Personal Finance News Wednesday 10/31

Phil's Personal Finance Tip of the Day:

401(k) and IRA Changes Coming in 2013

By Emily Brandon | U.S.News & World Report LP – Tue, Oct 30, 2012 10:48 AM EDT

Workers will be able to defer taxes on an additional $500 in their 401(k) and IRA plans in 2013. Retirement accounts will also be tweaked in a few other important ways. Here's a look at the retirement account changes you can expect to see next year.

Larger 401(k) contribution limit. The contribution limit for 401(k) plans, 403(b) plans, and the federal government's Thrift Savings Plan will increase from $17,000 in 2012 to $17,500 in 2013.

However, the catch-up contribution limit for employees age 50 and older will remain unchanged at $5,500. "One of the best ways to take advantage of the increased limits is to perform a year-end checkup of your 401(k) and make sure that you are contributing the maximum allowable by law," says Garth Scrivner, a certified financial planner and senior investment counselor for
StanCorp Investment Advisers in Albuquerque, N.M.

"One strategy to avoid the pain of increased savings is to consider giving your 401(k) contribution a raise at the same time your annual pay raise occurs."

[Read: 10 Things You Should Know About Your 401(k) Plan.]

Higher IRA contribution limit. The IRA contribution limit for workers who meet the income requirements will increase from $5,000 in 2012 to $5,500 in 2013. The catch-up contribution limit for older workers is still $1,000, which is unchanged from 2012. "The enhanced limits have the additional benefit of increasing current tax deductions (assuming pre-tax salary deferrals) or increasing the amount of client's tax-free investments (assuming Roth salary deferrals)," says Matthew Davis, a certified financial planner for Davis Financial Management in Leawood, Kan.

New 401(k) fee information. Next year is the first full year that 401(k) participants will receive quarterly and annual 401(k) statements listing the fees charged to their accounts and showing returns compared to a benchmark, due to new Labor Department regulations that went into effect in 2012. "Next year, the biggest changes will be a continuation of the new disclosure rules regarding fees that are just hitting participant statements now," says Rick Meigs, president of 401khelpcenter.com. "You are going to get an annual notice and you are going to start seeing more disclosure of fees and costs on your quarterly statements." These statements can be used to evaluate whether the funds you are investing in are worth the fees you are paying.

To read the entire article from Emily Brandon | U.S.News & World Report LP:
http://finance.yahoo.com/news/401-k-ira-changes-coming-141817664.html

Inspirational Quotes@Inspire_Us from Twitter:
I dream of painting and then I paint my dream. - Vincent Van Gogh

Personal Finance News Tuesday 10/30

Phil's Personal Finance Tip of the Day:

Does Excessive Halloween Spending Haunt You?

from daveramsey.com on 12 Oct 2012

Halloween approaches.

Look outside and you’ll likely see pumpkins lined on doorsteps, ghosts and goblins hanging from trees, and orange lights draped across door frames.

Across the country, people are planning elaborate costumes for themselves and their kids. Retailers have stocked aisles full of chocolate and other sugary snacks.

We love Halloween.

Problem is—maybe we love it a little too much. Americans spent somewhere in the neighborhood of $6.8 billion—that’s “billion” with a “b”—on Halloween last year, making it one of the most profitable holidays for retailers.

If we actually gave gifts at Halloween—instead of decorating our houses and ourselves—the holiday would probably be second only to Christmas in retail sales. That’s some serious spending, folks!

So, with Christmas right around the corner, you need to determine (now!) if it makes sense for you to spend your cash on Halloween. That’s what opportunity cost is all about. The money you spend on
Halloween can’t be used for Christmas.

The blow-up ghost hanging from the tree and the Cher costume may seem like great ideas now, but that costume will be stuffed in the back of the closet come December.

To read the entire article from Dave Ramsey.com:
http://www.daveramsey.com/article/does-excessive-halloween-spending-haunt-you/lifeandmoney_budgeting/text2/

Scripture of the Day from Dave Ramsey.com:

Proverbs 11:25 – A generous person will prosper; whoever refreshes others will be refreshed.

Please listen to the Dave Ramsey show live on WOR 710 from 2-4 PM EST. You can also listen to the 3rd hour 4-5 PM EST. at Dave Ramsey.com.

