January 2012 Personal Finance Newsletter
January 17, 2012 by Jean Keener, CFP, CRPC, CFDS · Leave a Comment
The January 2012 personal finance newsletter is now available. It includes a 2011 investment market recap from Dimensional Fund Advisors with data on all the major indices and a summary of the major investing themes of 2011. In addition, there’s a comparison between the dividend rates of the S&P 500 and interest rate on treasuries and commentary of what this means to your portfolio. Plus, the newsletter announces the first half of 2012 schedule for Keller Financial Planning Workshops at the Keller Public Library. To read the newsletter, click here.
November Personal Finance Newsletter
November 14, 2011 by Jean Keener, CFP, CRPC, CFDS · Leave a Comment
The November personal finance newsletter is now available. It includes all the updates on 2012 IRA and retirement plan contribution limits, plus the 2012 social security and medicare figures. In addition, we cover the importance of long term care planning for women and information on a free upcoming long term care insurance workshop at the library. The newsletter also includes tips on planning for required minimum distributions, an update on college costs, and a market update. Click here to read it.
Keller Social Security Workshop
September 26, 2011 by Jean Keener, CFP, CRPC, CFDS · Leave a Comment
My free workshop on social security planning at the Keller Public Library is scheduled for Tuesday, October 18 at 6:30 pm.
It’s designed for baby boomers to help you maximize your retirement income. If you are 55 or older, have not yet filed for social security, and live in or around Keller, you should strongly consider attending this financial information session. Attendees will learn:
- 5 factors to consider when deciding when to apply for benefits
- Why you should always check your earnings record for accuracy
- 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
You are welcome to attend and bring your questions! Please RSVP to library@cityofkeller.com for planning purposes.
A copy of “The Smartest Retirement Book You’ll Ever Read” by Daniel Solin will also be given away.
Free Keller Financial Workshop: Couples & Money
September 13, 2011 by Jean Keener, CFP, CRPC, CFDS · Leave a Comment
Financial Planner Jean Keener, CFP®, teams with Marriage and Family Therapist Maryellen Dabal, LMFTA, to present a free workshop on Couples & Money: Harmonize your finances and your relationship. Money is a tool to create the life you envision. Couples who learn to positively navigate the inherent challenges of 2 people’s varying financial styles enjoy a more harmonious relationship and dramatically improve their likelihood of achieving their financial and life goals. This workshop provides the tools to help attendees move closer toward that goal!
Designed for couples at all financial and relationship stages, the workshop will cover the five fundamentals of successful money management for couples.
- Communicating positively
- Understanding money histories and styles
- Identifying couple and individual goals
- Planning to meet goals
- Thriving in the day to day
The event is on Tuesday, September 20 at 6:30 pm at the Keller Public Library located at 640 Johnson Rd. The library requests registration to library@cityofkeller.com.
Maryellen Dabal holds a Post-Masters degree in Marriage and Family Therapy and a Masters degree in Applied Psychology, both received from Seton Hall University in 2005. She relocated to NE Tarrant County from New Jersey in December, 2006 with her husband of over 20 years and two teenage daughters. She has worked with individuals, couples and families in a variety of settings including a high school, a traditional counseling center and a correctional facility, before moving on to private practice in Southlake,TX, where she has been for almost three years. Her therapeutic philosophy is a combination of believing that discussions of the past can help you to understand where you have come from, which allows you to be able to define where you are today, which further aids in the creating of goals needed to help you reach your full potential. She will treat you with compassion, understanding and respect knowing that asking for help is not an easy thing to do. Maryellen is currently under the supervision of Gloria L. Martin, LMFT, in Dallas as she is working towards obtaining full licensure in the state of Texas.
Jean Keener is Principal of Keener Financial Planning, a fee-only financial planning and registered investment advisory firm with offices in Keller and Dallas. Jean is a Certified Financial Planner™ professional and holds the Chartered Retirement Planning Counselor (CRPC®) and Certified Financial Divorce Specialist (CFDS) designations. She is also a co-author of Investing in an Uncertain Economy for Dummies and her advice has appeared in The Wall Street Journal Blog, The Dallas Morning News, Investment News, The Motley Fool, Jean Chatzky’s column, the Associated Press and BankRate.com. Jean helps with planning for retirement, college, and other financial goals and has been voted Keller’s Best Financial Planner for 2009 and 2010 by readers of the Keller Citizen.
Yours, Mine, and Ours: Achieving Financial Goals as Individuals and a Couple
August 28, 2011 by Jean Keener, CFP, CRPC, CFDS · Leave a Comment
Making sound financial decisions is challenging enough when it’s just you – one person deciding on what’s best for his or her short-term and long-term goals. But add in a spouse, and the choices multiply! You now have two more sets of goals – your spouse’s and your combined goals as a couple. Plus, we all bring our own habits, attitudes, and history with spending, saving, bookkeeping, and planning for the future.
How do you accomplish what’s most important to you together and as individuals?
First, establish shared financial goals – this should be a combination of each of your individual priorities that you have discussed. This process generally works best if each person writes down his and her own goals before sharing them together. You will need to prioritize your financial resources toward meeting the ones that are most important to each of you.
