Last year, I wrote a blog post to help people figure out whether you need to get some professional help on your finances and if so who you need. A couple of readers asked me afterward: What's the easiest way to identify the real "Financial Advisors/Planners" without contacting them directly? This week I will show you four simple steps to help you understand what a so-called "Financial Adviser/Planner" really is.
5 Ways To Save Money In 2018
Last year, I compiled a list of some FinTech companies in personal finance which you could find it here. While celebrating Chinese New Year this week, I would like to share with you five products or services on that list that we either tried or at least considered before. I hope that you may find them helpful if you want to save some money in the new year.
Recent Market Volatility
After recording 14 new closing highs in the first four weeks of 2018, the S&P 500 index fell over 10% in two weeks. It is a perfect example of showing us how volatile the stock market could be. Also, it is a great opportunity to test whether you could stick to a disciplined investment approach with a long-term view. Last year, I wrote a blog titled "How Does The Volatility Of The Stock Market Affect Your Investment?". That blog gives you some basic understanding of how volatile the stock market has been in the past and what it means to a long-term investor. This week, I would like to share with you some additional resources I use to educate my clients during a market turmoil.
5 Things Non-U.S. Citizens Need To Know About Social Security Retirement Benefits
If you are a permanent resident and not planning to become a U.S. citizen in the future, you may wonder if you are still eligible for Social Security benefits and if so how much you will get and whether you can still collect the payment if you decide to go back to your home county. Don’t worry and I'm with you.
There are a couple of different types of Social Security benefits. Here I will mainly focus on the most common one - retirement benefit. If you are not familiar with the Social Security retirement benefits, please read this publication from Social Security Administration (SSA) to get some basic understandings of how it works in general before we get into some specific issues related to Non-U.S. citizens.