Personal Finance News Monday 10/29

Phil's Personal Finance Tip of the Day:

Credit History Botched? Here's How To Complain And Get Results

By John Wasik | Forbes – Thu, Oct 25, 2012 11:08 AM EDT

Got a beef about a credit reporting company? Trying to get a credit file corrected? Until recently, you were left to the mercy of individual credit reporting bureaus. Now, you can approach and file a complaint with a watchdog agency in the guise of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) to obtain satisfaction.

The stakes are high if you need credit; it's important that your credit report reflects accurate information. It's sent to creditors and loan rates are based on information from your file. You could be paying too much in finance charges based on faulty reporting. So now's the time to fix the bad information.

More On Forbes: Ten Top Credit Card Choices From College To Retirement

"The largest credit reporting companies issue more than 3 billion consumer reports a year and maintain files on more than 200 million Americans," the CFPB reports. "The consequences of errors in a consumer report can be catastrophic for a consumer, shutting him or her out of credit markets, jeopardizing employment prospects, or significantly increasing the cost of housing."

Here's how to go about fixing your credit record:

To find out how and to read the entire article from John Wasik | Forbes:
http://finance.yahoo.com/news/credit-history-botched-heres-complain-203920585.html

Inspirational Quotes@Inspire_Us from Twitter:
I always like to look on the optimistic side of life, but I am realistic enough to know that life is a complex matter. - Walt Disney

Personal Finance News Saturday 10/27

Phil's Personal Finance Tip of the Day:

Accomplishing the (seemingly) impossible
By Harvey Mackay

A college student arrived a few minutes late for his final exam in mathematics. The room was quiet, with everyone working hard, and the professor silently handed him the test. It consisted of five math problems on the first page and two on the second. The student sat down and began to work. He solved the first five problems in half the time, but the two on the second page were tougher. Everyone else finished the exam and left, so the student was alone by the end of the time period. He finished the final problem at the last second.

The next day he got a phone call in his dorm room from the professor. “I don’t believe it! You solved the final two problems?”

“Uh, yeah,” the student said. “What’s the big deal?”

“Those were brain teasers,” the prof explained. “I announced before the exam that they wouldn’t count toward your final grade, but you missed that because you were late. But hardly anyone solves those problems in so short a time! You must be a genius!”

“Genius” is sometimes just not realizing that something is impossible.

Truly, some feats are impossible. I don’t expect to ever see a person fly without some mechanical help. I’m not betting on anyone outrunning a high-speed locomotive. But then, I probably wouldn’t have put money on Antonio Albertondo, who swam the English Channel in 1961.

The Channel waters are cold and unpredictable. Only a tiny percentage of those who have attempted to swim across have reached the other side. But Antonio, who was 42 years old at the time, swam from England to France, where his waiting friends congratulated him for accomplishing what they thought was impossible for a man his age.

Antonio stopped long enough for a hot drink, and told his friends they hadn’t seen the impossible yet. Then he dove back into the water, swam 22 more hours and made it back to England. Did he accomplish the impossible? I vote yes.

To read the entire article from Harvey Mackay:
http://www.harveymackay.com/accomplishing-the-seemingly-impossible/

Mackay’s Moral: What could you accomplish if no one told you it was impossible?

Personal Finance News Friday 10/26

Phil's Personal Finance Tip of the Day:

7 ways to snag the best airline seat

By Kelli B. Grant/MarketWatch

Flying isn’t getting any cheaper, and travelers who don’t book carefully may find that they’re paying more for a less comfortable experience.

Airlines have been adjusting their cabin configurations in recent months to fit more passengers, often resulting in a tighter squeeze for those in coach.

Earlier this month, JetBlue announced it had expanded legroom in new premium rows on some Embraer E190 aircraft—at the expense of an inch lost in the rearmost 11 rows. In January, Southwest began adding six seats to each plane, a change that also reduced legroom by an inch.

Industrywide, the average seat offers 31 inches of legroom, down from 32 inches just a few years ago, says Rick Seaney, chief executive of fare-tracking site FareCompare.com. “There’s no doubt: If you’re tall, you’re paying more and you’re feeling less comfortable for it,” he says.

