Putting money away can be really tough. How much do you save? What are you saving for? Local personal finance professional, Layne McDaniel, breaks down how to better save money now for a future rainy day. “The biggest thing is to pay yourself first,” said McDaniel. Before you dole out your hard-earned cash, keep some […]
INDIANAPOLIS — Every year, Americans lose out on millions of dollars by not doing one simple thing: shopping around for new insurance. That includes coverage for your home, car and whatever you have that’s valuable. It may sound time consuming and complicated, but it can take just a matter of minutes with a simple phone […]
HomeBank is a completely free accounting software package aimed at helping people get their finances in order and who subsequently want to keep them that way. It features an easy-to-use interface that comes complete with lots of cool visual tools that let you produce charts to illustrate your current state of monetary play. Admittedly, HomeBank […]
Financial fallout from the pandemic is hitting millennials hard — and many will soon turn to their parents for help, if they haven’t already. Before parents ride to the rescue, financial planners urge them to map out a strategy that doesn’t just plug a short-term need but also makes sense in the long run. “Often […]
Last week we covered four financial planning myths that can confuse and frighten employees as they try to figure out how much income they will need in retirement. This week, I’ve chosen five more statements related to insurance, taxes and Social Security that are largely mythical, even if some contain a grain of truth. Let’s look at […]
The recent market volatility has affected just about everybody’s financial and investment situations. So, if you were planning to retire soon, you may be wondering if it will still be possible? Of course, the answer depends somewhat on your employment situation. With so many people’s jobs being affected by the coronavirus pandemic, your retirement plans […]
With each day feeling like it’s getting hotter, people are looking for ways to keep their homes cool this summer without running up their electricity bill. Two Rivers Regional Council Weatherization Director Jon Vrandenburg says they key is to keep the heat that’s outside from coming inside. Vrandenburg explains, “Close your windows, seal all the […]
That’s personal-finance celebrity Suze Orman offering some advice on the “Pivot” podcast this week about what investors should be doing during the coronavirus pandemic. With traditional IRAs or 401(k)s, savers get the tax break immediately upon the contribution, allowing their investments to grow tax-free, and then have to pay the taxes upon withdrawal. But there […]
If the economic impacts of the pandemic put you out of a job this spring, you’re probably scraping by with a mix of your state’s unemployment benefits plus an extra $600 weekly payment thanks to the CARES Act. But what happens to those benefits if you go back to work—especially if you’re only able to […]
The U.S. Department of Labor has published a final rule that would nix the default mailing of pension and 401(k) statements to eligible Americans in favor of electronic statements, which could spell trouble for seniors who aren’t regular internet users, according to a report from AARP. Individuals who prefer to receive paper copies of these […]
Microsoft is launching a new Money in Excel feature that’s designed to help the millions of people who use Excel to track budgets and personal finances. Money in Excel is a template and add-in for Excel that allows Microsoft 365 subscribers to securely connect to bank, credit card, investment, or loan accounts and import transactions […]
Microsoft’s newest frontier may just be your household budgeting process. Microsoft is pushing deeper into personal finance, having just announced the launch in the United States of its new Money in Excel product. The new Excel offering enables Microsoft 365 Personal and Microsoft 365 Family users to plug all their financial information into one place […]
