Some Steps For Setting Financial Goals

There are a few things you need to take into consideration when you are looking to create and set up your own financial goals. You need to take into consideration a number of different concepts and aspects when you are looking at what it is that you want to do. Here is what you need to do:
· Write and list your goals that you want to achieve financially such as college and new car.
· Break down all of the goals that you have listed into two categories. Those goals that are short term and those that are long term.
· Learn as much as you can about what you want to spend the money on. Make sure to know if prices are changing and how you will have the money to pay for what you want.
· Review what you are doing regularly. You will need to make sure that you have the money on hand to pay for your goals and to overcome the obstacles to reach them.

Joseph Leonard is a registered Investment Advisor in North Carolina, author of The Retirement Vault and founder and CEO of the Financial Management Company in North Carolina, Coastal Financial Associates.

Benefits Of A Roth IRA

There are a number of reasons to go with a Roth IRA as opposed to the other types of retirement accounts out there. One of the best is the fact that they are so flexible. You will not get the tax breaks you would on a typical retirement account, but you only pay the taxes once and that is when you put the money into that account. There is also the flexibility of being able to take money out of the account with no penalties. This means you can borrow the money you already paid taxes on if necessary for things such as buying a house. There are other benefits that you can have as well when you are considering which retirement plan to choose. Such as being able to take out all of the money at 59 ½ or the fact you decide how much you want to put in annually and do not need to commit to a certain amount out of every paycheck.

Joseph Leonard is a registered Investment Advisor in North Carolina, author of The Retirement Vault and founder and CEO of the Financial Management Company in North Carolina, Coastal Financial Associates.

Five Common Money Mistakes of College Students

Five Common Money Mistakes of College Students
There are a number of different mistakes that college students will make when they start to get into the realm of financial responsibility, here are some of them:
1. Credit card debt accumulated. Many times college students are the target of credit card companies and they do not know how to handle the debt or a means to pay for it.
2. Destroying their credit score. Because of credit cards and other loans, college students get in debt over their heads and have trouble making the payments necessary.
3. Improper budgeting can also be a huge money mistake by college students. Many times they do not realize the real cost of things and end up not having the money to pay or cover all of their needs.
4. Misuse of student loans. This can cause a huge problem for the future as you will have to pay that money back and if it was used to finance a trip as opposed to pay for school you will regret it.
5. Going to a college that costs too much. Many times the only thing the student looks at is the name on the school. This could cost much more than necessary for the same education at a much cheaper local school.

Joseph Leonard is a registered Investment Advisor in North Carolina, author of The Retirement Vault and founder and CEO of the Financial Management Company in North Carolina, Coastal Financial Associates.

Facts About A 401k Loan

There are many things you need to realize when you go to take a loan out from your 401k loan. The first of which is the fact that you will need to pay the loan back. This means that you will need to replace the money that you took out of the plan in the form of a payroll deduction. Not only will you need to pay the money back, which is yours to begin with, but you will also need to pay interest on the loan. This means you will need to pay back your own money and you will need to pay interest on it as well. Then there is the origination fee you will need to pay as well. This is the cost that comes out of the money you borrow for the 401k planner to create the loan. In most cases, it is $75 before you even get to see any of the money. So ask yourself if it is really worth taking out the loan before you really go and do it.

Joseph Leonard is a registered Investment Advisor in North Carolina, author of The Retirement Vault and founder and CEO of the Financial Management Company in North Carolina, Coastal Financial Associates.

The True Cost Of Credit

As appealing as it may sound to have a credit card to use and make purchases with, it can be a way to get yourself in debt much faster than you would have ever imagined. If you were to use the credit card and made a purchase that used up all of the limit say about $2500 you would have just put yourself in that much debt. In all likelihood, you used the card because you did not have the money on hand in the first place. However, you will get all excited because you will only need to pay $50 per month in order to be able to own the new item. But what you do not realize is that you are really only paying the interest you owe on the credit card and very little towards the principle, this means that it could take you up to 334 months at 18% interest to pay off the new item.

Joseph Leonard is a registered Investment Advisor in North Carolina, author of The Retirement Vault and founder and CEO of the Financial Management Company in North Carolina, Coastal Financial Associates.

Enticing Retirees To Georgia

In an attempt to draw well-off retirees to Georgia, Governor Perdue has increased the tax breaks that they would receive as residents of the state. There are new taxes on hospitals however, if you are over the age of 62, you are not subject to income tax on your social security income or any income you make up to $70,000 with this amount rising to $130,000 by 2016. However, Georgia is not the only state trying to attract the retirees.

There are seven states that do not have a state income tax, which retirees may find extremely appealing. They are Alaska, Florida, Nevada, South Dakota, Texas, Washington and Wyoming. Other states only tax dividends and interest earned. Many other areas simply do not tax social security benefits at all. These are all things to consider when you are trying to figure out where is the best place to go when you do decide to retire. Contact your local Retirement Planner in North Carolina to review your comprehensive retirement options.

What Is Happening With Estate Taxes & Estate Planning?

As you may know, there is no estate tax in place for the year 2010. Estate planning attorneys are trying to determine what is likely to happen next year, to ensure that their clients can be caught up. Unless Congress makes some changes, the estate tax will be back again in 2011. This means that no more than $1 million of an individual's estate would be exempt from the estate tax. Last year's estate tax was $3.5 million exemption. Also keep in mind that the top estate tax rate moves up to 55 percent, which is up from the 45 percent it was sitting at last year.

What does this mean? Currently, if an individual dies in 2010, their estate is not subjected to estate taxes, but that does not mean there is no federal tax liability on inheritances. This has left many estate planners in a lurch. What is the right tax to pay this year?

If you do not have an estate plan in place, you could fall victim to this same turmoil. The only way to effectively minimize taxes is to so with an estate plan so consult a North Carolina estate planner today.

Joseph Leonard

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Joseph Leonard: "Senior industry financial consultant for Coastal Investment Advisors, Million Dollar Round Table member, nationally recognized speaker & author on money management."