Financial Pros Give Tips on Common Deceptions

According to author Ron Burley, there are steps you can take on your credit and home loans.

Place a security freeze on your credit reports until you are ready to apply for a loan. Each freeze and thaw costs $5-20. but it is well worth it.

Hire a real estate attorney to represent you when taking out a home loan. They can protect you from mortgage brokers who often have a conflict of interests.

If you do use a mortgage broker, ask and follow up on three references. Find out first how much they stand to gain from any loan they suggest so you are clear about the charges.

For more on money, visit 50somethinginfo.com

Drowning in Debt: What You Can Do

Do you feel like you're drowning in debt? Relax, you have a lot of company. The U.S. government can guide you in the problems you are facing by suggesting realistic budgeting, credit counseling from a reputable organization, debt consolidation, bankruptcy or debt settlement.

1. Assess how much money you take in and how much you spend. List your "fixed" expenses and your "variable" expenses.

2. Contact your creditors immediately and try to work out a modified payment plan.

3. There are laws regarding debt collectors. Be aware that they may not harass you, lie, or use unfair practices.

4. Secured debts are tied to an asset and can be repossessed or foreclosed upon default of payment. Consider selling a car to pay off that debt and to avoid added costs of repossession and bad credit. Work out something with your lender if you are close to facing foreclosure. Most lenders are willing to work with you.

5. Get help from a credit counseling organization. It's best to get in-person counseling so that you can get a handle on you money management.

6. You might choose to enroll in a debt management plan (DMP). You deposit money each month and they pay your unsecured debts to creditors who may agree to lower your interest rates or waive certain fees.

7. Check out debt settlement companies by entering the name and the word "complaints" into a search engine.

8. Remember that the IRS considers any amount of savings as income and is taxable.

9. The costs of debt consolidation can add up. Take care before you use a home equity line of credit where you use you home as collateral.

10. As a last resort, consider bankruptcy where the court says you don't have to repay certain debts. Bankruptcy information stays on your credit report for 10 years.

Financial Planning for Boomers and Seniors

Bob dropped the article onto my desk chair while I was off doing something else.  This is his nonverbal pattern of telling me that my readers might want to learn about the particular content.

He's right, of course...sometimes more often than I care to admit!

According to the article, the University of Pennsylvania offers an extensive directory of finance and investment websites for market analysis, bonds, corporate financials, mutual funds, and numerous other investment topics.  

Take the link from"Personal Finance Websites. " AARP's "Financial Planning and Retirement" is divided into subsections:  Creating a Plan, Checking, Budgeting and Record Keeping, Saving Money, Insurance, Investing, Retirement Planning, and Who Can Help You.   Kudos to AARP for enabling the user to increase or decrease font size while explaining each term in the most basic language.  

MSN Money provides excellent personal tools to calculate income, expenses, and  life-expectancy.  

Smart Money makes suggestions on last-minute retirement planning.  

And if you want professional help with financial planning, you might not want to miss a prior blog.   

Finally, should you run into Bob soon, don't forget to thank him for this information.

Financial & Retirement Planning

After a sleepover, I hesitantly asked my 4 year-old granddaughter if her blankie and I were drowning, which of us would she rescue? Mind you, I did my best during these couple of days to give her everything she could ever want...like a first visit to Costco complete with pizza and free chocolate samples, a trip to doggie daycare where we observed "campers" splashing in a bone-shaped pool, and stops to the local ice cream store. Still, the answer was disheartening. I took a lowly second place to a mere piece of fabric, a smelly one I might add.

My confidence took a major blow. But I recovered speedily when I realized that Haley was only one of my two granddaughters. I figured that since Nicole could barely speak, I still had some time before I would pose the same question to this one-year old, time to build my retirement savings to sweeten the pot (the better to bribe you with, my dear).

How does a borderline boomer/senior increase her net worth?

For years I dabbled with investments trying to beat national averages. I studied day and night and was convinced that no one could boost our savings better than I.

Then I realized that there was a lot of information that I could not possibly be privy to. For instance, even though I used paid subscription resources which were not monetarily connected to any company, I learned that the information fed to these resources was supplied by the company itself and not by any real uninvolved outside source.

I gave up membership in my ladies investment group. I relegated stock and bond picks back to my broker and figured that he would always have a better pulse on the economy than I.

I'm not saying this was the right way to go (sorry, Prof David), but in my case, I've profited (and lost) about the same as before but with a lot less time and effort and a lot more sleep.

I know, also, that I didn't have to employ my stockbroker in this decision. I could have used any number of professionals to guide me. AARP offers clear explanations of the different kinds of financial experts: financial planners, investment advisors, stockbrokers, insurance agents, CPAs and accountants, and estate planning attorneys.

Check out CNN Money's top-10 list of things to know before hiring financial help included in its first-rate Money 101 Lessons. You may also want to consider the advice of Certified Financial Planners Board of Standards.

Maybe in a few years I will have earned enough to sip Mai Tais while swimming at the pristine beaches of Hawaii. But if Haley's around (with her ever-present blanket), I'll be sure to wear my floaties!