Posted on September 19, 2006 by Jason
When realtors lie, everyone loses.
Mortgage101.com, September 18th, 2006
DEAR BOB: My mother signed a listing
contract to sell her Lauderhill, Fla., condominium. She said the
listing agent told her a 6 percent sales commission and a six-month
listing period were mandatory and there is a fee imposed if the
property is sold by a different real estate agent within 30 days of the
contract expiration. Are these statements true for Florida real estate?
She had only two showings of her condo during the first two weeks of
the listing and none since then. Her listing expires in October. What
should she do? –Mike K.
DEAR MIKE: That listing agent lied to your mother. Real estate sales
commissions and listing terms are fully negotiable in every state.
A few brokerage firms set listing rules for
their sales agents, such as a 6 percent minimum commission and a
six-month listing term. But your mother was free to list with another
agent upon different terms. Listing terms are not set by state law.
Your mother must be a very patient person. To have only two showings
of her condo to prospective buyers and no purchase offers indicates
something is seriously wrong.
Maybe it is overpriced. Perhaps it isn’t being actively advertised
in newspapers and promoted in the local MLS (multiple listing service)
as well as on the Internet at www.Realtor.com and other Web sites. It sounds like that listing agent wasn’t using “due diligence” to get the condo sold.
Read more of this article.
Posted on September 19, 2006 by Jason
Frost Illustrated.com, September 19th, 2006
Question: I worked as a teaching assistant for a
couple of years in the 1970s, and then quit to raise a family. I am now
working again but plan to quit work when my husband retires. I will
only have about 18 years of total work under Social Security. Is there
a minimum Social Security retirement benefit?
A n s w e r : There is no minimum monthly Social
Security benefit. Your benefit is calculated based on your highest 35
years of earnings, and in years when no earnings are reported, zeros
are added in. You should know, however, that a spouse is entitled to up
to one-half of the retired worker’s full benefit. If you are eligible
for both your own retirement benefit and for benefits as a spouse, we
always pay your own benefit first. If your benefit as a spouse is
higher than your retirement benefit, you’ll receive a combination of
benefits equaling the higher spouse’s benefit.
Question: I retired from the U.S. Army several years
ago, after 23 years of service, and receive a military pension. How
will my military retirement affect my Social Security benefits?
Answer: You can get both Social Security benefits and
military retirement. Generally, there is no offset of Social Security
benefits because of your military retirement. You will get your full
Social Security benefits based on your earnings. More information can
be found in our fact sheet called Military Service and Social Security,
which is available on the Internet at: www.socialsecurity.gov/pubs/ 10017.html.
Read more of this article.
Posted on September 18, 2006 by Jason
The classic car market is on fire, thanks mostly to nostalgic baby boomers with plenty of cash.
MSNBC.com, September 18th, 2006
In 1991, shallow pockets forced Bill Wiemann to sell his 12 muscle cars. He got
$200,000 for a collection that included a ’69 Plymouth 6-Pack Road Runner, a ’70
Dodge Charger and a ’70 Plymouth Hemi ‘Cuda (think the General Lee from “The
Dukes of Hazzard”). But the loss hurt. So much so that after making a killing in
commercial real estate, he bought back the cars, one by one, at auctions. This
time, however, Wiemann grabbed limited editions and convertibles, spending more
than he cares to total. Earlier this year, he paid $2.16 million just for the
‘Cuda (it cost $5,200 new in 1970). It’s now boarded with his other prizes in a
garage with a transparent door he can gaze through from his bedroom; the cars
are treated to classic rock because, he says, it makes them happy. “Some people
love art and think nothing of popping $20 million on a painting,” says Wiemann,
45, of Phoenix. “For me, it’s muscle cars.”
While the Detroit of 2006
struggles to survive, the fast bruisers cranked out by the Motor City in its
1970s halcyon days now help fuel the $17.8 billion-a-year classic-car business.
