FINANCIAL FOCUS® - What should you do with your tax refund?
It’s almost that time of year when many people start receiving their tax refunds. If you get one, what will you do with it? Of course, the answer will depend somewhat on how big your refund is. Last year, the average refund amount was about $2,750, according to the Internal Revenue Service's Filing Season Statistics report. Whatever the size of your refund, you’ll want to maximize its benefit. Here are a few suggestions: • Contribute to your IRA. If you were to receive about $2,750, it would go a
FINANCIAL FOCUS® - How will higher rates affect you?
As you know, interest rates have risen considerably over the past couple of years. But what does this mean to you, as a consumer and as an investor? From a consumer’s standpoint, it’s not hard to see the effects of higher interest rates. If you want to take out a mortgage or refinance an existing one, you’ll find that it’s considerably more costly, in terms of the interest you’ll pay, than it was a few years ago. And the same is true of car loans and credit cards. Paying these debts at higher rates can