GREECE DEAL, FED MINUTES REASSURE INVESTORS On Friday, Greece reached an agreement with eurozone finance ministers to extend its economic bailout through June. The four extra months of financial aid depend on reforms that the country will present to its creditors this week (they must be approved by April). Stateside, minutes from the Federal Reserve’s…

How prepared are you to prepare your 1040? The earlier you compile and organize the relevant paperwork, the easier things may be for you (or the tax preparer working for you) this winter. Here are some tips to help you get ready: As a first step, look at your 2013 return. Unless your job, living…

A new study asserts that women feel uncomfortable discussing financial matters. The latest Money FIT Study from Fidelity Investments is generating some conversation within the financial industry. The investment giant commissioned an online poll of 1,542 female participants in its retirement plans, and 80% of the respondents indicated that talking about money matters was “too…

FOURTH QUARTER SAW 2.6% GROWTH Given the final 5.0% GDP reading for Q3, this initial Commerce Department estimate displeased many investors – even though the personal spending rate rose an impressive 4.3% in Q4. Investors also disliked the 3.4% overall dip in hard goods orders for December, which followed a 2.1% descent in November. HOUSEHOLDS…

A RISE IN HOME BUYING Existing home sales were up 2.4% in December and 3.5% for 2014. In its latest report, the National Association of Realtors noted a median sale price of $208,500, 5.8% above a year before. The sales pace in the last half of 2014 was 8% better than in the first half,…

No one wants to delay their federal tax refund. As you certainly don’t, filling out your 1040 form correctly is essential. To that end, it is worth noting some of the common 1040 tax return mistakes – the little slip-ups that aggravate both the IRS and the taxpayer. Not signing your return. If you file…

CFP®Board Gives Tips on How to Control Retirement Spending As millions of Americans prepare for and enter retirement, it’s natural for many of us to feel worried or concerned about how much money is needed to live comfortably. Despite all of the apprehension, there are a few reasons to smile. In fact, recent research into retirement…

Financially, many of us associate April with taxes – but we should also associate April with important IRA deadlines. *April 1 is the absolute deadline to take your first Required Mandatory Distribution (RMD) from your traditional IRA(s). *April 15 is the deadline for making annual contributions to a traditional or Roth IRA. Let’s discuss the…

How are your money habits? Are you getting ahead financially, or does it feel like you are running in place? It may come down to behavior. Some financial behaviors promote wealth creation, while others lead to frustration. Certainly other factors come into play when determining a household’s financial situation, but behavior and attitudes toward money…

ANOTHER GOOD JOBS REPORT America’s best year for hiring since 2000 wrapped up with 252,000 more people finding work in December. Labor Department data showed the jobless rate declining to 5.6% last month (the U-6 rate tracking the unemployed and underemployed decreased to 11.2%). The economy added 2.53 million non-farm payroll jobs in 2014, representing…