Managing your money all-in-one for dummies

Title Page
Copyright Page
Table of Contents
Introduction
About This Book
Foolish Assumptions
Icons Used in This Book
Beyond the Book
Where to Go from Here
Book 1 Taking Charge of Your Finances
Chapter 1 Assessing Where You Are Financially
Asking Some Preliminary Questions
Evaluating Your Relationship with Money
Recognizing emotional spending
Living for the moment
Checking Out Your Credit Reports
Getting copies of your credit reports
Knowing why your reports matter
Finding Out Your FICO Score
Comparing Spending and Income
Gathering the necessary materials
Categorizing your expenses
Figuring out the fritter factor
Totaling spending and earnings
Calculating your financial bottom line
Assessing Your Spending Habits
Cataloging What You Own
Adding Up What You Owe
Chapter 2 Improving Your Relationship with Money
Working with Your Partner to Achieve Financial Goals
Recognizing your financial strengths and weaknesses
Identifying long-term goals
Establishing savings goals
Finding peaceful solutions to differences
Pulling together with your spouse or partner
Talking money with your children
Believing in Yourself
Handling Setbacks
Asking for Help
Digging Out of Debt
Step 1: Acknowledge the problem
Step 2: Cut the cards
Step 3: Set a good budget and live within it
Step 4: Contact your creditors
Budgeting for the Future
Step 1: Categorize your expenses
Step 2: Estimate what you spend
Step 3: Calculate and adjust
Chapter 3 Building and Sticking to a Budget
Comparing Monthly Spending and Income
Tackling a Budget Deficit
Cutting expenses
Reducing debt before saving
Using other strategies
Paying the Important Stuff If You Can’t Pay Everything
Distinguishing between secured and unsecured debt
Knowing when to prioritize an unsecured debt
Examining a Budget Surplus
Finalizing and Sticking to Your Budget
Steeling your resolve
Checking your progress each month
Chapter 4 Cutting Spending and Boosting Income
Finding Ways to Spend Less
Looking for good deals
Spending less on your housing
Lowering your utility bills
Eating for less
Paying less for transportation
Having fun for less
Looking good for less
Dressing for less
Reducing your phone costs
Saving on prescription drugs
Inching down your insurance costs
Bringing in More Bucks
Earning more at your current job
Looking for a new job
Getting (and surviving) a second job
Considering freelancing
Chapter 5 Cleaning Up Your Credit Reports
Understanding the True Value of Good Credit
Reviewing Your Reports for Problems
Using the Law to Get Your Credit Record Clean and Keep It That Way
Identifying and Disputing Inaccurate Information
Understanding the dispute process
Correcting all your credit reports
Contacting the creditor
Adding Positive Information to Your Credit Report
Asking your landlord to report your rent payments
Adding your utility and cell-phone payments to your report
Opening new credit accounts
Adding a 100-word statement
Book 2 Managing Home and Personal Finances
Chapter 1 Running a Money-Smart Household
Reaching Out to Touch Someone
Saving on phone bills
Using email and texting to stay in touch
Rediscovering the joys of letter writing
Saving on Climate Control
Dressing for the weather
Keeping your cool when the weather’s not
Warming the house
Cutting Back on Electricity and Gas Use
Improving your appliance efficiency
Shedding some light on the subject
Trash Talk: Controlling Garbage Costs
Reducing what you throw away
Reusing household items in creative ways
Cutting Down on Water Use
Keeping a Ceiling on Housing Budgets
Saving money on rent
Saving money on home ownership
Cutting Transportation Costs
Finding a deal on a set of wheels
Using public transportation
Biking and walking
Finding bargains on airfare and rental cars
Opting to travel by train or bus
Purchasing Appliances
Keeping energy efficiency in mind
Shopping for scratch-and-dent and secondhand
Thinking twice about renting-to-own
Chapter 2 Selecting the Best Home Purchase Loan
Three Questions to Help You Pick the Right Mortgage
How long do you plan to keep your mortgage?
How much financial risk can you accept?
How much money do you need?
Fixed-Rate Mortgages: No Surprises
Adjustable-Rate Mortgages (ARMs)
How an ARM’s interest rate is determined
How often does the interest rate adjust?
What are the limits on rate adjustments?
Does the loan have negative amortization?
