Lobby president agreed to return 11,500 items to Egypt and Iraq. It may be better to “invest” in your local charity (tax deduction improves your return) and leave your portfolio with “passive” investment guides.

Dream and plan: https://www.amazon.com/Best-Robo-Advisor-Ultimate-Automatic-Management/dp/1537111957

Is a SPAC right for you?

This type of investment is in the news because Trump is using a Special Purpose Acquisition Company to raise funds for his promised media firm “Truth Social.” A SPAC is like a reverse IPO—managers raise funds from investors to speculate on some project in the future depending on the amounts they raise. A special purpose acquisition company, Digital World Acquisition Corp, had two hedge fund investments until it announced it was helping Trump, who was impeached after being accused of inciting the Jan. 6 attempted coup. At the announcement of the SPAC with Trump’s venture, its share price zoomed higher. SPACs, also known as blank-check companies, are created to raise capital from public equity markets and then use that cash to merge with a private company that has or will have an actual operating business. Thus the two hedge funds probably profited from the news by selling ahead of the actually work with Trump. As usual, most of us were not able to buy and sell at the right time to make a profit without prior information about this event. We are better off taking Buffett’s advice.

Follow Buffett’s advice: https://www.amazon.com/Warren-Buffetts-Vanguard-Funds-Retirement/dp/1496148592

Is a 401k loan a good deal?

Yes, but. 401k money is your money. It may seem like a no-brainer to borrow your own money in a pinch. However, this loan is probably the most expensive loan you will ever take. When you take money from your future nest egg, you are taking giving up one of the most valuable things you own. You can replace the money you take but NOT the time your money is using to grow. Example: $10,000 missing from stock market growth for 30 years can cost you $198,373. That is how much more you would have if you left the $10,000 in a market index fund earning the average 10% per year. Your $10,000 earns dividends and earnings on reinvested dividends. Sure you could tell yourself you will pay the $10,000 back in a year, but few borrowers actually do. Many plans require repayment within 5 years. If you fail to repay there is a penalty plus income taxes. If your employment ends with a loan outstanding, you may have an immediate repayment demand. However, with the pandemic job upheaval, taking the loan was seen a necessary and that loan may never get repaid. Many will just start over when they are employed again. The loss of the time in the market can never be made up.

You may have to work longer. https://www.amazon.com/Your-Plan-Live-Age-100/dp/1548180793

Is your 401k robbing you blind?

If you have been able to continue to contribute to your employer savings plan during this critical time, congratulations. If you have been able to contribute more than the plan’s default savings rate, Double Congratulations. During this bull market, many have been lucky to double their plan balance. A simple low-cost index mutual fund has risen over 16% a year in the last 5-10 years. Others have not done as well because they used the default investment option of their employer. Usually the other options come with higher expense ratios, and thus have not benefited employees as much. Some firms have been sued because the employer options have been poor or compromised. Of course, employees can contribute more in order to gain a higher employer matching amount. However, the low-cost investment option usually provides a higher retirement balance than a higher contribution amount. The BEST strategy would be to pay the least fund and plan fees with the highest employer match. This combo—least cost; maximum contribution; highest match—helps you reach your retirement number faster.

Avoid high fees: https://www.amazon.com/Robbing-You-Blind-401k-fees/dp/1493588966

How you can hurt your credit score and report

Car rental: If you use a debit card, a rental company may check your credit history. Confirm the reservation with your credit card to avoid the unnecessary credit inquiry. Then, settle the final bill with your debit card upon returning the vehicle. Cutting credit card: If you close a credit account, you may raise your credit utilization ratio—percentage of your total being used—which is bad for you. If you use $5,000 of your total credit of 15,000 and then cut one of your other $5,000 cards, your ratio is now 50% not 33%. 30% is better. Missed payment: if you miss a rent or car payment, your delinquency may be reported to the credit bureaus. Disputed bill: if you are not happy with a bill, the vendor can ding your credit for failure to pay on time. Breach a contract: refusing to pay a membership you don’t want gives the company reason to hurt your credit. Unexpected bill: you need to negotiate a payment plan instead of ignoring valid assessments. Apply too many times: each loan or card application is a red flag to creditors. Just because you can apply does not mean you should. Each car dealer will check your credit if you are shopping so shop online first. Use credit wisely so you always have it for emergencies.

https://www.amazon.com/Money-Scams-financial/dp/1505437962

Why do we need to subsidize the billionaires?

