Login
Discover
Waves
Decks
Plus
Login
Signup
Ben Rosenthal
@benrosenthalft
36
Financial Educator, Supporter of those who want to both find themselves and help others
Followers
191
Following
46
Resource Credits
Available
Used
Created
September 4, 2018
RSS Feed
Subscribe
Posts
Blog
Posts
Comments
Communities
Wallet
benrosenthalft
freedom
2019-03-07 05:32
Your Cheat Sheet of Important Ages for Retirement Planning
When I worked as a U.S. financial advisor, I had to familiarize myself with a number of age-related rules, such as “How old do you have to be to start collecting Social Security?” and “How old do you have
$ 0.000
0
1
benrosenthalft
freedom
2019-01-27 02:12
Some Things to Be Aware of When Choosing a Fee-Based Financial Advisor
You’ve probably heard that when it comes to working with a financial advisor, you should choose a fee-based advisor (meaning one whose compensation doesn’t vary by what they recommend to you) over an advisor
$ 0.000
2
1
benrosenthalft
freedom
2019-01-08 17:05
A Special Window of Opportunity for Roth IRAs
Happy New Year! If you’re familiar with my work, you know I’m a fan of Roth IRAs. Where else can you invest with almost total freedom and be able to look forward to reaping the rewards tax-free? I’m writing
$ 0.000
3
1
benrosenthalft
freedom
2018-12-19 06:29
How to (Legally) Exceed your Roth IRA Contribution Limits
I’ve written before that the easiest way to set yourself up with tax-free income (and the way that offers you the most investment freedom) is a Roth IRA. However, one of the most frustrating limitations
$ 0.000
12
1
benrosenthalft
freedom
2018-11-16 22:07
An Economical Way to Create an Instant Legacy
Today, I’m going to talk about a financial product that, like annuities, is highly controversial: cash value life insurance. Some people are staunch advocates of CVL for its potential to build tax-free
$ 0.027
5
benrosenthalft
freedom
2018-11-06 22:16
The Big One!
Ever since spring of 2009, when the stock market started to recover from its biggest meltdown that most of us alive today can remember, a lot of people have been wondering, "When's the next big one
$ 0.000
2
benrosenthalft
inspiration
2018-10-26 22:26
The Difference Between "Your Dreams" and "Your Purpose in Life"
I've always been a big fan of "following your dreams", but I've come to shift that to "finding and living your purpose in life". Why? Because a dream isn't necessarily that thing you
$ 0.000
2
benrosenthalft
freedom
2018-10-17 03:55
Strategies for Coping with RMDs
This post is for anyone who has a pretax account and is at the stage of life when you have to take RMDs (required minimum distributions). (If this isn't you, it may be someone you know.) First, a friendly
$ 0.000
3
1
benrosenthalft
business
2018-10-09 02:30
You Don’t Have to Work for Someone Else to Get a 401(k) & Pension!
A lot of “solopreneurs” (entrepreneurs with no employees) make the mistake of relying on their business as their sole retirement plan. But that’s like investing all of your retirement money in a single
$ 0.038
5
benrosenthalft
freedom
2018-10-02 19:41
How to Make an Informed Decision about Annuities
(Photo by Jonathan Meyer from Pexels) In my last blog post, I talked about how annuities can provide value as a form of insurance against outliving your money, and addressed some of the common criticisms
$ 0.000
2
2
benrosenthalft
freedom
2018-10-01 16:11
A way to guarantee you never run out of money
(Photo by icon0.com from Pexels) Imagine if you had your own personal pension, guaranteed to send you a check every single month for the rest of your life (starting in your 60s or later). Would that help
$ 0.000
0
benrosenthalft
freedom
2018-09-24 21:05
Should I Contribute to the Retirement Plan at Work? (Part 5)
Up to now, we’ve focused on why you might want to put some of your paycheck into your 401(k) or other workplace retirement plan. Now, let’s turn to the question of what you should select inside the plan.
$ 0.052
1
4
benrosenthalft
freedom
2018-09-24 19:34
Should I Contribute to the Retirement Plan at Work? (Part 4)
Continuing from Part 3, here are a seventh and eighth scenario in which it might make sense to contribute to a workplace retirement plan. (7) You want to lock in favorable terms on an annuity that’s available
$ 0.000
2
benrosenthalft
money
2018-09-21 20:49
Should I Contribute to the Retirement Plan at Work? (Part 3)
Continuing from Part 2, here are a fifth and sixth scenario in which it might make sense to contribute to a workplace retirement plan. (5) It’s a 457(b) (“Deferred Comp Plan”) Despite their overwhelming
$ 0.000
2
benrosenthalft
money
2018-09-20 17:05
Should I Contribute to the Retirement Plan at Work? (Part 2)
Continuing from Part 1, here are a third and fourth scenario in which it might make sense to contribute to a workplace retirement plan. (3) You want to lower your tax bill for the current year further
$ 0.000
3
benrosenthalft
money
2018-09-19 21:10
Should I Contribute to the Retirement Plan at Work? (Part 1)
In a recent post, I talked about how relying too heavily on your 401(k) as a retirement vehicle can lead to unintended tax consequences later in life. Well, another issue with 401(k) plans is that they
$ 0.048
5
2
benrosenthalft
money
2018-09-12 22:58
The Easiest Tax-Free Account to Open
In my last post, I talked a little about tax-free accounts and how my wife and I are making use of them. So I thought it only fitting to introduce the easiest type of tax-free to open: the Roth IRA. I’m
$ 0.000
3
benrosenthalft
money
2018-09-11 20:17
Enjoy a Satisfying Tax Life! (Part 2)
In Part 1, we went over the hidden trap of making a pretax account like a 401(k) your primary retirement vehicle. Here, I want to give you some ideas on what you can do to avoid that trap. But instead
$ 0.021
5
5
benrosenthalft
money
2018-09-10 23:14
Enjoy a Satisfying Tax Life! (Part 1)
Let’s face it: we all have a tax life. And most of us would like to make our tax life more satisfying (or at least less painful). Whatever your views on taxes are, it’s an inescapable fact that our ability
$ 0.027
3
7
benrosenthalft
money
2018-09-07 04:23
How not to get swept up in financial hysteria
I remember a day back in high school when the TV news and newspapers reported that the Dow Jones Industrial Average (a common measure of the condition of the U.S. stock market) had experienced its largest
$ 0.057
3
3