Fine-Tuning Your Thought Process
Finding funds
Making the 30-year versus 15-year mortgage decision
Getting a Loan When Rates Are High
Chapter 3 Handling a Mortgage Meltdown
Assessing the Damage from a Mortgage Meltdown
Understanding How Mortgages Differ from Other Loans
Spotting a foreclosure on the horizon
Counting to 90
Knowing Where to Turn for Help
Finding good help for free
Working with your mortgage servicer
Avoiding help that hurts
Considering Alternatives to Going Down with the Ship
What to do first
What to do for more serious problems
What to do to end matters
Managing a foreclosure
Strategic default: Stopping payments
Dealing with Deficiencies
Preparing for “Credit Winter”
Chapter 4 Keeping a Lid on Medical Costs
Saving on Medical Expenses
Keeping a close eye on bills
Looking into payment plans
Coordinating insurance benefits
Finding less-expensive prescriptions
Discovering What Makes a Great Health Insurance Plan
Deciding Between Individual and Group
Pricing
Underwriting
Benefit levels
Renewability
Coverage flexibility
Saving Money on Individual Coverage
Saving directly
Saving indirectly with self-care
Coping with Health Insurance Problems
Insuring the uninsurable
Staying insured through hard times
Insuring your kids when your policy no longer covers them
Evaluating insurance available through college
Understanding temporary health insurance
Continuing coverage following a divorce
Getting spousal coverage
Insuring the children after a divorce
Deciding on a conversion policy
Considering HIPAA instead
Taking Decisive Action
Reviewing bills with a fine-tooth comb
Making your plan pay what it should
Taking advantage of hospital discounts
Reducing your medical debt
Chapter 5 Using the Internet to Help Manage Your Finances
Giving Yourself an Online Financial Makeover
Using the Internet to Budget
Finding Online Resources to Track Your Income and Expenses
Using the Internet to Get Free Financial Advice
Finding Out What You’re Worth
Book 3 Dealing with Debt
Chapter 1 Tackling What You Owe
Taking Stock of Your Finances
Using a Budget to Get Out of Debt
Taking the Right Steps When You Have Too Much Debt
Handling Debt Collectors
Realizing your rights
Understanding why debt collectors behave as they do
Getting a Financial Education
The difference between good debt and bad debt
Distinguishing between types of credit
Seeing yourself through a creditor’s eyes
Building a better credit history
Chapter 2 Starting or Restarting Your Credit in Real Life
Debunking Misinformation about Banking and Credit
Why you need credit
Why credit is safe
Obtaining Credit: Starting Out on the Right Foot
Establishing a credit file without a Social Security number
Setting goals before you set out
Establishing a relationship with a financial institution
Using prepaid and reloadable cards
Fattening up your credit file
Avoiding high interest, fees, and scams
Overcoming Credit Fears and Mistakes
Qualifying for First-Time Cards and Lending
Getting a credit card
Using savings for credit
Considering Credit for Students and Military Members
Giving credit to students
Following military credit rules
Chapter 3 Consolidating Your Debts
Knowing When Debt Consolidation Makes Sense
Considering Your Options
Transferring balances
Getting a bank loan
Borrowing against your life insurance policy
Borrowing from your 401(k) retirement plan
Avoiding Dangerous Debt-Consolidation Possibilities
Chapter 4 Negotiating with Creditors and Getting Help
Getting Ready to Negotiate
Listing all your debts
Zeroing in on certain debts first
Reviewing your budget
Pulling together your financial information
Getting Down to Business: Contacting Creditors
Making the Agreement Official: Putting It in Writing
Knowing the Deal with Credit Counseling
Finding a Reputable Credit Counseling Agency
Differentiating the good from the bad
Locating agencies in your area
Knowing what to ask and what to expect
Working with a Credit Counselor
Sharing your financial situation
Whittling down your debt with a debt management plan
Avoiding Debt Settlement Firms
Being wary of false promises
Preventing worse financial problems
Getting Relief If You Get Ripped Off
Chapter 5 Considering Bankruptcy
Viewing Bankruptcy in a Historical Context
Debunking Bankruptcy Myths
“People who go bankrupt are sleazy deadbeats”
“Bankruptcy is the easy way out for folks who can pay their bills”
“Bankruptcy threatens the ethical foundations of our society”
“Honest folks pay a ‘tax’ to support people who are bankrupt”
Understanding What You Can Gain Through Bankruptcy
Stopping creditors in their tracks
Wiping out most of your debts
Catching up on back mortgage and car payments
