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IRA 101

First off, what even is an Individual Retirement Account (IRA)? Other than that retirement account you have through work an IRA is something you can set-up for yourself. An IRA is just a savings account that specially designed to help you save for retirement with specific tax advantages. There are two types of IRAs: Traditional and Roth.

Your student is planning on following in your footsteps and will be receiving that admissions letter of acceptance sooner than you think.

Things are coming together for the economy. To wit, after a restrained first quarter, in which the gross domestic product rose by just 0.7%, more reassuring reports have been issued. Of note, consumer confidence and non-manufacturing both rose in April, while job growth accelerated, reversing a slowing uptrend in March.

The term beneficiary crops up every now and again. Usually you’ll see it on an insurance form or hear about it in relation to a will, but despite the nonchalance we toss the term around with, beneficiaries are incredibly important. Let’s break down the details on how and why beneficiaries matter.

The nation’s economy is on pause for the moment, with figures for the first quarter showing a scant 0.7% rise in the U.S. gross domestic product. That was well shy of the growth forecast and just a third of the increase logged in last year’s final three months.

You’re 25 and feeling alive. You’re settling into life after university, paying off your debts and slowly figuring how to “adult”. But with the responsibility of bills, rent, and even keeping up social appearances, prioritizing financial planning is something far too often pushed to the side.

There have been a few small bumps in the road recently, with the latest month’s figures showing some early spring volume slippage at the carmakers, eased output in manufacturing, and softness in housing starts, but surprising strength in home sales.

The industrial sector was continuing to hold its own as we reached the second quarter, with recent data affirming that manufacturing output was up 0.5% in February for a second month in a row. In all, this was the sixth-consecutive monthly gain for industrial production.

It is still thumbs up on the jobs front, with the nation’s employment rolls increasing by a better-than-expected 235,000 in February. That put the average monthly gain at 209,000 for the past quarter and at 196,000 for the latest 12 months.

It is all coming together on the economic front, following an underwhelming 2016. True, the economy did strengthen in the second half of last year. But much of that pickup stemmed from a surge in exports in the third quarter, which was to be reversed in the final period. Now, the upturn is more uniform and likely sustainable.