Today I might be crazy. I signed up for the 2017 CrossFit Games. I have only been participating in CrossFit since last July, I am not a top athlete, I am not highly competitive, I have no hope of making it to the regional games for my age group, I will have to scale almost …
As the new year begins, so does the annual season of college acceptances and rejections. Many outbound high school seniors may soon find themselves holding a single sheet of paper with shaking hands and bated breath, eyes fervently scanning for the only detail that truly matters: Did they get in? In today’s hyper-competitive environment, being …
Today’s federal tax code is incredibly complex. Itemized deductions, Alternative Minimum Tax, and seemingly trivial distinctions can make navigating even the most basic individual return hazardous. Unfortunately, with the steep fines and penalties that the IRS assesses against errors and omissions, one small mistake can prove costly. One of the most common mistakes that individual …
With the deadline to enroll in a health insurance plan through the Marketplace tomorrow (December 15), this is your last chance to see if you should be covered through the Marketplace. “The Marketplace” refers to each state’s price comparison website for subsidized health insurance, and was established by the Affordable Care Act. Individuals with health …
Healthcare Marketplace and the Premium Tax Credit Read More »
As discussed in a previous blog post, federal student loans are eligible for a number of income-driven repayment plans. These plans can lower initial payments, ease the burden of interest, and even forgive all outstanding debt after a certain period of time. The four income-driven plans that most federal student loans qualify for are the …
While many financial service professionals refer to themselves as “financial advisors”, the financial advisor designation is actually a very broad category. Within the field of personal financial advising there are three main subsects, each with their own method of compensation and, subsequently, their own planning methods. 1. Registered Investment Advisors: The first category of financial …
We wake this morning to a new day, one that has had the world markets tumbling overnight at the news of our US President elect. I write this before the markets in the US open, already aware of a 5% drop in value. When the market opens at 9:30 a.m. EST, the markets will probably …
Student loan debt is quickly becoming the fastest-growing epidemic in American economics. The national student loan debt totals $1.3 trillion, grows at a rate of $3,000 per second, and shows no signs of slowing. Student loans are unwieldy, issued at interest rates that should be confined to Orwellian satire, and are one of the only …
Following the 2008 housing market crash, many Americans are wary of any loan collateralized against their homes. While this is an understandable concern for some, many Americans would actually benefit from acquiring a Home Equity Line of Credit for use in times of financial need. Providing a quick, relatively large cash pool, HELOCs tend to …
In this digital age, scams are a dime a dozen. Angry phone calls from the IRS, threatening emails from the FBI, and thousands of similar frauds resulted in over $15 billion being stolen from 13.1 million Americans in 2015 alone. Gone are the days of the Nigerian prince emailing you in broken English that he …