Filing bankruptcy to pay some debts over time
Using bankruptcy to pay all your debts
Knowing What You Can Lose in Bankruptcy
Considering Alternatives to Bankruptcy
Introducing the Different Types of Personal Bankruptcy
Liquidations (Chapter 7)
Consumer reorganizations (Chapter 13)
Weighing the Consequences of Not Filing Bankruptcy
Claims secured by your car
Claims secured by your home
Student loans
Support obligations
Fines and restitution
Taxes
Lawsuits
Using the Statute of Limitations
Book 4 Saving and Investing
Chapter 1 Becoming a Saver
Eliminating Most of the Fat
Making lists of where you are now
Carving away the truly wasteful
Lowering Your Debt
Trimming Other Costs
Changing Your Perspective and Watching Your Savings Grow
Paying yourself first
Educating yourself about investing
Taking advantage of giveaways
Saving While in Debt
Chapter 2 Investing in Stocks, Bonds, and Mutual Funds
Stock: Owning a Piece of the Rock
Understanding stock
Conducting business in stock exchanges
Brushing up: A quick stock glossary
Picking a stock investment strategy
Buying Bonds for Fixed Income
Understanding bonds
Sorting out different kinds of bonds
Interpreting bond ratings
Mutual Funds: The Power of Many
Understanding mutual funds
Defining different kinds of mutual funds
Doing It Your Way versus Using a Broker
Full-service brokers
Discount brokers
Online brokers
Avoiding Five Common Investing Mistakes
Investing before you’re ready
Investing without goals
Believing those “hot” tips
Not diversifying your portfolio
Selling too soon (or too late)
Chapter 3 Saving for Retirement
Targeting Your Retirement Date
Getting Your Hands on Your Money
Drawing on your Social Security
Tapping into other sources
Living the retirement life
Testing the waters in your gene pool
Developing Your Retirement Savings Plan
Cutting down on your expenses
Picturing your progress
Counting on compounding
Chapter 4 Saving for College
Doing the Numbers
Exploring Section 529 Plans
Checking Out Coverdell Accounts
But Wait! There’s More!
Maximizing Your Savings, Minimizing Your Tax
Checking Out the Cost of College
Tackling tuition
Accounting for housing
Factoring in books and supplies
Looking into the Costs of Various Types of Schools
Exploring career and vocational training schools
Taking community college and continuing education classes
Going for a four-year public education
Getting your education in private
Chapter 5 Working with an Online Broker
Finding the Best Broker for You
The nine main factors to consider
Gotchas to watch out for
Separating the Types of Brokerages
Paying the minimum with a deep discounter
Get more with a discounter
Full-service traditional
Avoiding Hidden Fees
Finding Out What Reviewers Think
Is Your Money Safe? Checking Out Your Broker
Cutting the Cord: Mobile Trading
Opening and Setting Up Your Account
The checklist of what you need to know
The checklist of what you need to have
Book 5 Protecting Your Money and Assets
Chapter 1 Combating Identity Theft
Keeping Thieves at Bay
Getting on the technology train
Looking out for phishing scams
Safeguarding your computer data
Keeping passwords secret
Protecting your mail
Storing financial data in your home
Putting your credit information on ice
Shielding your credit card number
Catching Identity Thieves in the Act
Watching for early-warning notices
Getting early warnings from the IRS
Handling a collections call
Detecting unauthorized charges
Being denied credit or account access
Noticing missing account statements
Taking Fast Action When Identity Theft Occurs
Communicating with the right people
Protecting your identity through the FACT Act
Sending out a fraud alert
Blocking fraudulent credit lines
Getting and Using Credit After Identity Theft
Closing and reopening your accounts
Altering your PINs and passwords
Changing your Social Security number and driver’s license number
Chapter 2 Online Banking
Online and Traditional Banks
Advantages of online banking
Online bank access
Accounting for Your Accounts
Savings account
Basic checking account
Interest-bearing checking account
MMDA or MMA
CD
Choosing an Online Bank That’s Right for You
Identifying your user profile
Noting the fees when you shop
Opening Your Online Bank Account
Chapter 3 Homeowner’s Insurance: Protecting Your Stuff
Introducing the Six Parts of a Homeowner’s Policy
Insuring your residence (Coverage A)
Insuring detached structures (Coverage B)
Insuring your belongings (Coverage C)
Insuring additional living expenses (Coverage D)
Insuring your personal liability (Coverage E)
Insuring guests’ medical bills (Coverage F)
Choosing the Right Homeowner’s Property Coverages