Walmart family members have billionaire legacies from the founder, Sam. And yet, we US taxpayers must subsidize them to earn more. Why? For many years, we have had to provide food stamps (SNAP) and other financial help (Medicaid) to their employees to give them a living wage. Walmart employees receive $ billions in US food subsidies. About 70% of the 21 million federal aid beneficiaries worked full time, a GAO report found. This means the Walton billionaires would have earned less if they paid a wage high enough so we taxpayers did not need to make up the difference. McDonald’s was among the top five employers of Medicaid enrollees in five of six states and SNAP recipients in eight of nine states. Other notable companies with a large number of employees on federal aid include Amazon, Kroger, Dollar General, and other service and retail giants. Many employees are paid about $10 per hour or $400 a week BEFORE taxes. The federal poverty level is $26,500 so many employees of the billionaire companies qualify for US subsidies. Many employers pay NO taxes to cover this federal aid. Many wealthy people have already reduced their tax bill with tricks. We subsidize the rich since they profit from paying less than a living wage to most of their employees.

Socialism, American style: https://www.amazon.com/Americas-Socialism-Rich-little-people/dp/1535218584

**********ACCOUNTABILITY**************

Like 1776, this period is a test of democracy—We rejected an "American fascist" once

Our Jan 6 ‘Truth and Reconciliation Commission’

Extremists: “FBI Instigation of January 6th”

Bannon to Congress: F…You

Trump to Congress: F…You

Frmr military & police plan gov overthrow

TX attorney general: Biden overthrew Trump government:

Congress fails on voter rights

How Govt wastes our money:

One coal Congressman sends us into climate disaster: last chance before GOP deniers

VA GOP promises to keep kids from reading books the GOP doesn’t like: Trumpists win

One millionaire decides no wealth taxes: Biden plan to rebuild US collapse: Fair share?

Military spending increase after Afghanistan: $46 Billion wasted on broken systems

Wasted tax dollars: 4 agencies paid to do ‘intelligence’ failed in Afghanistan exit

Congress allows wealthy to avoid IRS tracking large transfers to avoid taxes

Congress allows drug prices to escalate even more: Our reps profit from the increases

SCAMS/SPINS:

Save the children: Delta “plus” variant more transmissible: Stop deaths at 750,000

Children lower risk of serious illness from COVID, but they are likely to spread it.

COVID 19 is the sixth leading cause of death among 5-11-year-olds.

Judge: SW pilots must get vax so airline can make ‘safe work environment” per contract

BEWARE gov workers/police: they ignore vax mandate: we assume they have Covid

NYC police die from Covid still resist vax: 60 so far: NYPD workers dead

72% of unvaccinated workers vow to quit if ordered to get vaccinated

Kyle’s judge already decided case: victims must be called ‘rioters’ ‘looters’

TX man kills man parked in his driveway: claims ‘self-defense’ as car flees.

Fake messages to raise hate: prices, guns, Covid vax,

Fake Covid vaccination certificate purchased so folks can travel: BEWARE

Steven Gallagher OH caught $1 million pump and dump "old-school boiler" fraud

Trustmark National Bank TN caught redlining loans Black and Hispanic neighborhoods

Ann Vick CO caught stole $3.2 million Ponzi scheme promissory notes option tradeing.

