The last 10 years of stock market returns have been pretty remarkable. If you invested $100,000 in the S&P 500 in the year 2000 and held it though the dot-com crash and financial crisis, you would be closing in on $300,000 today. However, if you … [Read the rest]
The benefit of "old-school" desktop tax software is that it doesn't require your Social Security Number and financial details to be stored in the "cloud", a fancy word for a third-party server where it can be copied or hacked. Amazon and Newegg.com … [Read the rest]
Here's my monthly roundup of the best interest rates on cash for January 2020, roughly sorted from shortest to longest maturities. I track these rates because I keep 12 months of expenses as a cash cushion and also invest in longer-term CDs (often … [Read the rest]
We've seen that stock market investors have been rewarded for investing regularly during the last decade. $10,000 invested in the Vanguard Target Retirement 2045 fund in January 2010 would have grown to $25,000 in January 2020. $10,000 invested … [Read the rest]
Now that you're done reading articles about what happened in 2019, how about stepping back and taking in the longer view? Most successful savers invest money each year over a long period of time, these days often into a target-date fund (TDF). It … [Read the rest]
I try to ignore talk about pending legislation, but the SECURE Act (Setting Every Community Up for Retirement Enhancement Act) has now been passed by Congress and signed into law by President Trump. Portions are effective as of January 1st, 2020. … [Read the rest]
One of the most common resolutions is to pay down debt. Rewards-earning credit cards may not be optimal for those carrying balances and thus more impacted by 18% interest rates than a relatively puny 2% back on purchases. Consider the Citi® Diamond … [Read the rest]
I used to add up my net worth every month (if not more frequently), but nowadays I limit myself to quarterly portfolio checks to coincide roughly with when my dividends arrive. There is so much daily noise about stock market prices these days that … [Read the rest]
How do you turn a pile of money into income for the rest of your life? I have read hundreds of articles about this topic, and have found no ideal solution. Much of the advice applies to those aged 65+, but what about someone in their 40s with a … [Read the rest]
MyGiftCardsPlus has a promotion with 25% cash back on Domino's Pizza gift cards for a limited time. For example, buy a $100 gift card and get $25 cash back. The gift card has no expiration. Limit $1,000 per household. While supplies last. I do … [Read the rest]
Plenty of people will tell you what you should own, but I'd rather they just share what they actually own. Here's my year-end portfolio update for Q4 2019, including all of our 401k/403b/IRAs, taxable brokerage accounts, and savings bonds but … [Read the rest]
(Update: BofA has added an additional six days of free museum admission in 2019, from 12/26-12/31. In case you need something extra and no-cost to do during the winter break! I just went back to the Thinkery in Austin, TX again recently and it … [Read the rest]
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