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Liz Weston

Friday’s need-to-know money news

September 11, 2020 By Liz Weston

Today’s top story: What Biden on Trump could do for your student loans. Also in the news: Is moving now your best financial pros and cons, how to get a personal loan without perfect credit, and what to do when you can’t afford food.

What Biden or Trump Could Do for Your Student Loans
The pandemic plays a part.

Is Moving Now Your Best Financial Move?
Weighing the pros and cons.

You Don’t Need Perfect Credit to Get a Personal Loan
Bad-credit borrowers may have to take extra steps to get a loan. Start by fixing any errors on your credit report.

What to Do When You Can’t Afford Food
Millions of families are struggling.

Filed Under: Liz's Blog Tagged With: Biden, election 2020, food insecurity, food pantries, Personal Loans, relocating, Student Loans, Trump

Thursday’s need-to-know money news

September 10, 2020 By Liz Weston

Today’s top story: When debt relief does more harm than good. Also in the news: New ways to get more money for your old car, back-to-school tips for avoiding child identity theft, and the top sacrifices made by ‘super savers’.

When Debt Relief Does More Harm Than Good
The behavior has to change, too.

New ways to get more for your old car.
Online buyers make offers in minutes — a safety net for car shoppers wondering what their trade-in is really worth.

Back-to-School Tips for Avoiding Child Identity Theft
Teaching your kids about internet security.

Here are the top sacrifices made by ‘super savers’
Increase your savings by following these tips.

Filed Under: Liz's Blog Tagged With: care sales, care trade-in, child identity theft, debt relief, saving tips, super savers, used cars

Wednesday’s need-to-know money news

September 9, 2020 By Liz Weston

Today’s top story: Should students gamble on an Income Share Agreement? Also in the news: How to make a debt-free switch to cashless payments, 4 home insurance pitfalls to avoid during hurricane season, and see how much home you can afford with the 30/30/30 rule.

Should Students Gamble on an Income Share Agreement?
An ISA can be a risk for students seeking college funding. But during an economic downturn, it might be worth it.

How to Make a Debt-Free Switch to Cashless Payments
Changing how we pay during the pandemic.

4 home insurance pitfalls to avoid during hurricane season
Don’t be skimpy.

See How Much Home You Can Afford With the 30/30/30 Rule
Existing home sale prices are increasing.

Filed Under: Liz's Blog Tagged With: 30/30/30 rule, cashless payments, home buying, home insurance, hurricane season, income share agreement, real estate, students

Tuesday’s need-to-know money news

September 8, 2020 By Liz Weston

Today’s top story: How to adjust your school supplies budget for the online classroom. Also in the news: 5 things to do with all that money you haven’t been spending the past few months, is moving now the best financial move for Millennials, and how COVID-19 may impact applying for financial aid.

How to adjust your school supplies budget for the online classroom
A different setting requires different supplies.

5 things to do with all that money you haven’t been spending the past few months
Don’t let that extra money just sit there.

Millennial Money: Is moving now your best financial move?
Reconsidering your living situation.

How COVID-19 May Impact Applying for Financial Aid
Your family’s financial situation may have changed.

Filed Under: Liz's Blog Tagged With: financial aid, millennials, money moves, moving, real estate, remote learning, school supply budget

Q&A: A felony doesn’t preclude you from Social Security benefits

September 8, 2020 By Liz Weston

Dear Liz: If someone has a felony, is it true they cannot claim Social Security retirement benefits? If so, what is the best option: a Roth IRA or a brokerage account? How do they get started without a lot of money?

Answer: A felony does not prevent you from claiming Social Security in the future if you work enough years to qualify for benefits. If you were already receiving retirement benefits when you were convicted, your payments would typically be suspended while you were incarcerated but resumed when you got out.

That said, Social Security usually isn’t enough to live on, so you’ll want to have money in retirement accounts as well. An IRA or a Roth IRA are both good options. The IRA reduces your taxes upfront while Roth IRAs reduce your taxes in the future. Low- and moderate-income taxpayers also can get a tax credit, called the Savers Credit, for retirement contributions.

If you don’t have a lot of money to invest, look for brokerages that have low fees and no account minimums, such as Fidelity, ETrade, TD Ameritrade and Charles Schwab, among others.

Once you open the account, you’ll need to figure out how to invest.

If you’re new to investing, consider using target date funds. These investments are labeled by year, and you pick the year that’s closest to your future retirement. The fund does the rest of the work such as picking the stocks and bonds, rebalancing the mix and getting more conservative as the retirement date approaches.

Robo-advisors such as Betterment or SoFi are another low-cost solution that does most of the work for you.

Filed Under: Q&A, Social Security Tagged With: felonies, IRA, Social Security

Q&A: Backdoor Roth IRA contributions

September 8, 2020 By Liz Weston

Dear Liz: You mentioned in a previous column that a backdoor Roth contribution could be expensive if you have a large pretax IRA. I was in that situation, and opted to first roll my IRA into my employer’s 401(k). I then made a nondeductible contribution to a new IRA and shortly afterward converted it to a Roth. This allowed me to get money into a Roth without a big tax bill.

Answer: That’s a great solution for those who have access to 401(k) plans that accept such transfers, and many do.

For those who don’t know, backdoor Roths are a two-step process for people whose incomes are too high to contribute directly to a Roth. Instead, they contribute to a regular IRA and then convert that money to a Roth because there’s no income limit on conversions.

Taxes are usually owed on Roth conversions, based on how much pretax money you have in IRAs. But the conversion can be tax free if the contribution was nondeductible, you convert shortly after the contribution and you don’t already have a pre-tax money IRA.

Some questioned the legality of this particular loophole, but Congress blessed it in 2017 as part of the Tax Cut and Jobs Act of 2017.

Filed Under: Q&A, Retirement, Saving Money Tagged With: backdoor IRA, q&a, retirement savings

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