Jul 10 U.S. teens rank between Latvia and Russia on financial literacy, far below Shanghai By Simone Pathe American teens may work summer jobs and manage money on their smartphones, but their financial literacy places them between Latvia and Russia, and far below 15-year-olds in Shanghai, who achieved the highest average score on the largest youth financial literacy… Continue reading
Jul 07 Deciding when to take Social Security widows benefits can’t get more complicated By Laurence Kotlikoff How do you know when you should take any of your Social Security benefits? As Larry Kotilikoff's column often reveals, it's complicated. But figuring out the best time to collect your widow(er)s benefits in relation to your retirement benefit is… Continue reading
Jun 30 How your lifetime Social Security benefits could be higher By Laurence Kotlikoff Social Security expert Larry Kotlikoff shows two couples who are facing disabilities how to increase their lifetime benefits. First of all, they have to scrap their current collection strategies and realize that what they want to do and what they… Continue reading
Jun 26 Why brokerage account insurance is a bigger scam than Madoff By Laurence Kotlikoff Responding to the president and CEO of the Securities Investor Protection Corporation, Larry Kotiloff stands by his call for readers to close their brokerage accounts because the SIPC, he argues, doesn't exist to protect them; it exists to penalize them. Continue reading
Jun 26 Your brokerage account is safe with the Securities Investor Protection Corporation By Stephen Harbeck Do you really need to close your brokerage account, as Larry Kotlikoff warns? Stephen Harbeck, president and CEO of the Securities Investor Protection Corporation, argues that the SIPC has recovered lost investments for victims of investor fraud, such as Bernie… Continue reading
Jun 23 What maxing out your Social Security benefits looks like in dollars By Laurence Kotlikoff Just how big a deal is maximizing your Social Security? It matters a lot when it comes to the dollars and cents of the lifetime benefits for which you'll be eligible. Larry Kotlikoff presents several cases, for individuals and couples,… Continue reading
Jun 20 Why no one should use brokerage accounts By Laurence Kotlikoff Every day brings new reports of financial fraud -- BNP Paribas, Credit Suisse, JP Morgan -- all of which is testimony to the large number of swindlers still at large “managing” our money, says Larry Kotlikoff. But he's here today… Continue reading
Jun 02 Your Social Security benefits depend on the specifics By Laurence Kotlikoff Social Security expert Larry Kotlikoff says there is no general rule in trying to maximize your Social Security benefits. The precise amounts of what you and your current, ex-, or deceased spouse(s) earned and when you and they earned it… Continue reading
May 26 Why Social Security lowballs benefit estimates By Laurence Kotlikoff Social Security's online calculators intentionally underestimate your benefits to encourage people to save more on their own, explains Social Security expert Larry Kotlikoff. Continue reading
May 19 Protecting your spouse’s Social Security when cancer cuts your time short By Laurence Kotlikoff Social Security expert Larry Kotlikoff puts to rest a cancer patient's fears that he and his wife made a mistake by not having her file for spousal benefits as early as age 62 and explains how he can help leave… Continue reading