Hospitals caught overcharging routine procedure by label ‘emergency’ $16,221.26 birth

Fast food may contain plastic: health problems for old and young, reproduction etc

Employers caught winning all mandatory arbitration employee customer grievances

Flooding Earth's orbit with thousands of new satellites makes your next ride dangerous

HATE maker: Trump warned on social media that looters in Minneapolis would be shot.

Weapons were found in the cars of Jan 6 terrorists: Trump asked them to stop Congress

Jobs

Scams on employment opportunities: 16,000 folks claim fraud

Record number of jobs abandoned: business earnings skyrocket

Employers calling back workers they pushed out just a year ago: work for peanuts?

Who owns your account now?

Medicare Advantage: JD Power survey best plans

Post office: cash paychecks gift card: Washington, Baltimore, Falls Church, the Bronx

Miracles:

Coal burn or Car idling?: CO2 levels in the atmosphere reach a 3 million-year high

Drought-stricken California lashed by heavy rains, flooding and mudslides

Vaccine for breast cancer: trials begin for worst cancer type

We can apply for Medicare online: https://blog.ssa.gov/apply-for-medicare-online

We can apply for Social Security online: https://www.ssa.gov/benefits/retirement/

We can apply for health care online: https://www.healthcare.gov/

Wisdom comes only thru suffering Aeschylus

IAN

41 Watchung Plaza, B242

Montclair, NJ 07042

973.746.2014

www.InsuranceAdvisorsNetwork.com

Alerts available at http://dankeppel.blogspot.com/

Friday, October 22, 2021

Is a South Dakota tax haven right for you?

How much of your credit limit should you use?

Why is this question important to answer? Your credit score, which is used for everything from loans to rental agreements to job offers, is determined in part by your credit utilization—how much of your card limit you are using. Maxing out a credit card—having a balance equal to the card's borrowing limit—has a negative impact on your score. Folks with the highest credit scores often have (and use) multiple credit cards every month. So how much usage is too much? Most of us that pay all of our balance each month tend to have the highest scores. When I shop for a used car, I give the dealer permission to check my score. I know it is over 800 because I have been given a high limit but I don’t use it. When I bought a fridge recently, I paid with my credit card (to protect me if it didn’t work) and earned points. I had saved up before hand so I could pay off the monthly bill when it came due. Most credit bureaus do not cut your score if your ratio is under 30%. For instance, total cards limit $5,000, balance carried $1,500, ratio = 30%. People with the best scores tend to keep utilization under 10% for each card and for total credit card use, according to Experian.

Get the best deals: https://www.amazon.com/Insiders-Guides-Discount-Financial-Services/dp/143480593X

Is a South Dakota tax haven right for you?

South Dakota has become one of the most popular tax havens in the world. South Dakota offers everything a wealthy person setting up a trust could want. There is no state income tax or capital gains tax, so investment gains on assets placed in the trust are tax-free if it's structured correctly. Robust protections provide anonymity and shield assets from creditors and governments. And special provisions allow trusts established there to last forever, which means those assets would never be subject to the federal estate tax (40% for estates worth more than $11.7 million). However, the popular types of trusts used in South Dakota and Nevada have never been tested in a court of law. That means it's unclear if it would last. This trust, known as an incomplete gift non-grantor trust, or ING, could be challenged because the user is actually lying. They say they are hands off but they also claim they still have some control over the assets because the gift to the trust is ‘incomplete’. They claim they aren't tapping the annual $15,000 limit for gifts or the $11.7 million lifetime exemption before the federal gift tax starts to kick in. They claim a special ‘committee’ has to approve any payouts made to the creator of the trust.

Use the IRS approved tax haven: https://www.amazon.com/Your-Tax-Haven-Tax-FREE-working-Americans/dp/1482659441

How much tax will you owe for this year in April 2022?

