Secure Your Castle

In an effort to start the New Year off on the best foot possible, I’m sending you a very handy reference card that I use. It’s called the 2012 Key Financial Data card and it can be quite helpful whenever you need to make informed financial and investment decisions.
Key Financial Data Card 2012

The Key Data card gives you many of the numbers investors need on Social Security, taxes, health savings, Medicare, retirement, college planning and more. Of course, you can always call me when you have questions or concerns or want to dig deeper into the numbers, however the 2012 Key Financial Data card will serve as a quick reference can be very practical in checking an assumption or marshaling your facts.

Excerpt

Included in this month’s edition are articles on:

• Third Quarter Review
• Open Enrollment
• 401k Loans
• Social Security COLA Updates

After you change jobs where you were contributing to a 401k you are left with 3 options to do with that account. (1) You can keep your money in the existing plan at your old company (permitting the company lets you do this); (2) You can roll it into the plan at your new company, or (3) You can roll it over into an IRA. There is a fourth option of cashing out your 401k and taking it as a distribution. Taking this approach may bring tax consequences, penalties, and a risk to your retirement where this is usually not the best choice.

This article will detail why most of the time it makes sense to go with option number 3 (Rolling your 401k into an IRA). The biggest advantage of a 401k plan is the company match (if you company has one). When you leave the company you will no longer get a match on your contributions. We will look at the fees and expenses associated with the 401k plan itself and also at the fact that they are usually filled with poor investment choices.

• 401k plans are expensive to administer and most of the time those administration fees are passed on to the plan participants
• Fake diversification: The choices to invest in a 401k plan are limited and many asset classes that are needed to make a diversified portfolio are not included
• The choices to invest in most 401k plan are not quality (expensive and poor performing)

Read the Full Article

Included in this month’s edition are articles on:

• Book Review: The Big Secret for Small Investors
• Top Retirement Risks
• Disability Insurance Awareness Month
• LinkedIn IPO Pops
• New Office Location

Suffering an illness or injury that prevents you from working for an extended period happens a lot more frequent than people would imagine. It does not have to be the catastrophic event that prevents you from working, it could be slipping on ice walking the dog. On average you have a one in five chance of becoming disabled between the ages of 35 and 65. If you are 30, you have a one in three chance of incurring a long-term disability before you turn 60. You actually have a far greater chance of becoming disabled during your working career than you do of dying. Yet far more Americans buy life insurance than they do a disability policy. The table below compares the probabilities of becoming disabled versus dying for males and females at certain ages.

Everyone that works and earns an income should become acquainted with the concept of disability insurance. We are all vulnerable. One way to think about the potential financial disaster that could lie ahead is to look at either your checkbook or your banking website if you pay bills online. Look at all of the bills you pay each month and visualize how you would pay those bills if you did not have any income coming in. Disability insurance helps replace a major portion of your income when you are sick or injured and unable to work. Most people are quick to insure their possessions, such as their home and car, but do not think about insuring their income. The cost for disability insurance is less than most people would think and I would be happy to explore disability insurance with you to determine if a policy makes sense.

Bautis Financial has moved to a new location. It is centrally located in Rutherford on Route 17 North, right off of Route 3 and near the Highland Cross jug-handle.

New Office Address:
301 Route 17 North, 8th Floor
Rutherford, NJ 07070
Office Phone: 201-842-7655

However, please note, the mailing address will remain the same
Marc Bautis
Bautis Financial
PO Box 187
Hasbrouck Heights, NJ 07604

I look forward to meeting with you soon at the new office.

There is a lot of blame to go around. Read More

It’s my pleasure to invite you, your family, and friends to an educational seminar regarding Social Security planning titled “What Baby Boomers Need to Know to Maximize Retirement Income.” There are two dates set, please see the full details to the left.

After being told for years that Social Security is “going broke,” baby boomers are realizing that it will soon be their turn to collect. To help baby boomers better understand the Social Security system, this workshop will cover the following:

• 5 factors to consider when deciding when to apply for benefits
• When it makes sense to delay benefits — and when it does not
• Why you should always check your earnings record for accuracy
• How to estimate your benefits
• How to coordinate benefits with your spouse
• How to minimize taxes on Social Security benefits
• How to coordinate Social Security with your other sources of retirement income

The decisions baby boomers make now can have a tremendous impact on the total amount of benefits they stand to receive over their lifetime.

Please click on one of the following links below to register:

Register now for Wednesday March 30 @ Wood-Ridge Public Library

Register now for Thursday April 28 @ Lyndhurst Public Library

If you have any questions about the seminar, how to register, or if you wish to make an appointment for a personal consultation, please contact me at the phone number or email below.

I look forward to seeing you at one of the seminars! Please share this invitation with those you believe may be interested.

Sincerely,
Marc Bautis
Bautis Financial
marc@bautisfinancial.com
201-426-0020 or 201-221-65895

Included in this month’s edition are articles on:

• Principles to consider when investing in Dividend Stocks
• An invitation to a free Social Security Planning Seminar
• Company Spotlight – Matt Pastore, CPA
• What to do with your 401k Plan