Understanding the causes-of-loss options
Introducing the six most common homeowner’s policies
Establishing Property Coverage Limits
Determining the replacement cost of your home
Guaranteeing you’ll have enough insurance to rebuild
Estimating the cost to replace belongings
Choosing your deductible
Documenting Your Claim
Chapter 4 Auto Insurance Basics
Managing Your Lawsuit Risks
Reviewing noninsurance strategies
Buying liability insurance
Insuring Your Personal Injuries
Understanding how uninsured and underinsured motorist coverage works
Saving money on medical coverage
Dealing with Damage to Your Vehicle
Choosing cost-effective deductibles
Knowing when to drop collision and comprehensive coverage
Evaluating Road Service and Car Rental Coverages
Chapter 5 Insuring Yourself: Life Insurance
Assessing the Need
Who doesn’t need life insurance
Who does need life insurance
Determining How Much Coverage You Need
Looking at a hypothetical family
Using the multiple of income method
Using the web to estimate needs
Speaking the Language
Understanding the Types of Life Insurance
Ideal use
Pricing
Agent commissions
Understanding the Variations of Permanent Life Insurance
Whole life
Universal life
Variable life
Cash value options when dropping permanent insurance
Understanding the Variations of Term Life Insurance
Annual renewable term (ART)
Fixed-rate level term
Decreasing term
Insurance from your mortgage company
Making Your Choice
Evaluating Life Insurance Sources
Considering an agent
Buying without an agent
Debunking Myths and Mistakes
Mistake: Trading cash value for death protection needs
Myth: Supplemental group life is cheaper
Mistake: Buying life insurance in pieces
Mistake: Accidental death/travel coverage
Mistake: Covering only one income
Mistake: Ignoring a stay-at-home parent’s value
Mistake: Covering children, not parents
Mistake: Decreasing term insurance
Mistake: Being unrealistic about how much life insurance you can afford
Mistake: Buying before you need it
Myth: It’s cheaper when you’re young
Book 6 Dealing with the Tax Man
Chapter 1 Tax Return Preparation Options and Tools
Preparing Your Own Return
Taking Advantage of IRS Publications
Perusing Tax-Preparation and Advice Guides
Using Software
Accessing Internet Tax Resources
Internal Revenue Service
Research
Tax preparation sites
Hiring Help
Deciding whether you really need a preparer
Unenrolled preparers
Enrolled agents (EAs)
Certified public accountants (CPAs)
Tax attorneys
Finding Tax Preparers and Advisors
Chapter 2 Getting and Staying Organized
Maintaining the Burden of Proof
Keeping Good Records
Ensuring a complete and accurate tax return
Setting up a record-keeping system
Tracking tax information on your computer
Deciding when to stash and when to trash
Reconstructing Missing Tax Records
Property received by inheritance or gift
Securities received by inheritance or gift
Improvements to a residence
Casualty losses
Business records
Using duplicate account statements
Understanding the Cohan Rule
Chapter 3 No Form Fits All (Or, What Kind of Taxpayer Are You?)
What Rendition of 1040 Shall You Play?
Form 1040
Form 1040-SR
Form 1040-NR
Choosing a Filing Status
Single
Married filing jointly
Married filing separately
Head of household
Qualifying widow(er) with dependent child
Counting your dependents
Deciding who is your dependent
Securing Social Security numbers for dependents
Filing for Children and Other Dependents
Defining Who Is a Qualifying Child
Age test
Relationship test
Residency test
Support test
Must You File?
When to file
If you don’t file
Where to file
How to file
Book 7 Retiring Comfortably
Chapter 1 Checking the Benefits of a 401(k)
Realizing What a 401(k) Does for You
Lowers how much tax you pay
Gets you matching funds from your employer
Makes room for a little something extra: Employer non-matching contribution
Allows you to save without tears
Vesting: When Your Employer’s Contribution Is Yours to Keep
Vesting of employer contributions
Making exceptions
Letting the Pros Work for You
Protecting Your Money
Meeting minimum standards
Avoiding losses in bankruptcy
Watching Out for Potential Pitfalls
Earning more may mean contributing less
Being at the mercy of your plan
Chapter 2 Retiring Your Way: IRAs
Looking at the Basics of Your IRA
Staying traditional
Touching on Roth IRAs
Benefiting from a spousal IRA
Starting an IRA for a child
Setting Up Your IRA
Deciding where to invest your money
Opening your account
Maintaining Your IRA
Moving Your IRA
Chapter 3 Paychecks from Your House: Reverse Mortgages
Grasping the Reverse Mortgage Basics
Considering common objections
Who can get a reverse mortgage?
