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1. CARY ROWELL'S
A C O M P I L AT I O N O F I N F O R M AT I O N A N D I D E A S F O R E F F E C T I V E M O N E Y M A N A G E M E N T
Financial Front
Money line
NEWS BRIEFS AND HIGHLIGHTS FROM THE FINANCIAL WORLD
Do You Lump-sum pension payouts may Don’t remodel to increase a
Have Enough? not be available to all holders of
defined-benefit plans. A new law
home’s value if you plan to move
soon. You would be lucky to recover
requires employers to tell their work- even a portion of your investment if
ers if a defined-benefit plan is fully you sell before the depressed housing
funded—that is, if it has all the money market recovers, and that may take
By W. Cary Rowell
needed to pay all its obligations. Fully another two years. Also, affordability is
LUTCF, MBA funded plans may offer retirees either moving up in importance to home buy-
a series of payments or a lump-sum ers, given tight economic conditions.
I hope you find you have enough when you con- payout, but plans that do not have “Sprucing up” your home still is worth-
sider what’s really important in your life. enough money to pay in full at least while, however. Examples: Painting
I recently read a letter to a financial columnist 80% of employees are allowed to pay walls, trimming bushes and straighten-
that read, “Many of my 50-something friends are only 50% of a retiree’s pension in a ing up your garage.
wasting some invaluable time that they’ve been lump sum. And plans that do not have
given on Earth. They are caught up in an ‘earning enough money to pay at least 60% of If your mortgage lender fails, keep
and spending cycle’ (must keep working hard so employees do not have to make any sending your monthly payments to the
they can keep buying things they don’t really lump-sum payments at all. Ask your same address until you are told to do
need) while worrying they’ll need to save a lot of defined-benefit plan’s manager for otherwise. If your lender transfers
money to retire. details on the financial health of your your mortgage to another servicer, you
“I can’t believe the number of smart, talented company’s plan. will be notified within 15 days and the
friends I have who are not particularly happy new servicer must contact you within
doing what they are doing,” the reader said. But Looking for a lost savings bond? 15 days after the transfer. The Real
Go to TreasuryDirect.gov and down- Estate Settlement Procedures Act
they believe “they must continue so they can stop
load Form 1048, Claim for Lost, Stolen (RESPA) sets rules for mortgage trans-
working at (fill-in-the-blank age) to play golf or sit
or Destroyed US Savings Bonds. Fill in fers. For more information, visit
by the pool.”
the following information: the bond www.hud.gov, and search for “RESPA.”
I must agree. What a waste, doing something
owner’s name, address and Social Your mortgage terms will not
you don’t like so eventually you can stop and
Security number; approximate issue change—the contract is legally binding
do...nothing? even if transferred to another party.
date; and serial number if available.
Why not pursue your passions even if the pay is
Once the form is certified at a bank,
less? (That reader did, returning to school for a mail to the Department of Treasury
degree in a different field.) If you love what you (the address can be found on the
do, you may never feel the need to totally retire,
or at least won’t mind working a few more years.
form). With the serial number, the Wit & Wisdom
process will take three to four weeks;
Retirement, as this reader said, would be a time without it, you may be waiting months
to work for joy and learn new things. to get a duplicate bond. “A bone to the dog
is not charity.
If you take photos of your home
W. Cary Rowell LUTCF, MBA for posting on-line, be sure the pic- Charity is the bone
Financial Services Professional
628 Chestnut Centre
tures do not show off valuables. Also: shared with the dog,
Before holding an open house, lock up
Myrtle Beach, SC 29572
valuables or store them off the premis-
when you are just as
(843) 449-7805
wcrowell@ft.newyorklife.com
es. There have been recent reports of hungry as the dog.”
www.caryrowell.nylagents.com well-dressed thieves coming to open
— Jack London
houses and stealing jewelry, handbags,
clothing, even champagne.
Volume 22, Number 3