Have you ever wondered how the “checkbook” for a large corporation is different from the one you keep at home? Or what their needs are when they go to bank to stash their money or take out a loan? If so, what you’re really asking about is the difference between commercial and corporate banking, and why corporations receive different treatment from common consumers.
Ever since traveling to England during their pension riots back in November, I’ve been somewhat curious about the options that other countries offer for retirement savings. I know we talk an awful lot on here about plans that are available in the U.S. like IRA’s, 401k’s, etc. So today we’re going to jump across the pond and take a look at what folks in England have to supplement their retirement savings. In particular, we’re going to talk about the ISA or Individual Savings Account.
An ISA is very similar to Roth IRA here in the U.S. You fund (or “subscribe”) money to the account with post-tax sources, the money grows tax free, and no taxes are paid at the time of withdrawal. However unlike American IRA’s, there are no limits or restrictions as to when or how much money can be taken out.
When you’re finally ready to retire and start accessing your money, mainstream advice says to follow the 4 percent rule. For anyone who doesn’t know, the 4 percent rule says you can start your retirement by withdrawing 4 percent of your total retirement portfolio to live on, and then doing the same each year thereafter with small adjustments for inflation. Research suggests that you’ll have a pretty good chance of success for about the next 30 years. Although this method is very popular for retirement income planning, there have been some studies to that show you can do better!
We are all pioneering the age of social media and its effects on everything that happens in our lives. While there is certainly a lot of good that comes from these sites, there is also a lot of damage that can be afflicted as well. Namely – sabotaging our careers and getting fired over Facebook.
Getting fired and ruining your finances over something as dumb as Facebook posts may seem like something that could never happen to you, but it could! Here’s a story of something that just happened recently…
Oh, no! It’s finally happening! It’s back to school time for Mrs MMD and my kids. Since Mrs MMD is a teacher, this marked the first week that she has had to go back into her room and start setting up for the start of the year. The kids had to actually wake up and go back to daycare while she and I are at work. Overall, it’s been an outstanding but too fast Summer. Unfortunately play time is over and they’ll be waking up at the crack of dawn (with me) every day very soon.
The week flew by for me. I spent the first part of it in Virginia for business, and have been playing tons of catch-up at work ever since. Around the house, just after paying for the new floors, our washing machine broke down! Crap! This is soon to become another unfortunate and upcoming expense. Darn appliances!
Do you really know how to split your retirement savings up in the best way? Chances are probably not. Trying to figure out the best asset allocation for your money design is something we refer to often here on my blog. Why? Because there of all the millions of combinations of investments we could put together, how do know which ones will work? What are the best asset allocation models for us to follow?
I have been asking this question since I started investing and am still looking for the answer. We all know that in order to save up for a healthy retirement you’ve got to choose the right funds to stuff inside our investment portfolio. Choose poorly and your money will slip away from underneath your feet. Choose wisely and you’ll enjoy a full retirement with plenty of safety.
Lately there have been a number of great posts and strong opinions about having an emergency fund, and I wanted to weigh in with my own opinion and experiences. I have had a long a standing love-hate relationship with emergency funds. Sure, you need them for critical situations! But my problem (and I think this is where a lot of people struggle) is how to save up enough. Depending on which advice you subscribe to, the recommendations can be anything from 3 to 12 months of your gross monthly income. If you’re a typical American household making $60,000 per year, that’s anywhere from $15,000 to $60,000 that we need to have in the bank! Ouch! Is it any wonder we fail at this?
As some of you already know, this week was Mrs MMD’s birthday. And all Mrs MMD wanted was new flooring in our house. So we decided to make her birthday dream a reality!
I’ve wrote before about what a great feeling it was to do your own projects when I installed my own hardwood floors. But I’ve got to be honest – I really wasn’t feeling it this time. Instead, we decided to contract this job out. Even though it cost a little more money, the job got done fast and it looks great. Plus it’s pretty incredible to just come home from work and the entire project is all done for you! Here are a few pictures of the before and after:
Today is one year blogging anniversary! It was a little over two years ago when I first read the book ProBlogger
Mike@WeOnlyDoThis... (10)
Matt Becker (9)
Integrator (8)
Kim@Eyesonthedollar (8)
Martin (8)
John S @ Frugal R... (7)
Chris @ Stumble F... (6)
Pretired Nick (5)
Canadian Budget B... (4)
Jacob@CashCowCouple (4)
Blogging Tips from All the Dumb Mistakes I Made My First Year
Read more