Archive for the ‘Savings’ Category

How Do I Plan For Retirement

Sunday, March 14th, 2010

Every working man and woman is entitled to a retirement that is secure and comfortable. Saving and planning for retirement is not necessarily an easy process however because we are living longer and healthier lives in general, which means we need more money to survive retirement than ever before. If you want to learn how to plan for a healthy, comfortable and secure retirement then you need to begin planning wisely using a blueprint similar to the one outlined below:

What do you plan to do in your retirement?

What do you plan to do in your retirement?

- Save early and often. –

The sooner that you begin to save money, the longer the amount of time you will have for those funds to grow. By putting compounding to use, you can make gains every year that will add on to the gains of the prior year, and so on and so forth. This can really add up, fueling the growth of your retirement fund.

- Set realistic and attainable goals. –

Do not use rules of thumb to project your retirement expenses, because they are based upon your needs and not the needs of others before you. What type of lifestyle do you want to live when you retire? Figure out the expenses accordingly and use these expenses to formulate how much money is needed to supplement social security and other income sources during retirement.

- Save using a 401(k). –

This is one of the best and one of the easiest ways that you can save money. Making contributions towards a 401(k) plan can provide you with immediate tax deductions, matched contributions from your employer, and even a tax deferment on the growth that your retirement savings accrues. This is absolutely excellent advice for anyone who ever wondered how to plan for retirement.

- Utilize IRAs for retirement savings with tax advantages. –

IRAs provide you with large tax breaks much in the same way that 401(k)s can. They offer two different types of tax breaks, one which provides growth that is tax deferred, and one that provides tax free growth but doesn’t allow for deductible contributions the way that traditional IRAs can. Roth IRAs do not allow deductible contributions, which mean withdrawals do not require you to owe any taxes in the way that traditional IRAs do.

- Make wise asset allocation moves. –

This means that your portfolio should be divided between stocks and bonds in a wise manner so that you can make a strong and powerful impact on any of the long term investment returns that you have. Stocks are the best option for stable and long term methods of growth, while bonds work well both in the short term and long term. Still, you should not rely too heavily on bonds when planning for retirement. If you want to stretch your nest egg’s life out to the best of its capabilities, you absolutely must make tax efficient withdrawals.

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Originally posted 2008-11-14 05:57:29. Republished by Blog Post Promoter

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Child Savings and Investment

Tuesday, January 5th, 2010

One of the options that is available to some people for savings and investment is the child trust fund vouches which is available for children born in the United Kingdom following September 1, 2002. Any child that is born in the UK after September 1, 2002 is entitled to a “child trust fund voucher”, which forms the basis of a child trust fund. These vouchers are available to any child claiming the child benefit, and child benefit is a universal benefit that all children in the UK are entitled to receiving regardless of family income.

United Kingdom Child Trust Funds

United Kingdom Child Trust Funds

Here are the basic facts that you need to know about child trust funds:

- All children who are born after September 1, 2002 will receive a voucher that will allow to open a child trust fund.

- All children can receive a Child Trust Fund voucher regardless of their family income level. In order to receive the voucher the child must be registered to receive the child benefit.

- All savings placed into a child trust fund are tax free.

- If you are part of a low income family, then you can actually receive additional money to invest.

- All children are capable of receiving an extra 250 pounds that they can invest as soon as they reach the age of seven.

- You can top up the child trust fund by as much as 1,200 pounds every year.

- Anyone can contribute to a child trust fund, so it is an excellent addition to the gift list because family members, friends and neighbors can all contribute for your child.

- At the age of sixteen the child is allowed to make the decisions about how the money will be invested.

- The investment itself cannot be accessed until the child has reached the adult age of 18.

- Child trust funds are transferable between different people and it does not require any extra cost.

- The first child trust funds are going to mature in the year 2020. From April 2009 and on, child trust funds can be opened online and no voucher has to be sent in to the fund provider.

- 24 percent of all parents are topping up their children’s trust funds.

- In August 2008 alone more than 3.61 child trust funds existed in the UK.

Once you have received a voucher, the next step is to choose a provider for the child trust fund, to contact them, and then to open the account up. The voucher needs to be sent in with the paperwork, at least until April 2009 when the trust funds can be opened up online without requiring that the voucher be sent along. Once the child trust fund is started, all that is left is topping it up every year to contribute to your child’s investment.

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Originally posted 2009-01-07 05:46:57. Republished by Blog Post Promoter

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Child Savings and Investment

Wednesday, December 16th, 2009
What are you doing about your child's savings?

Are you investing for your child?

Having children is not cheap by any means these days, especially when you consider the long term basis. The older your children get, the more they will end up costing you, especially when you consider education costs which are rising with every passing year. It may seem easy to put saving and investing for your child’s future off, since higher education is so far away when your kids are young, but it is absolutely vital that you start saving now if you want to make sure that your children have everything they need in life, even far into the future. Surveys are luckily beginning to suggest that as a whole, we are beginning to realize how important it is to save ahead of time for the future. Saving and investing for the future of your children is a necessary parental responsibility. Here is some basic information on how to save for your children, and a look at some of the available financial products that may help you with this process.

* Bank Accounts –

The first step that many parents take toward saving for the futures of their children is to open a savings account on the behalf of each child, making small cash deposits over time. Most banks have accounts that are designed specifically to tailor to children, often offering a higher interest rate and other incentives like savings club memberships for kids, piggy banks, badges and other toys. Even if you are not sure how often you will be able to make deposits, it is still a good idea to set a deposit account up as soon as possible so that it is there any time you want to put money aside. It is surprising how quickly this money can add up if you are diligent about depositing it.