But comfort may be compromised by more than just reduced legroom, says Jami Counter, a senior director for seat-rating site SeatGuru.com.

Airlines have also been replacing seats with thinner, lighter models. (Earlier this week, United announced it would use such seats to add an extra row of seats to planes next year, saying the thinner design wouldn’t reduce legroom.) Some of the new seats aren’t as comfortably padded as others.

“There are some that are incredibly thin—not quite like a mesh office chair, but you’re getting pretty close to that,” he says.

If there’s good news for travelers, it’s that the changes will be slow to appear. Most of the changes are coming in with new aircraft over the course of a few years, says George Hobica, founder of AirfareWatchdog.com.

Reconfiguring existing planes takes time, too, since it’s not simply a matter of adding a row of seats—airlines must also add extra oxygen masks, lights and air vents. “It’s not something they could do overnight,” he says.

Even as airlines play musical chairs, experts say there are plenty of things travelers can do to end up in a great seat by takeoff:

To read the entire article by Kelli B. Grant/MarketWatch:
http://www.marketwatch.com/story/7-ways-to-snag-the-best-airline-seat-2012-08-23

Inspirational Quotes@Inspire_Us from Twitter:
Nothing great in the world has ever been accomplished without passion. - Georg Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel

Personal Finance News Thursday 10/25

Phil's Personal Finance Tip of the Day:

5 Annoying Bank Fees to Avoid

Charges are piling up on formerly free checking accounts.

By The Kiplinger Washington Editors

From Kiplinger's Personal Finance magazine, July 2012

Bank fees are multiplying like mosquitoes in summer. Mike Moebs, of Moebs Services, which tracks bank data, says his database includes more than 300 charges for loans and deposits. And many banks are dodgy about their fees, according to a survey by U.S. PIRG, the federation of state public interest research groups.

Many customers, especially at big banks, are getting stung by fees for formerly free checking accounts. At Chase and Citibank, for example, if your account dips below the $1,500 minimum daily balance, you’ll pay a monthly fee of $10 or $12. You can deflect the fee if you arrange for monthly direct deposit, pay a certain number of bills online and avoid paper statements. But you don’t have to jump through hoops if you move your checking account to a fee-friendly community bank or credit union. Find a community bank near you or a credit union at www.culookup.com or www.asmarterchoice.org (see 7 Great Credit Unions Anyone Can Join).

Read more: http://www.kiplinger.com/magazine/archives/5-bank-fees-to-avoid.html#ixzz2AKjQh6R3

Become a Fan of Kiplinger's on Facebook

Read more at http://www.kiplinger.com/magazine/archives/5-bank-fees-to-avoid.html#vGIiLrvLSGaozA1j.99

Inspirational Quotes@Inspire_Us from Twitter:
Be not afraid of going slowly, be afraid only of standing still. -Chinese Proverbs

Personal Finance News Wednesday 10/24

Phil's Personal Finance Tip of the Day:

Best Lodging for Less Than $70 Per Night

By Farnoosh Torabi | Yahoo! Finance – Mon, Oct 22, 2012 11:45 AM EDT

Whether you’re looking for a traditional hotel experience or a more adventurous solution, we’ve got your shoestring travel needs covered. I recently spoke with Budget Travel magazine for their top lodging picks for less than $70 per night.

Budget Hotels
When it comes to hotel chains, prices vary by season but especially by destination. You’d be hard pressed to find a $70 hotel room in any major metropolitan area. But in smaller cities like Montgomery, Alabama; Albany, New York or other places where there’s a surplus of hotel rooms – like Atlantic City or Las Vegas – the $70 or even $60 hotel room does exist at popular budget hotel chains.

“My to favorite budget hotel chains are Sleep Inn and Best Western because they’re incredibly clean,” says Laura Michonski, executive digital editor of Budget Travel. “They’ve both invested an enormous amount of money in renovating their properties, and they’re pretty ubiquitous.”

To read the entire article from Farnoosh Torabi | Yahoo! Finance:
http://finance.yahoo.com/news/best-lodging-for-less-than--70-per-night.html

Inspirational Quotes@Inspire_Us from Twitter:
When anger rises, think of the consequences. - Confucius