That’s up about 25 percent in the past year alone, say car insurers, dealers and
restoration experts, thanks mainly to the echo effect of televising major
auctions. As many as 400,000 collector cars, worth about $14 billion, traded
pink slips in the past 12 months; additional revenue comes from after-market
parts sales and service, which now tops out at $100 per hour. “What’s driving
this market are boomers who either owned the cars when they were kids or had
always dreamed of owning a particular car they couldn’t afford,” says McKeel
Hagerty, president of Hagerty Insurance, the nation’s largest classic-car
insurer. “Now they have the money.”
Read more of this article.
Posted on September 14, 2006 by Jason
Senior Journal.com, September 13th, 2006
Senior citizens finding it
difficult to think clearly may jump to the conclusion they are
experiencing the early signs of dementia. That may not be the case, say
researchers, it may just be lack of red blood cells, which is causing anemia.
For older adults, anemia’s trademark loss of
oxygen-toting red blood cells has long been linked to fatigue, muscle
weakness and other physical ailments. Now researchers at Johns Hopkins
have found a relationship between anemia and impaired thinking, too – at
least in older women.
“Our work supports the notion that mild anemia may
be an independent risk factor for so-called executive-function
impairment in older adults,” says Paulo Chaves, M.D., Ph.D., an
assistant professor at The Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine
and the lead author of the study.
“If further studies confirm that’s true, this could
mean that correction of anemia in these patients might offer a chance to
prevent such a cognitive decline.”
Read more of this article.
Posted on September 14, 2006 by Jason
MSN Money, September 13th, 2006
Most boomers say they don’t want to retire and move to Florida or Arizona or
even Belize. They want to stay where they are, near family and friends and in
the home that they already know and love.
That may not work for the whole generation: Their kids might move away, or
the expensive suburban neighborhoods that served them well when they were
working might prove too taxing once they start cashing in their 401(k) accounts.
Some may change their plans.
But anyone giving serious thought to retiring — and ultimately aging — in
place, can make that outcome more likely if they start planning in advance.
“Don’t just leave it to chance,” says Peter Bell, a reverse mortgage advocate
and also head of the National Aging In Place Council, a coalition of businesses
that sell to seniors. “Waiting until you’re in your 80s is a mistake.”
So lay that groundwork now. You can always move later. Here are some
pointers:.
– Think about the difference between retiring in place and aging in
place.
Early retirement is a time of much activity: travel, hobbies and often, good
health. You may not need your home or your community to be very different during
the early stages of retirement, but you might find that by the time you hit your
late 70s, you need an easier environment.
Read more of this article.
Posted on September 14, 2006 by Jason
Online News Hour, September 12th, 2006
Why do some Americans live longer than others? Race, class, and gender have long
been accepted as factors. Less clear has been why some groups are at greater
risk than others.
In a new study, Harvard researchers reached some stark conclusions — among
them, an Asian-American woman is expected to live nearly 21 years longer than an
African-American male living in a major city.
For more on what these findings do and don’t tell us, I’m joined by
“NewsHour” health correspondent Susan Dentzer.
Susan Dentzer, let’s — Susan, let’s take this point by point. Let’s walk
through it.
That remarkable statistic I just read about Asian-American women, is that
good news for Asian-American women?
SUSAN DENTZER: Well, it’s — it is astounding news, particularly when you
look at Asian women in the U.S. vs. Asian women elsewhere.
Read more of this article.
Posted on September 13, 2006 by Jason
Hampton Union, September 12th, 2006
There are some big changes coming to a retirement plan near you. In
August, President Bush signed into law the Pension Protection Act of
2006 (PPA). The law affects both traditional defined benefit pension
plans and employee funded plans such as 401(k)s.
Congress was at least partially motivated by the looming potential
crisis of the Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation. Several of the
provisions in the act, therefore, serve to shore up private defined
benefit pension plans; the kind that provide a pension. Unfortunately,
it seems likely the stricter rules will probably encourage the recent
trend of companies terminating or freezing their defined benefit plans.
