Megan McGinnis' Blog–Get Connected!

Retirement Plans make Great Deductions for Employers

Retirement Plans make Great Deductions for Employers They key to having your own business is maximizing your deductions and one of the best ways to do that is to create a retirement plan for your employees.  Here’s what Amanda has to say on the topic…..Enjoy, Megan. Amanda Han’s Keystone Korner For the past several weeks, [...]

Michael Moore, you SiCKO, take this!

Michael Moore, you SiCKO, take this! I couldn’t resist writing about this topic because it’s a pet-peeve of mine.  Because I’m a blogger now, I can take license with my topics and meander a bit across borders–pun intended–topic borders, that is.  To me this is just another example of how American media will pander to [...]

How Much is Enough?

How Much is Enough? Four flat screen TVs, 3 cars, a 3500 square foot home for 2 people and a dog, including an eight hundred square foot kitchen with custom granite counter tops in which no one cooks: is this the American Dream Home or is it the American Debt Problem?  Do you know anyone [...]

Knee Deep in Debt–Options for the Dumbfounded

Knee Deep in Debt–Options for the Dumbfounded As we saw in the previous article on debt settlement options, it’s good to check in with the government to see what their opinion is.  I found this second article on the Federal Trade Commissions website to be of value too.  It is long but you can choose [...]

Are you one of “The Near Bankrupt?”

Are you one of “The Near Bankrupt?” Not everyone in trouble in this economy has run up debt to pay for their “expensive toy” habits.  Many people in the US have resorted to using their credit cards to help supplement the loss of income due to layoffs or reduced hours.  The figures are growing and [...]

Bait & Switch in the area of debt settlement? Who do you trust to handle your credit card debt?

Bait & Switch in the area of debt settlement?  Who do you trust to handle your credit card debt? There are many companies out there purporting to reduce your debt but it’s hard to know what the best options are.  With so many sources of information online it’s easy to get influenced by opinion, and [...]

Deadlines for Creating Retirement Plans in your Business

Deadlines for Creating Retirement Plans in your Business As a small or large business owner, you may be wondering if you can get a company-wide retirement plan together in time for this year or for next and what the deadline is.  Here are some ideas on that from my favorite tax gal, Amanda Han.  Thanks [...]

Loan Modification Scams – No More!

Loan Modification Scams – No More! This new loan modification legislation in California, which prevents anyone from charging up-front fees, signals a big change to come in the foreclosure arena.   I think this legislation will cause even more foreclosures down the line because home owners can’t do the negotiations themselves and no upfront fee [...]

Doomsday for the American Economy Because of Greedy Banks ?

Doomsday for the American Economy Because of Greedy Banks ? Well, I have a 50% chance of being right and a 50% chance of being wrong on the foreclosure front but I believe we have a longer way to go down in the real estate arena before we start our recovery—15 to 25% more.  There [...]

Is this a False Bottom in the Foreclosure Arena?

Is this a False Bottom in the Foreclosure Arena? Many folks are hoping for the best in the economy and rushing to the announcement of a quick recovery.  The questions are these: Are the signs really there?   Is it wishful thinking?   Or is this just the eye of the hurricane?   I believe the [...]

Forming a Retirement Plan within Your Business

Forming a Retirement Plan within Your Business When creating your business entity, the question of retirement planning comes in to play as well.  Young professionals don’t always think this long-term but it’s good business.  This first article is a brief intro on the 4 types of plans available to business owners.  The following articles will [...]

First Time Home Buyers Tax Credit Update

First Time Home Buyers Tax Credit Update On this episode of The Mortgage Hotline Sean La Rue talks to listeners about the first time home buyer tax credit. Share and Enjoy: Sphere: Related Content

Top Ten Tax Tips–Outside the Box

Top Ten Tax Tips–Outside the Box As I mentioned, I hate talking about taxes but I love finding experts who love to talk about taxes.  I found this Top Ten List that is really smart and wanted to share it with folks who are like me–hate doing it but know it’s necessary.  From retirement planning [...]

Beware: IRA Distributions in 2009 are different than other years

Beware: IRA Distributions in 2009 are different than other years Amanda Han of Keystone CPA, Inc. in Irvine, California always has useful little tax tid-bits.  This will be an ongoing series that should supply you with some little known or subtle tax tips.  I’m not one for memorizing tax code because that holds not interest [...]

Term or permanent life insurance? Part IV of IV

Types of permanent life

The real wild card in terms of price is permanent insurance, because most policies have guaranteed and non-guaranteed portions. There are three main types of permanent insurance.

Traditional whole life: This type offers the most guarantees. The annual premium is guaranteed, and there are minimum guaranteed cash values and death benefits. Most whole life policies these days are “participating,” meaning that the dividends they earn can be used to increase the cash value and/or death benefits, decrease the premiums or be refunded in cash.

If you are a conservative investor and also have trouble saving, traditional whole life makes sense.

