Month: January 2020

With so much health advice in the news today, just thinking about what you should or should not be doing can be a dizzying prospect. Harvard doctors agree that health can be an overwhelming topic. But they say that if you have a handle on these four numbers, you can have a pretty good idea of where you stand and what to do about it.

1. Your body mass index (BMI). Many people are overweight and don’t think they are. The health risks climb when you reach the overweight level. Here’s what they mean:
   Underweight is a BMI of less than 18.5, and normal weight is a BMI of 18.5 to 24.9.
   Overweight is a BMI of 25 to 29.9, and obesity is a BMI of 30 or over. If your calculation shows more than 24.9, it’s time to lose weight. To get a fast BMI rating, see nhlbisupport.com/bmi/bmicalc.htm. Just enter your height and weight.
2. Your blood pressure. Ideally, it should be 120/80 or below. Starting at 115/75, the risk for heart attack, stroke, and other cardiovascular disease doubles with each increment of 20/10.
   People with systolic blood pressure (the first number) of 120 to 139 or a diastolic of 80 to 90 are “prehypertensive.” Changes in diet and activity patterns can help prevent cardiovascular disease at this level.
3. Your fasting glucose. If you have two fasting plasma glucose measurements of 126 mg/dL or greater, you have diabetes.
4. Your LDL cholesterol level. Your bad cholesterol reading should be below 100, but 70 is better. Diet, exercise, and medications like statins, or all three, can lower your LDL, reducing your heart disease risk by about a third

The cost of retirement can vary dramatically depending on where you live and what choices you make before you retire.
Ideally, you want to have enough social security and investments to maintain your current lifestyle.
While investment advisers routinely say $1 million in investments will ensure a happy retirement, this is not necessarily true. In high-tax states with high cost of living, a big retirement pot is probably essential. But, in lower tax states with lower cost of living, retirees might need about a fourth of that amount.
The key question is how you prepare before retirement.

• Run the numbers. Check with Social Security for an estimate of retirement income. But, remember your Medicare and taxes will be deducted from social security, so that number will be lower. For other income, you will be paying cash for taxes. Look at all your expenses. Medicare plus supplements and prescriptions could run more than you think. For example, some prescriptions could cost $100-$300 per month, even with a prescription plan.
• Get out of debt. The best strategy is to be out of debt before retirement. Aim for zero credit balances.
• Pay off the mortgage. In some cases, holding a mortgage might be financially wise, depending on how much your investments are making as opposed to the interest rate on your mortgage. But good general advice is to pay off the mortgage before retirement.
• Transportation. Plan to have a late model car that is paid off before retirement. A car payment soaks up retirement funds.
• Emergency fund. Build one with at least 3 to 6 months of expenses. Emergencies won’t stop just because you are retired, and you won’t have money coming in. You must avoid credit card debt.
• Long-term care insurance. Plan early to buy long-term care insurance when prices will be lower.

“What am I going to do with all this time?”

That’s a question retirees often ask themselves these days. The trend of retired Americans or those close to it is to keep working. Some need income; others use it for travel and leisure activities, hobbies, or purely for the personal fulfillment of work and staying involved with others.

In March of this year, the second annual Small Business Survey revealed 65% of more than 5,000 Americans polled said they envision opening a business when they retire.

These results are not surprising, according to Dr. Luke Pittaway, Professor of Entrepreneurship at Ohio University. People are living longer, he says, and more than ever before are choosing to start a business to stay active.

According to The Balance Small Business, any service that consumers and companies will pay for can be turned into a business. Among them are accounting, bookkeeping, handyman, landscaping, pet care, and more.

Freelance writing is more popular than ever with blogging, writing for businesses large and small, e-books, and memoirs, among others. Self-publishing is fast and affordable these days.

Nearly any hobby can be turned into a business too. How about gardening? Baking? Photography? A musical instrument?

Contact your former employers to offer your services. Access your network to find potential clients.

Starting a home-based business enables the retiree to profit from decades of experience in his or her profession. Selling one’s skills through a service-based home business is one of the fastest and least expensive ways to start making money at home. At or near the top of the possibilities are consulting and coaching. Both can be performed at home and enhanced by online tools.

According to Forbes, today’s mortgage rates — at about 3.75 percent — will stay low in 2020. At the same time, market watchers expect home prices to continue to escalate due to low inventory and high demand.
Without more listings on the market, competition will increase early in the year. Entry-level home prices will rise higher than incomes. Low-interest rates and the lack of starter homes will continue to raise prices.
Housing inventory will remain soft through most of the year. As one real estate agent remarked, “You can’t buy what’s not for sale.”
According to the National Association of Home Builders, new construction in late 2019 reached a 20-month high. Even so, months may be needed before building can sustain demand.
Realtor.com reveals Millennials constituted almost half — 46 percent — of mortgage originations in September 2019, up from 43 percent in 2018. At the same time, Baby Boomer and Gen X mortgage activity faded.
If today’s older adults (born between 1931 and 1959) behaved like previous generations, more than 1.6 million homes would have been on the market in 2019.
But Boomers are staying in their homes, not downsizing as did previous generations. One factor: Older people are working longer. Another factor is that young people are staying at home longer. In 2016, 16.1 percent of senior households had younger generations living with them, up from 14.4 percent in 2005, according to Trulia and Census figures.
As for homeowners, should they sell in 2020? According to the Federal Reserve, household equity in real estate has more than doubled since its shortage in 2012. Mortgage equity is at an all-time high
Homeowners with the flexibility to move in the next few years may be assuming that when they’re ready, the market will be as inviting as it is today. This is not necessarily true, and some vital housing-market drivers suggest 2020 could be a sweet spot for selling a home.
Mortgage interest rates are low. Potential buyers track them carefully. That’s a pleasant tailwind for buyers interested in a homeowners’ property,
Has the time come to book their profits and move on?
Only the homeowner knows.