* Tax –

Children are subject to income taxes on their bank accounts just as adults are. They do receive a tax allowance, and they will not be taxed on the interest as long as their total income does not exceed this allowance over the span of the financial year. This only applies to savings accrued by relative or friend gifts so the money that you deposit will be naturally subject to the tax amount.

* Trust Funds for Children –

Trust funds are a unique way for parents to invest money into their children’s futures, creating a fund that belongs to the child but only after they reach a certain age. Most trusts last until the child turns 18, meaning as soon as they reach adulthood they will have access to a savings fund of money that will help them with purchases like buying a car, going to school and so on. Money can be invested into these funds every year, and you can choose between savings funds, shares funds and stakeholder funds depending on your needs and the needs of your family.

There are lots of other possibilities when it comes to savings methods for your children, including bonds, savings accounts, trust funds, investments, shares and stocks. Some are not designed specifically for children, but all can benefit the child as long as you are willing to manage them on the behalf of your children until they are old enough to handle the management their own selves.

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Originally posted 2008-12-18 05:17:37. Republished by Blog Post Promoter

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Teach Your Teen About Saving Money

Monday, December 7th, 2009

One of the biggest reasons why having a teenage child can be difficult is because teenagers tend to spend money easily and freely without any real regard for what goes into earning that money in the first place. Teenagers tend to spend a great deal of money on clothes, shoes, toys, video games, computer stuff, without ever really buying anything that they need. One of your biggest jobs as a parent is to teach them how to save their money.

First of all, you should teach your teenager how to save money by opening them up a bank account. When they have their own bank account, they will have a paper transcription of how and where they spend their money. Deposit their allowance directly into the bank account, and explain to them that once the money is gone for the month, it’s gone. This will teach your teens to be more savvy when saving money because they will have a better idea of how much goes in and how much comes out, and will learn to better track their expenditures accordingly if they know that the money will eventually run out if they are not careful.

Give a man a fish and you feed him for a day.

Give a man a fish and you feed him for a day.

Another consideration that you need to make when it comes to teens saving money is a really valuable quote that applies to many situations including this one: “Give a man a fish and you feed him for a day. Teach him how to fish and you feed him for a lifetime.” What this quote means is that giving your teenager an allowance, or money for the movies, or for any other reason, they will use that money and then it will be gone. If on the other hand you teach your teens how to handle their money and save their money, it will prepare them for a lifetime of financial fitness, which is the most ideal situation. By teaching your teen how to earn and save money, how to invest, and so on, you are preparing them for a lifetime of intelligent financial decisions. This may not prevent them from making poor decisions in the future, but it will better prepare them for what life throws at them as they get older.

You absolutely must be able to teach your teenage children how to handle their money. Once they understand what goes into making or earning the money, saving the money and investing the money, they will spend their money more wisely in the future. Teach your children how to invest, and how to get the most out of their money, and you will find them being excited about saving their money rather than spending it frivolously. If you want your teens to be savvy when it comes to saving and investing their hard earned money, you have to teach them the value of that money and what can be done with it besides buying designer jeans, ring tones and other toys. Not only will you benefit, but they will benefit significantly as well.

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Originally posted 2008-12-09 05:03:43. Republished by Blog Post Promoter

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Child Savings and Investment

Wednesday, November 25th, 2009
Children cost money - are you ready?

Children cost money - are you ready?

Having children is not a cheap proposition these days, especially when you consider long term costs. The older your children become, the more they are going to end up costing in the long run. High education prices, for example, continue to soar making it nearly impossible for you to put your children through school. The housing market is also becoming nearly impossible. All of these things seem really far ahead when your child is young, but if you do not start saving up now you may find yourself really short in terms of capital and income when you finally do need the money to get things going.

Surveys are luckily suggesting that people are beginning to understand this concept. Child savings and investment plans are absolutely vital if we want to be financially prepared for everything that goes into rearing our children from beginning to end in the future. When we first have children, they are expensive enough, and keeping them in diapers is hard work. Little do we know at that point however, how many thousands of dollars will have to go into their educations, keeping them clothed and fed, and putting a roof over their heads for the next eighteen years or so. If you want to be prepared financially for everything that is involved in raising your children to adulthood, then you need to begin planning as far ahead as you can using child savings and investment planning to make sure that you have enough money in the future.

You should not start saving when your children are young, but rather before they are even born. If you know that you plan on having children some day, begin saving the day that the decision is made. Even if you change your mind later, the money will still go to good use, so it is better to plan ahead and be safe than to be sorry in a few years when you do not have the savings you need to afford the education of your children.

When it comes to planning for your child’s future, planning ahead is always best. The sooner you begin to plan, save and invest, the better off you will be when you finally need to utilize that money. If you do not take the time to plan ahead, you may run into a point where you do not have the capital you need to take care of your children properly. Imagine trying to send your children to college and finding that you lack the capital to get them there, as well as the credit score to obtain the lending that is required. Can you imagine the disappointment that your children will have if they cannot go to the school of their dreams? Nip that risk in the bud as early as you can by planning early, saving and investing often, and working hard to create a good life for your children long before you ever have to.

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Originally posted 2008-11-27 05:01:07. Republished by Blog Post Promoter

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