With all the changes in income this year—unemployment, new job, child tax credit—etc, you may owe taxes that you have not had your employer withhold by December. So this calculator may help you understand where you stand: https://www.cvnb.com/calculator/tax-margin. Usually there is no penalty for under paying by December if you owe less than $1,000. If you will owe more, send in more by changing your W-4 with your employer or using this form: https://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-pdf/f1040es.pdf. You can wait to complete your taxes before April 15 and ask for a waiver of the penalty. There are no guarantees of course.

Consider changes: https://www.kiplinger.com/taxes/tax-law/603037/tax-changes-and-key-amounts-for-the-2021-tax-year

How to remove fake bad credit info from your credit report

Although one credit inquiry is not going to hurt your credit score it can affect your credit scores for up to two years. You may have looked for a new or used car or credit card or house, but that inquiry may also have come from some fake internet site or merchant trying to punish you. If you are not checking your credit report regularly, you will never know why you don’t get the best rate or rental deal. When you find the questionable hit on your report, don’t hire a credit repair firm. That may just add to your unfavorables. Use the online request form at the credit bureau to request bad info removal. Congress gave bureaus the right to ding you but not the responsibility to check data. You have to do it yourself. Thanks for nothing Congress! Around 25% of U.S. consumers found errors that could affect their credit scores in one of their credit reports. My report had data from someone in Long Island with my name and another from Maryland who stiffed a hospital and owed a lot of money. I filed the forms and got them removed after months. Bureaus don’t have a time limit on their failures. If they don’t act, use the sample credit dispute letters from the Federal Trade Commission. Let the FTC know about your dispute.

Show your child: https://www.amazon.com/Give-your-child-leg-manage/dp/1096505355

Is “personalized investing” right for you?

Headline: ‘Personalized Investing Coming Like a 'Freight Train'. If you were a broker/advisor this is sweet music to your ear. But guess what—this is just a marketing slogan for a sales person pushing the firm’s ‘selling list.’ And we get to pay through the nose for their guesswork. A Schwab employee said “investors were seeking an “even higher level” of personalization.” Yes, if your advisor asks enough questions about your situation and goal and objectives, they are bound to be able to find some securities that you personally will like. Yes, over time and through experience, your advisor should be able to assemble securities you feel meet your needs—but at what cost? Some picks will be winners and some losers and advisors don’t know. They can’t predict the future no matter how well they know your data. The reason passive investing has done so well for index users is that no matter how much you pay for ‘personalized investing,’ you may not do well. Warren Buffett who is not a sales person has proven that most folks do better without the ‘personal investing.’ The stats show you do better with an index alone.

https://www.amazon.com/Warren-Buffetts-Vanguard-Funds-Retirement/dp/1496148592

What is your retirement dream?

Some folks working to attain or maintain their middle class status are now questioning the path to their retirement dream. The pandemic and the shift in steady wage growth and asset building have made some folks reevaluate their situation. If they have had to change jobs and start all over again in a new career, can they ever catch up to their dream amount? Traditionally we have planned our retirements around the expectation of combining a pension, Social Security benefits, and personal savings to provide sufficient income for later years. These days we change jobs, our employers don’t pay pensions, and wages have been flat since the 70’s. The median retirement savings of Americans between the ages of 55 and 64 is currently zero. For those with retirement savings, the balance is less than in the past. Many of us have turned to ‘professionals’ with mixed results. It is estimated that retirement savers lose $17 billion to conflicted advice each year. This is a staggering sum that has real world consequences for retirees. Regulators have failed to fix the situation. The middle class has given up assets to the upper class. Here is how: One analysis shows that over a 50-year investing lifetime, that 2% [total annual cost of investment advice and trading] will erode 63% of what you would have had. At $250 a month, that means you will have $660,000 instead of $1.3 million. Some folks have solved this problem by doubling the amount they save/invest. Some have taken John Bogle’s advice and cut out the middle person by using index funds.

Dream and plan: https://www.amazon.com/Best-Robo-Advisor-Ultimate-Automatic-Management/dp/1537111957

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