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Real Estate: Should You Refinance?
by Stacy Francis, CFP®, CDFAI was stunned to read in the newspaper this morning that it is now possible to secure a 30-year fixed mortgage at 4.5% (restrictions apply). This, of course, is wonderful news for anyone shopping for a home: we now have a real estate market...
3 Money Lessons for Pre-Schoolers
by Stacy Francis, CFP®, CDFA, Founder Savvy Ladies Teaching Your Children Proper Money Management at a Young Age is Smart In the park this weekend, one of the moms shocked me by telling me that her 5-year-old son recently asked her about car financing. Why, he wanted...
Should You Buy a Vacation Home?
by Stacy Francis, CFP®, CDFAI just returned from a lovely weekend of skiing in Vermont. Being pregnant meant that I got to enjoy lovely hot chocolate in the lodge. One of my hubby’s friends just bought a gorgeous cabin there, and invited us to come check it out....
5 Tips When Buying a Home
by Stacy Francis, CFP®, CDFARemember my friend who is moving to Miami? She called again last night, to report that she is flying down there this weekend to start looking at condos. She asked me to put together a list of things to keep in mind as she browses the market...
5 Tips When Selling a Home
by Stacy Francis, CFP®, CDFAFebruary has never been the most pleasant month in the Northeast, but I was still shocked when a friend called me up last night to inform me that she is leaving town – for good! When she learned that she could get her hands on a condo in...
When Your Parents Need Help
by Stacy Francis, CFP®, CDFAA new Starbucks just opened a block from my office – what a treat! It was an even bigger treat to run into an old friend there yesterday. Catching up over lattes (hot chocolate for me since I am pregnant), I learned that she has a fabulous...
Saving for College in Tough Times
by Stacy Francis, CFP®, CDFA“My daughter is off to college in 2010,” a woman told me during the Q&A session at a recent conference. “Now the savings account we opened for her has been cut in half, and my husband has lost his job. Will a local community college be...
Money Considerations for Women
by Stacy Francis, CFP®, CDFAThe gentleman next to me during the opening dinner at a recent conference couldn’t get over the fact that I named my organization Savvy Ladies. Why, he wanted to know, did I find it necessary to focus solely on women? This, of course, is an...
Long-Term Care Insurance: When to Get It and When Not To
by Stacy Francis, CFP®, CDFAI met with a new client yesterday. While this is not unusual, the reason he had come to see me was: he was in his thirties, healthy, athletic – and extremely anxious about the fact that he didn’t have long-term care insurance. While some...
Tax Breaks for Your Investment Losses
by Stacy Francis, CFP®, CDFAMy girlfriend called me up last night. “So,” she told me, “I was seconds away from selling these bonds I have so that at least I’d get a tax write-off, when I realized that’s not how it works with bonds. If I hold them until maturity, I...
Ex-Couples: How Alimony Works
by Stacy Francis, CFP®, CDFA, Founder Savvy Ladies “It is easy to preach financial independence,” a new Savvy Ladies member remarked at a recent seminar, “but I have already spent ten years as a housewife. My husband and I are miserable together, but there’s no way I...
5 Vital Questions for New Parents
by Stacy Francis, CFP®, CDFAShopping for my new baby earlier today, I met two very anxious soon-to-be mothers. Talking to them made me realize how much easier it is to be pregnant the second time around. Not only am I more relaxed about everything, but I also know...
Donating to Non-Profits: Good Karma and Even Better Tax Breaks
by Stacy Francis, CFP®, CDFATax season is here! A great time for anyone expecting a refund, and a not-so-great time for those who now have to come up with a chunk of cash for the IRS, on top of all their other bills and financial responsibilities. For the financially...
I Was Planning to Retire in 2009 – Now What?
by Stacy Francis, CFP®, CDFAFor years, I would run into the same neighbor every time I went down to the corner shop – an incredibly dedicated and brilliant science teacher called Matt. For years, that is, until he realized his dream of retiring and buying a ranch in...
Not the End of the World – The Cyclical Nature of the Economy
by Stacy Francis, CFP®, CDFADuring a recent charity dinner, I ended up at the same table as a successful financial newsletter writer. He is semi-retired now, in his seventies, but the many years he spent studying the financial markets and the economy have provided him...
Money New Year’s Resolution
by Stacy Francis, CFP®, CDFAThis time of the year, inevitably, conversations gravitate toward the topic of New Year’s resolutions. While the vast majority tend to be not only generic (stop smoking, anyone? Join a gym?), but also difficult to follow (everyone has an...
Retirement Savings Dos and Don’ts
by Stacy Francis, CFP®, CDFAI had dinner with my best friends last night – a monthly tradition that usually turns into a full night of fun. Not this time, however. It turned out my friends were all in a state over their retirement accounts. Their mutual funds invested...
Real Estate: Reading the Fine Print Before You Commit
by Stacy Francis, CFP®, CDFAReading the Fine Print Before You CommitAfter December’s holiday festivities, January can feel like a dreary, lonely month. So you can imagine how delighted I was when I picked up the mail the other week and found an invitation to a...
Job Loss – Now What?
by Stacy Francis, CFP®, CDFAWe all know someone who lost his or her job last year. For my husband’s friend, though, it seemed to happen out of the blue – he is a news producer at a major news station. But with dwindling demand for advertising time, many stations are...
What Size Mortgage Can You Afford?
by Stacy Francis, CFP®, CDFAWith real estate prices free falling in many areas, mortgages seem to be the topic on everyone’s minds. It is hard to narrow down all the different concerns people have into a structured format, but my facilitators report that one of the...
Credit Card Myths
by Stacy Francis, CFP®, CDFAI went for a run in the park this morning, with my favorite workout pal. Thank goodness she is a good friend as I don’t run as fast as I used to now being pregnant. Anyways, she surprised me mid-run by asking whether it was really necessary...
