Savant Blog
Savant offers perspective on a variety of topics. Entries range from current events to timeless insights in the world of finance and investments.
07
Mar
March 07, 2014
Marriage often involves the well-known phrases “For better or worse” and “In sickness and in health.” Should these apply to only matters of the heart, mind, and body? What if one spouse has substantial debt? This question may not need to be answered on the honeymoon; however, it does need to be addressed with high priority since financial issues can greatly impact the relative happiness of your union. Consider:
67% of all college graduates have debt as the result of college
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05
Mar
March 05, 2014
The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) has created new rules that will protect home mortgage shoppers from harmful practices, helping them to avoid the kind of mortgage surprises that were common just a few short years ago. One feature of these rules is a new class of mortgages, called “Qualified Mortgages” or “QMs.” Borrowers who qualify for QMs are presumed to be able to repay, making them safer and fairer than some of the fee-heavy, interest-only loans made during the
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04
Mar
March 04, 2014
By this time of year, most people have received their tax-related documents. As more and more returns are filed and received by the IRS, instances of telephone scams also increase. So when I recently offered five tips to help you prevent tax identity theft, I forgot to mention one—don’t answer the phone!
Telephone scams are a new entry on the IRS “Dirty Dozen” list, which outlines the top twelve fraudulent tax schemes and scams that taxpayers may be exposed to throughout
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27
Feb
February 27, 2014
This time of year, mailboxes across the country are flooded with tax documents and meetings are scheduled with tax preparers. For families with a student heading to college in the fall, it’s also time to file the FAFSA, which stands for Free Application for Federal Student Aid. The FAFSA is used to calculate the Expected Family Contribution (EFC). The EFC measures a family’s financial strength and is used to determine financial aid eligibility. A lower EFC typically means greater eligibility
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21
Feb
February 21, 2014
Watching the Sochi Winter Olympics over the past few weeks, I have been consistently amazed at the caliber of athletes competing in such a wide variety of sports, none of which I could ever even dream of participating in. I get nervous at the thought of sledding downhill at the local community park, let alone barreling face-first at 80 miles per hour on an Olympic bobsled course. Athletes train for years just to have the opportunity to compete at these
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