Crisis management: Planning your finances before the unpredictable happens.
Ever been in a situation where you think you are finally doing well, your finances seem to be coming together and you start to have a positive outlook on your financial future? And then – wham! – the unpredictable or the unexpected knocks you back to square one.
When you are in a close relationship, it can be easy to put off talking about money with your partner. Even if you’re anxious about your financial situation, it’s important to be open to discussing it.
It is possible to work toward multiple goals at once, such as saving for retirement and paying down student debt, but both partners need to be on the same page. Just because the conversation may be uncomfortable, it doesn’t mean it shouldn’t happen.
Behavioral finance strategies improve the odds.
Applying a few innovative moves in your 401(k) plan could result in increased retirement savings for your employees. That’s because, when it comes to money, subconscious perceptions can torpedo a plan participant’s success.
Applying behavioral finance principles may help employees overcome obstacles that often keep them from making rational financial decisions. Here are a few financial behaviors that could be sabotaging employee retirement savings, along with ideas from the International Foundation of Employee Benefit Plans (IFEBP) that may serve to counter them. (more…)
With longer life spans come extended healthcare needs — and significantly more dollars required to pay for them.
It’s more likely today that you’ll live longer than your grandparents did. The flip side is that you may spend far more on doctors’ bills and treatment for chronic illnesses than previous generations. With healthcare costs continuing to rise along with life expectancies, health savings accounts (HSAs) are an increasingly popular way to bridge the retirement and health savings gap.
Most retirees are under funding their future healthcare needs (more…)
The assumption when plan sponsors began to include auto features in their 401(k) plans was that participation rates and deferral amounts would increase — but no one knew for sure. As time has passed, it appears the assumption was good: auto-enrollment and auto-increases have had very positive results overall.
Plans that include auto-enrollment enjoy an average participation rate that is nearly double that of plans not using this feature: 85.6% participate in plans that include auto-enrollment, compared to 43.7% for those without. Even better, more than one-third (37%) of plans using auto-enrollment have a default deferral rate of 6% or higher.
Near-retirees and mid-career workers feeling similar stress as recent college gradsThere’s no doubt that the rising cost of college is putting lots of financial stress on American workers. Frequently, the cost of a 4-year private university is more than the average cost of a home in most areas of the country. Here is a snapshot of the student-loan landscape, along with some suggestions for what to do if you’re feeling the pinch. (more…)
