Everyone strives to be a millionaire. Think of the many television shows that have a $1 million prize for the winner. Or look at the lottery commercials touting the latest pot of multiple millions. I’m not going to discuss the ineffectiveness of this ambiguous goal many Americans have set for themselves. This can be a…
Like tree rings, there is no stopping the evidence of the passing years. The first dental bridge, the lengthening belt size, the graying of the sideburns – so distinguished. (Yeah, right!) The first such sign to shock me occurred in college when a high school student called me “Sir.” At first I was pleased, but…
It’s that time of year when your employer rolls out their 15 percent increase to your health insurance payment. That’s a bad joke, but most likely a true statement. It’s also the time to review all of your employee benefits and sign up for the options that you need. Here are my tips and things…
Americans spend more than $45 billion on their pets every year. That’s not surprising since a pet is part of the family. However, that doesn’t mean you can forgo retirement savings or go into debt to care for the adorable little bundle of fur. Pets aren’t quite as costly as children, but food, vaccinations and…
It shouldn’t be a shock to hear that people don’t save enough for retirement. Americans are only saving 5 percent of their income, and that’s up from the typical 0 percent to 3 percent during the past decade. Yet 70 percent of us worry about retirement. See the contradiction? We are worrying about retirement, but…
There is no exact timeframe or science to real estate cycles, but this alternation has been going on internationally ever since there were landowners. Today in San Diego and in most of the world, it is a buyer’s market. It has been a buyer’s market for four to five years, as prices have continued to…
The stock market had a nice increase over the first four months of the year. But now it’s been going down for May and June. Maybe it’s due to the Greek debt problem, or Spain’s bank bailout, or slow U.S. job growth. It’s enough to make you go crazy. But should it? Heck no! None…
Home equity is the difference between the balance of your home mortgage and the current market value of your home. If you are fortunate enough to have equity in your home, using it to invest in real estate is something you may want to consider. Throughout history, many people have made outstanding investments in real…
WASHINGTON – The U.S. Senate Homeland Security and Government Affairs Committee has approved the Domestic Partnership Benefits and Obligations Act (DPBO) S. 1910. The bill, sponsored by Sens. Joe Lieberman (I-CT) and Susan Collins (R-ME), would provide benefits for same-sex domestic partners of federal civilian employees on the same basis as spousal benefits. These benefits…
Veteran Congressman David Drier (R-Calif.) representing California’s 26th Congressional District announced Wednesday that he would not seek re-election in November. Drier’s retirement follows on the heels of a similar announcement from Senator Olympia Snowe (R-Maine) who surprised the Republican Congressional Leadership this week with her announcement to retire from her Senate seat in November. In…
