Credit Repair, How To

Written by Mike Herman


Continued from page 1

They may offer to allow you to pay it off without charging additional finance charges if you agree to pay a certain amount monthly.

Or, they may even allow you to pay off your credit for pennies onrepparttar dollar.

This means that if you owe a creditor $1000 they may allow you to pay it off by only paying $700 if you pay it off in a certain manner.

Inrepparttar 141112 end,repparttar 141113 only type of credit repair that will actually improve your credit rating is time and good habits.

By paying off any money that you owe, you can gradually reestablish your credit slowly.

Be smart though, and do not get yourself intorepparttar 141114 same situation you got into.

Talking to your creditors can be a good first step to take.

It may help to stoprepparttar 141115 negative ratings and actually get you a few good marks.

Inrepparttar 141116 end, no matter why you got intorepparttar 141117 situation you are in, you will need to take better care to stop this from happening again.

For continually updated information, tools and resources visit the CreditAndCreditReports.com blog.


An Annuities Primer

Written by Bill Willard


Continued from page 1

Annuities are accessible. Because there are no contribution limits, people can invest as much or as little as they chose in annuities no matter what their income levels. And this money grows on a tax-deferred basis untilrepparttar accumulated earnings are distributed, usually at retirement.

Moreover, unlike other tax-deferred investments duringrepparttar 141111 distribution phase, annuities’ tax-deferred earnings are not counted in determining a person’s income taxes on Social Security benefits. Atrepparttar 141112 same time, while annuitants cannot outlive their guaranteed benefits, properly structured annuity contracts and beneficiary designations can: 1) avoid probate,

2) protect assets held in trust from mismanagement by a parent of guardians, and

3) continue benefits torepparttar 141113 annuitant’s heirs, thus making annuities effective multigenerational planning vehicles.

Market Overview

With their unique advantages, a growing market for annuities has grown among individuals with longer-term wealth accumulation and retirement planning needs, as well as individuals with immediate income needs. Let's consider how two types of annuities can be used to addressrepparttar 141114 wealth accumulation and retirement planning problems we all face. These are:

Non-qualified Annuities • Qualified Annuities

Non-Qualified Annuities -- Non-qualified annuities are purchased with after-tax dollars to meet longer-term wealth accumulation or retirement planning needs--with emphasis on longer-term.

As noted, deferred annuities may not be appropriate for shorter-term wealth accumulation purposes — generally those that will materialize before age 59½; while immediate annuities are designed to provide long-term income — that is, income guaranteed for life.

Non-qualified annuities are used to fund cash accumulation programs that do not qualify for a front-end tax deduction; but whether an annuity is qualified or non-qualified, premiums always accumulate interest that is free of current income tax until withdrawn. But non-qualified annuities also allow owners to continue tax deferral beyondrepparttar 141115 age 70,repparttar 141116 mandatory withdrawal age for traditional IRA's and qualified retirement plans.

Qualified Annuities-- Annuities can also accommodate tax-qualified money. A qualified annuity is used to fund a tax-qualified retirement plan such as a traditional IRA or an HR-10. Thus in most cases, premiums paid to qualified annuities are tax-deductible. For instance, when people change jobs and have 401(k) funds to move or already have IRAs and are seeking a more diversified portfolio. They can reduce their portfolio exposure by rollingrepparttar 141117 money over into an annuity without losing tax advantages.

Or suppose Alice inherits $20,000. If she doesn’t needrepparttar 141118 money right away and wants to build a long-term nest egg, she might consider puttingrepparttar 141119 inheritance into an annuity. By doing so, she’ll gainrepparttar 141120 advantage of tax-deferral, and when it’s time to withdraw funds from her non-qualified annuity, Alice will only be taxed onrepparttar 141121 accumulated interest, notrepparttar 141122 principal.

Generally, annuities are not suitable estate planning vehicles, but are useful in meeting immediate and retirement income needs. Thus, iif you’re a candidate for wealth accumulation and retirement planning, remember: "The only person who can take care ofrepparttar 141123 older person we will someday be isrepparttar 141124 younger person we are now."

Want More? Send questions and comments to w.willard3@knology.net

Bill Willard has been writing high-impact marketing and sales training for the financial services industry for over 30 years. Through interactive, Web-based "Do-While-Learning™" programs, e-Newsletters and straight-talking articles, Bill helps agents and advisors get the job done: profitably improving performance, skipping expensive mistakes, and making the journey to success faster, smoother, easier. And fun!


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