Ask Liz Weston

Get smart with your money

Liz Weston

Wednesday’s need-to-know money news

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babytrollToday’s top story: Why your newborn doesn’t need to be on your credit card account. Also in the news: Why paying more tax today could be your best AMT strategy, common retirement mistakes seen by financial planners, and how credit card minimum payments are meant to keep you in debt forever.

No, Your Newborn Doesn’t Need to Be on Your Credit Card Account
No need to build credit that early.

Paying More Tax Today May Be Your Best AMT Strategy
Understanding how AMT works.

Seven Common Retirement Mistakes Seen by Financial Planners
And how to avoid them.

Credit card minimums: Perfectly calibrated to keep you in debt
A cycle of perpetual debt.

Tuesday’s need-to-know money news

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8.6.13.CheckupToday’s top story: 5 must-know facts about Obamacare open enrollment. Also in the news: Why it’s getting harder to spot counterfeit cash, financial conversations you should have during the holidays, and how to host your first Thanksgiving without going broke.

5 Must-Know Facts About Obamacare Open Enrollment
Be informed before signing up.

Why It’s Getting Harder to Spot Counterfeit Cash
Criminals have become more sophisticated.

Financial Conversations You Should Have During the Holidays
Taking advantage of family gatherings.

How to Host Your First Thanksgiving Without Going Broke
Don’t go overboard.

8 steps to financial security

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Financial security isn’t a number or a threshold. It has to do with what you spend, and save, relative to your income.

Nothing proves that quite like research on millionaires by wealth management firm UBS. Sixty percent of those with more than $5 million defined themselves as wealthy, compared with 28 percent of those worth $1 million to $5 million. Yet what millionaires mean by “wealthy” is not necessarily financial independence: Only 10 percent defined wealthy as not having to work. It’s not even a number; only 16 percent said surpassing a certain asset threshold automatically made you rich.

In my latest for the Associated Press, eight steps you can take to ensure your financial security.

Monday’s need-to-know money news

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common-retirement-mistakesToday’s top story: How to choose the right amount for your FSA in 2017. Also in the news: The best and worst airports for holiday travel, the pros and cons of free money from a bank, and how long it will take to retire based on your spending.

How to Choose the Right Amount for Your FSA in 2017
Finding the amount that’s right for you.

Best and Worst Airports for Holiday Travel 2016
Preparing for holiday travel madness.

Should you turn down free money from a bank?
Considering the variables.

This Grid Shows You How Long It Will Take to Retire, Based on Your Spending
How many years left to go?

Q&A: How to evaluate consumer options and not get cheated

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Dear Liz: Although I’m able to pay my bills, it’s the decisions regarding cable, telephone, Internet and various insurance options that drive me nuts! I’ve tried to seek out independent groups that discuss such issues, but none exists in my area; and these decisions are not covered by my financial planner, nor do I wish to pay a senior money manager for this advice. As an elder orphan, I’m finding these decisions and others regarding repairs, workmen, etc. very stressful. Friends don’t really want to help and be held “responsible” if their recommendations don’t work out. What do you suggest?

Answer: Sometimes it feels like a full-time job to evaluate your options as a consumer and not get snookered. This isn’t an issue that’s unique to older people. But as we age, our financial decision-making abilities tend to decline, and we become more vulnerable to fraud or bad decisions. So you’re smart to want a trustworthy helper to guide you.

A lot of Internet sites clamor to be that helper, but not all are as objective as they seem to be. They may be steering you toward the companies that pay them the most. Make sure you read a site’s disclosure statements so you understand what its conflicts of interest might be.

One outfit you can trust is Consumer Reports, which has a print magazine as well as an online subscription with objective advice on thousands of products and services. Consumer Reports doesn’t accept advertising and has been helping people make smarter decisions since 1936.

Finding good people to work on your home is trickier. Sites such as Angie’s List and Yelp offer reviews from other consumers and can help lead you to reputable firms. You shouldn’t take the results as gospel, though, because both rely on advertising from the companies being reviewed.

If you don’t feel up to the task of researching and sorting your options, please reconsider your aversion to hiring a daily money manager. You typically can pay such a manager by the hour to help you make these decisions. You’ll also have a chance to “test drive” his or her services since you may well need help with paying bills and other financial tasks down the line.

Q&A: Social Security calculators may overestimate your benefits

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Dear Liz: All of the Social Security calculators that I have found assume that you will work until you start drawing Social Security benefits. However, I plan on retiring around 62 but not drawing my benefits until age 66 or later. Whenever I calculate my future benefits, the calculator assumes that I will continue to draw the same salary as I have today until I start benefits. I’m worried the calculators are overestimating my benefit.

Answer: As you probably know, Social Security uses your 35 highest-earning years to calculate your benefit. When you work longer than 35 years, you’re typically replacing your lower-earning years in your teens or 20s with higher earnings from your 50s and 60s.

Free Social Security calculators usually assume that pattern will continue. If you stop working or earn less, the calculators may overstate your benefits. To get a better estimate, you’ll need to shell out $40 to use MaximizeMySocialSecurity.com, which allows you to customize your future earnings assumptions.