How much money can you get and when?
When do you pay the money back?
What do you owe?
How is the loan repaid?
What’s the out-of-pocket cost of getting a reverse mortgage?
What are the other reverse mortgage costs?
What’s the total annual rate?
How do reverse mortgages affect your government-sponsored benefits?
Shopping for a Reverse Mortgage
Making major choices
Counseling
Deciding Whether You Want a Reverse Mortgage
Chapter 4 Determining How Much You Need for Retirement
Improving Your Chances of an Ideal Retirement
Deciding How Much of Your Salary to Put Aside
Making use of your salary deferral agreement
Measuring your plan’s maximums
Being highly paid means different rules
Estimating what your budget can afford
Building Your Nest (Egg)
If you’re retiring in the near future
If your retirement is farther off
Using a retirement calculator
Chapter 5 Managing Money in Retirement
Looking Forward to Retirement
Decisions, Decisions: What to Do with Your 401(k) Money
Being older can save you money
Foiling the dreaded early withdrawal penalty
Leaving money with your former employer
Making Withdrawals from Your IRA
Paying Uncle Sam His Due: Required Withdrawals
Developing a Strategy to Deal with the Tax Man
Which comes first: Plucking the chicken or emptying the nest egg?
Dealing with that darned company stock
Managing Your Investments in Retirement
Live long and prosper
Stay practical
Managing Risk
Balancing investments
Buying an annuity
Consolidating Your Accounts
Tending to Your Nest Egg
Row, Row, Row Your Boat, Gently Down the Income Stream
Treating Your Home Like the Asset It Is
Adding up the expenses
Making use of your equity
Book 8 Planning Your Estate and Will
Chapter 1 The Fundamentals of Estate Planning
What Is an Estate?
The basics: Definitions and terminology
Property types
Types of property interest
Why You Need to Plan Your Estate
Why Your Estate-Planning Goals Differ from Your Neighbors’
The Critical Path Method to Planning Your Estate
Getting Help with Your Estate Planning
Making sure that your team of advisors is “FAIL” safe
Working with Certified Financial Planners (CFPs) and other professionals
Knowing what to expect from your accountant for your estate planning
Working with your insurance agent
Working with your attorney
Chapter 2 Where There’s a Will
Planning for Your Will
Knowing the Different Types of Wills
Simple wills
Other types of wills
Choosing Your Will’s Contents
Opening clauses
Giving clauses
Ending clauses
Safeguarding Your Will
Changing, Amending, and Revoking Your Will
Why you may need to change your will
Ways to change your will
Protecting Your Loved Ones from Your Unloved Ones
Figuring Out Your Will Status
Testacy: You’ve nailed everything down
Intestacy: You die with zero “will power”
Partial intestacy: The vultures start circling
Chapter 3 The Limitations of Wills: What You Can and Can’t Do
Making Your Peace with Statutes That Affect Your Will
Identifying Statutes That Your Will Can Change
Abatement: There’s not enough in the cupboard for everyone
Ademption: Some property is missing
Antilapse: Someone dies before you do
Divorce: High noon in Splitsville
Simultaneous death: Sorry, but we have to talk about it
Living (And Dying) with the Laws That Your Will Can’t Change
Community property
Spousal elective shares
Homestead allowance: Keeping a house for kiddies and spouse
Homestead exemption: How the law protects your house from your creditors
Exempt property: How the law protects your personal property from creditors
Family allowance: Drawing from your estate to protect your family
Oops! Taking care of VIPs who aren’t in the will
Chapter 4 Estate Planning with Online Resources
Understanding Wills and Trusts
Where there’s an online will, there’s a way
Avoiding probate
Getting the Basics of Trusts
Trusting in Living Trust to Avoid Probate
Joint Tenancy and Beneficiary Arrangements
Not all heirs are created equal
Don’t keep your estate plans hush-hush
Customizing Estate Planning for All Ages
Under 30 and loving it
Grooving in your midlife
Retired and enjoying the good life
Selecting an Estate Planner
Preparing to Meet Your Estate Planner
Index
EULA