Most of the changes regarding defined benefit pension plans are
fairly arcane, so I will pass over them to address the changes that
affect 401(k)s, 403(b)s, IRAs and similar plans. One of the most
important things the PPA does is make permanent the numerous IRA and
retirement plan provisions that were due to expire after 2010.
These include increased contribution limits and catch-up provisions
and Roth 401(k)s. Also, the act also makes permanent the tax-free
nature of withdrawals from 529 plans for qualified educational
expenses. Lastly, the act makes permanent the Saver’s tax credit for
single filers with adjusted gross incomes below $25,000 and for joint
filers below $50,000. These limits will also be indexed for inflation
going forward.
Read more of this article.
Posted on September 13, 2006 by Jason
Annapolis Capital, September 12th, 2006
I worry that I could lose my job because of mergers, buyouts and the
growing trend to downsize. It would be hard to get another job that
pays as much, and I have major expenses. And I worry about retirement.
How can I plan for both? – Harold T.
Today, personal credit and
bankruptcies are at an all-time high, and they’re still growing. We all
have to do a better job saving for that rainy day and protecting our
financial equity. These four steps should put you in the right
direction. At least one is drastic – but necessary.
Save 10 to 20 percent of your salary. You should save at least 10 percent of your salary each year for retirement alone.
If
you’re 30 and make $50,000 yearly, and that $5,000 grows at 7 percent
for the next 35 years (with inflation at 2 percent yearly) you can
probably count on a retirement fund of about $500,000.
At that
rate, you could receive yearly payments of about $37,000. If you put
your after-tax savings into a Roth IRA, you’ll never have to pay
federal income tax, and that $37,000 actually gives you the buying
power of about $50,000 yearly.
Want more income? Save more. And don’t count on Social Security; if you get it, it’s a plus.
Read more of this article.
Posted on September 13, 2006 by Jason
Forbes.com, September 12th, 2006
Most elderly and disabled people on Medicare
will see their premiums rise to $93.50 per month next year, a 5.6
percent increase. That’s lower than anticipated.
However, the news was not as good for
wealthier beneficiaries. For the first time in the program’s 41-year
history, that group will pay more for the insurance that covers
doctors’ visits and outpatient hospital care, known as Medicare Part B.
The higher payments will apply to about 1.5
million beneficiaries with incomes of more than $80,000 a year.
Congress approved means testing in the 2003 law that created the
Medicare drug benefit.
Mark McClellan, administrator for the Centers
for Medicare and Medicaid Services, said that wealthier seniors will
still get a significant government subsidy when participating in the
program. Meanwhile, the higher payments from the wealthy reduce the
government’s costs by $20 billion over the next 10 years.
“They’re still getting a subsidy on their Part
B insurance of more than $2,400 next year,” he said. “That still makes
it a very attractive insurance package.”
Read more of this article.
Posted on September 12, 2006 by Jason
Senior Journal.com, September 11th, 2006
The Department of Health and
Human Services (HHS) will announce Medicare Part B premiums for 2007
later this month, which will increase significantly for all seniors and
dramatically for seniors with incomes of more than $80,000 per year.
Excluded from their announcement will be the fact that some seniors will
see their premiums jump by as much as 450 percent in just over two
years, according to a news release from the TREA Senior Citizens League.
For the first time since Medicare’s creation 41
years ago, Medicare Part B – which covers doctors’ visits, tests, and
outpatient hospital care – will be “means tested,” meaning seniors with
incomes of more than $80,000 per year will pay more for services than
lower-income seniors. As many as 2.3 million seniors will be affected by
means testing, according to government estimates.
Although HHS will only release figures for 2007,
TREA Senior Citizens League is estimating that the cost of premiums will
almost double by 2009 for beneficiaries with incomes of $80,000 each
year, from $88.50 a month today to an estimated $172.80 per month in
2009.
Seniors with incomes of $200,000 will see premiums
skyrocket by close to 450 percent in fewer than 2½ years – from $88.50 a
month today to an estimated $395 per month in 2009. Estimates are based
on the average annual increase over the past five years.
Read more of this article.
