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It wasn’t long ago that financial planning was thought of as a discipline that only applied to the very wealthy.

With rising retirement costs, longer life spans, and the need to rely almost exclusively on one’s own assets for income, there is little margin for error in investing for retirement. When we’re talking about securing a comfortable income that needs to last as many as 25 or 30 years, mistakes made early on can be magnified to tragic proportions.

Sadly, more than 55% of Americans die each year without a will; and while it’s understandable why the subject of death is not one people like to contemplate, if they actually knew what happens to their estate when they die “intestate” (without a will), they might reconsider their reluctance.

For many Americans, building true wealth might seem elusive, even illusory considering that many people, who very recently were sitting on six and seven figure 401k plans and home equity values, now feel unprepared for retirement. The lessons learned from the financial crisis is that wealth can be fleeting.

With interest rates still hovering near historic lows and the credit crisis a fading memory, the stars may be aligned for auto buyers. However, few things can cause more angst than trying to find the best deal on a new car and securing the best auto financing which, next to house, can combine to become the most expensive purchase people make.

With home values finally recovering from their steep declines of the last half decade, and interest rates still hovering around their historic lows, homeowners are, once again, looking to their home equity for financing.

DFA just came out with an article that provides a way to view all those predictions you'll be hearing over the coming weeks.  You can view it by clicking here.

When you change jobs, everything you need to take with you can usually be packed neatly into a couple boxes for your move - everything except your employer-sponsored retirement plan.  Of course, you will likely enroll in your new employer’s retirement plan, but the decision as to what to do with your existing 401k plan may not be all that clear.  As with anyone who leaves an emp

It should not take the filing of a tax return or a death in the family to finally create order out of paper chaos so you are not forced to scramble in those critical circumstances. The chances of making costly errors are too great not to take some very simple, albeit essential, measures to get and stay organized all year long.

Some, stockbrokers, stock analysts, investment gurus and individual investors will have you believe that investing is an art, requiring nuanced skill and timing based on information that only they possess. So, it’s not surprising they are very quick to attribute any successes they have to their individual abilities.