Universal life: If you need premium flexibility, especially in the early years of the policy, universal life is for you. Universal life insurance was developed in the 1970s, when insurance-industry regulations changed to allow insurers to be more competitive with other financial-services providers.

Universal life insurance is more flexible than traditional whole life, because premiums can vary from year to year and sometimes can even be skipped. Universal life has maximum guaranteed premiums and minimum guaranteed cash values and death benefits. Instead of dividends, universal life policies earn interest at the credited interest rate determined each year.

Variable life: If you consider yourself a knowledgeable and risk-accepting investor, check out variable life. Variable life insurance has the fewest guarantees and therefore offers the greatest potential for cash-value increases.

There are required guaranteed annual premiums and a guaranteed minimum death benefit. However, there is no guaranteed cash value, and you have to select the investments for your policy.

Buyers typically are offered a variety of mutual fund accounts, ranging from money market funds to aggressive growth funds.
Not an investment toollife insurance

Life insurance should never be purchased solely as an investment. After all, some of your premiums are being used to buy death-benefit coverage and to cover other expenses (including sales commissions). Life insurance should not be purchased on children as a way to save for college, and make sure you (and your spouse) have all the coverage you need on yourselves before you buy any coverage on a child.

When you make your purchase, avoid all of the fancy riders, but do consider the waiver of premium, which suspends your premium payments but keeps the policy in place if you become disabled.

If you find that you cannot afford all of the permanent insurance you have decided you need, consider a combination term-plus-permanent policy.

Term or permanent life insurance? Part III of IV

Term or permanent life insurance? Part III of IV By Ginger Applegarth http://articles.moneycentral.msn.com/Insurance/InsureYourLife/TheRagingDebateOverTermvsWholeLife.aspx Guidelines to live by when buying Even with all of these variables, there are some guidelines you can follow. The key is how long you plan to keep the policy. If the answer is less than 10 years, term is clearly the [...]

Term or permanent life insurance? Part II of IV

Term or permanent life insurance? Part II of IV By Ginger Applegarth http://articles.moneycentral.msn.com/Insurance/InsureYourLife/TheRagingDebateOverTermvsWholeLife.aspx Permanent life insurance is more expensive As you might expect, permanent life insurance premiums are more expensive than term premiums because some of the money is put into a savings program. The longer the policy has been in force, the higher the [...]

Term or permanent life insurance? Part I of IV

Term or permanent life insurance? Part I of IV By Ginger Applegarth http://articles.moneycentral.msn.com/Insurance/InsureYourLife/TheRagingDebateOverTermvsWholeLife.aspx Few people who have bought insurance — or even window-shopped for it — have escaped the debate over term versus permanent insurance. And the wrong kind of life insurance can do more damage to your financial plans than just about any other [...]

Women receive more life insurance benefits than men, survey says

Women receive more life insurance benefits than men, survey says By Bob Graham in IFAwebnews.com A gender gap exists in the amount of life insurance benefits received by men and women after the death of a spouse, according to a survey by MetLife. In general, wives who received life insurance benefits after the death of [...]

Life Insurance-How much is enough?

Life Insurance-How much is Enough? Life insurance, the decision about it is a controversial one.  Term vs permanent.  I will be discussing the various points of view this week so tune in. As your living situation changes ( the value of your home, the income you will replace for example), don’t forget to review your [...]

Retirement Planning-The Key is to Start Early

Retirement Planning-The Key is to Start Early I love these etrade commercials because they are not only funny but they offer an important lesson in each one.  The key to the most successful retirement strategy is to start early.  With the proper instruments, the compounding will do the heavy lifting in your retirement account.  Thanks [...]

Loan Modification vs Short Sale

Loan Modification vs Short Sale Many homeowners don’t know what direction to go when they are facing foreclosure.  They are unfamiliar with the term “short sale” so they don’t know what their options are.  Kurt Novak  sheds some light on these two options. Are Loan Modifications Better than Short Sales? by Kurt Novak When you [...]

Affiliate Marketing Explained-Part III

Affiliate Marketing Explained-Part III By Brian Hunter Affiliate Marketing Benefits “…….Affiliate marketing is an extremely advantageous arrangement for both the marketer and the affiliate. In the case of the merchant, he gets added exposure (and sales) for no more cost and any cost (commission) only arises when sales occur. Additionally, he can have as many [...]

Affiliate Marketing Explained-Part II

Affiliate Marketing Explained-Part II By Brian Hunter Compensation “…….In affiliate marketing, the affiliate is compensated for every visitor, subscriber and/or customer provided through his efforts. This compensation (usually referred to as commission) may be made based on a certain value for each visit. The most attractive aspect of affiliate marketing from the merchant’s viewpoint is [...]

Loan Modifications-Do it Yourself Pros & Cons

Loan Modifications-Do it Yourself Pros and Cons Many people who need loan modifications don’t have the money to pay upfront or on the backend so they end up trying to do the negotiations themselves.  There are pros and cons to this strategy and let’s explore that here. Pros: You don’t have to pay someone money [...]