Understanding the Difference Between Annuity, Bond and CD Ladders

One great way of creating a gradually disbursing retirement benefit while still keeping the long-term savings portion of your money conservatively invested is to create a bond, annuity or CD ladder. These ladders are separate investment instruments with varying maturity dates that allow you to take advantage of long-term savings rates while still making sure that some of your money is readily liquid when you need it. This strategy is called "laddering" because each maturity date is its own rung on the ladder of your retirement years.
While each ladder is a great strategy in its own right, it's important to understand the differences between each of them before you decide which is (or are) right for your retirement plan.

Fixed Annuities: Escape from Stock Market Uncertainty

Investors, especially those that experienced considerable losses and watched helplessly as their investment portfolios fell to pieces during the last stock market crash, are making much more cautious investment decisions today. A fixed annuity has gained a great deal of investor appeal for many cautious investors. Compared to alternative investments of equal risk, the fixed annuity has several significant advantages.
Fixed Annuity Advantages
There is the chance of significant appreciation when a lump sum is invested into a tax-deferred annuity, and the process is much quicker than a savings account or CD. The element of tax deferral is one of the most appealing advantages. Unlike other options where earnings are taxed each year, the tax-deferred annuity also allows taxes to be delayed or deferred until the money is withdrawn.

Fixed-Annuities: A Good Solution To Outliving Your Retirement Nest Egg

Young adults are often fearful of dying too soon and not living a full and long life. Ironically, this fear often changes as one reaches the age of retirement. Since many retirees are in the precarious position of possibly outliving their retirement savings, there is suddenly a fear of living too long.
No one should fear living too long. There are some possible solutions to the precarious situation. One is to use a fraction of your retirement savings to buy a fixed annuity contract. This will ensure that you'll have payouts for the duration of your life.

Annuities: A Guaranteed, Safe, And Reliable Investment Option

Financial markets have a tendency to capriciously fluctuate with little predictability. Meanwhile, due to the fact that annuity income is considered guaranteed, safe, and reliable, it can provide greater financial stability for one's retirement years.
For those unfamiliar with annuities, these are contracts between an insurance provider and yourself. You agree to fund the annuity. It can be funded with a lump sum of money that you might have or through a regular payment to the insurance company. Either way, the insurance company agrees to pay you a predetermined amount over an agreed upon time frame.
Most people find that being able to structure an income source that won't be outlived is one of the most appealing features of an annuity.

How You Can Negotiate Medical Debt On Your Own And With Help

Health insurance cost and medical debt statistics continue to shock the general public, and with statistics like the following, it's no wonder.  The Commonwealth Fund, a healthcare action nonprofit group, reported in August of 2009 that health insurance premiums for family coverage through employer-sponsored plans had a 119% jump in cost from 1999 to 2008. They further predicted that if the current trend continues, then family insurance premium costs would rise an additional 94% by 2020.
Despite clearly rising costs and the likelihood of future rises, most consumers realize that their current health insurance isn't sufficient protection to guard against accumulating mass uncovered medical debt. If not, then a quick look at a June sample study by The American Journal of Medicine may be a real eye opener, as it showed medical incidents drove 60% of all 2007 American bankruptcies. The sample study also showed that American families dealing with the repercussion of illness filed for bankruptcy every ninety seconds in 2007, despite three-quarters of those sampled having insurance.

Take Steps to a Healthy Lifestyle - Take a Walk

Want to feel better, look better, and reduce your risk of getting a chronic disease or illness?  Decide to take a walk.   Walking is simple, takes little time, and the decision to make it happen is totally up to you. How do you spend your free time? Doctors have understood the value of exercise for a long time, and scientists can actually prove the value. The results are in and we now know without a shred of doubt that lack of physical activity is a risk factor for many diseases and conditions, including cardiovascular disease, several common cancers, diabetes and osteoporosis.
Listed below are just a few good reasons to add walking to your weekly schedule.  Studies have found that walking:

Expatriate Insurance: You Shouldn't Live Abroad Without It

While living abroad for the next year is an exciting prospect, there is much to be planned for and considered. One aspect that's often overlooked is extended medical treatment. Most people living abroad would want to return home for treatment and recovery and to be close to loved ones if they become critically ill.
Many mistakenly assume that if a critical illness should arise, then their managed care plan would take care of things. This couldn't be further from the case. Your health insurance plan in the United States isn't designed to cover you when you are out of the country for an extended stay. Medicare and Medicaid doesn't offer any coverage for any medical expense that develops outside the United States. HMOs or Health Maintenance Organizations will generally cover emergency room treatment wherever you are, but routine health coverage is offered through the state provider networks of your resident state. If you use a network doctor, PPOs or Preferred Provider Organizations will cover a greater portion of the expense.

Sleep Deprivation: A Recipe For A Health Disaster

Today's society carries an unrealistic expectation, if not demand, for individuals to fit more and more into their lives. The often teetering balancing act between work and everyday life causes many to defer sleep to get everything that's expected of them done. Late nights and early mornings can be a recipe for a health disaster. The problem is that sleep isn't something that can be brokered and traded for supposedly more important tasks.
Most people are fully aware that getting enough sleep is something that's beneficial to their mind and body, but did you know that getting too little sleep could actually increase your risk of an early death from cardiovascular disease, stroke, and heart attack?

Short-Term Health Insurance Can Cover Workers During Job Transitions

Most employees that leave a job also leave their employer-sponsored medical coverage behind. This can be a chancy move, especially if you don't have other insurance options readily available to you.
If you've already left your job, then you've most likely already found out that obtaining affordable health insurance isn't the easiest task when you're between jobs. COBRA is an option that gives you the right to keep your insurance from your previous employment, but the monthly premiums are usually extremely expensive and something that many simply can't afford while unemployed.

Take a Stand for Your Heart Health and Live Longer and Better

Six hundred thousand Americans die each year due to heart disease, and more than 25 million more live with heart disease each day. You can reduce your risk by making wise decisions regarding your diet and lifestyle. Below are 10 steps you can take to get started.
*Eat Fish that is High in Oils
Tuna and salmon, among other oily fish, are high in omega-3 fatty acids. These fatty acids have been shown to reduce blood pressure as well as cholesterol levels. In fact, the American Heart Association (AHA) suggests eating at least two 3-1/2 ounce servings of oily fish each week. If possible, choose a natural source of omega-3, rather than a supplement.