Second, create the action steps and spending plan that support your goals. Depending on your history with spending and saving, you may want to consider setting up automatic savings contributions, shifting spending in certain areas to cash only, getting rid of credit cards, or other techniques that work for you.
Third, manage the day to day. Each person should have some responsibilities for managing your financial lives. Even if one person handles the majority of the financial tasks, the other person should still take the time to understand their overall financial situation, where all accounts are held, how investments are allocated, bills paid each month/year, etc.
Fourth, review your progress monthly and yearly. Set a monthly date to review progress on spending, saving, other action steps, and day-to-day financial management. Once a year, review your net worth statement and take stock of how overall progress is coming towards achieving your goals.
Money is a powerful tool to fund the lives we envision, and it can also be a source of friction and great pain in relationships. Sometimes involving a neutral professional – either a counselor or financial planner depending on the nature of the issue – can support you in moving the relationship and your financial goals forward.
To go more in depth on this topic, plan to attend my free workshop on Couples and Money at the Keller Public Library on Tuesday, September 20 at 6:30 pm. The library requests registration to library@cityofkeller.com or (817)743-4800.
College Savings Workshop for Texans
August 9, 2011 by Jean Keener, CFP, CRPC, CFDS · Leave a Comment
Learn how to save for your child’s college cheaply and save on taxes at the same time. I am presenting a free financial planning workshop on tax-efficient college savings for Texans at the Keller Public Library on Tuesday, August 16 at 6:30 pm. As kids head off to schools for the fall and the focus is on education, it’s a great time to look ahead and make plans for funding college tuition.
Workshop attendees will learn:
- Options available to save for college
- How college savings affects financial aid
- What unique opportunities we have as Texas residents
- How to skip paying sales commissions on your college savings investments
- How to minimize investment risk as your child gets close to college
Registration is encouraged for planning purposes to library@cityofkeller.com. I hope to see you there!
Keller Social Security Planning Workshop
July 18, 2011 by Jean Keener, CFP, CRPC, CFDS · Leave a Comment
I am conducting a free social security strategy workshop at the Keller Public Library on Tuesday, July 19 at 6:30 pm.
It’s designed for baby boomers to help you maximize your retirement income. If you are 55 or older, have not yet filed for social security, and live in or around Keller, you should strongly consider attending this financial information session. Attendees will learn:
- 5 factors to consider when deciding when to apply for benefits
- Why you should always check your earnings record for accuracy
- 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
You are welcome to attend and bring your questions! Please RSVP to library@cityofkeller.com for planning purposes.
A copy of “The Smartest Retirement Book You’ll Ever Read” by Daniel Solin will also be given away.
July Personal Finance Newsletter
July 14, 2011 by Jean Keener, CFP, CRPC, CFDS · Leave a Comment
The July personal financial planning newsletter is now available.
Because of the tumultuous investment markets and economic uncertainty, the newsletter includes two investing columns — one a recap of the second quarter market performance with a look forward, and another by Jim Parker with Dimensional Funds providing some compelling data on the importance of maintaining investment discipline.
The newsletter also has information on the new IRS mileage rates for the second half of 2011, a summary of how A/B and A/B/C trusts work for estate planning, and an overview of the tax and policy issues involved in taking a loan from your life insurance policy.
Plus, there’s an invitation to my social security workshop this coming Tuesday at the library.
Click here to read the newsletter.
Low-Cost Investing Basics
May 10, 2011 by Jean Keener, CFP, CRPC, CFDS · Leave a Comment
I will be hosting a free investment workshop at the Keller Library on Tuesday, May 17 at 6:30 pm.
This workshop will cover the fundamentals of successful long-term, goals-based investing. Effective investing doesn’t have to be complicated, but with so much information available, it can be difficult to tell fact from fiction. This workshop will reveal common pitfalls and investing myths and share information on how to avoid them. You will learn:
- The importance of keeping your investment costs low
- How to build a diversified, balanced portfolio
- How to know when to rebalance
- The relationship between risk and return
Registration is encouraged for planning purposes to library@cityofkeller.com.
Your Retirement Savings Game Plan
April 6, 2011 by Jean Keener, CFP, CRPC, CFDS · Leave a Comment
I will be offering a free Keller retirement planning workshop at the public library on Tuesday, April 19.
There are many uncertainties in saving for retirement right now. Even if you never plan to retire, planning for that day when work becomes optional still carries a lot of unknowns. In this workshop, we will cover how you can take control of your retirement plans by focusing on your personal savings, investing, and tax efficiency. This workshop is designed for those more than 5 years away from retirement. We will cover how to:
- determine retirement income needs
- assess the gap between guaranteed sources of retirement income and your spending needs
- prioritize retirement savings and investing strategies to fill the gap
- review which savings methods are most tax-efficient for your situation
- calculate if you’re on track for your retirement goals
- create a plan flexible enough to accommodate future uncertainty
The workshop is free, but RSVP is encouraged for planning purposes to library@cityofkeller.com. A drawing for a free copy of The Investment Answer by Daniel C. Goldie and Gordon S. Murray will also be held.