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Millions of baby boomers are lined up to join the ranks of America’s retirees, but many of them haven’t done the planning they should.

Following is a 10-year countdown of considerations to help them plan to protect their financial future:

1. 10 Years to Go: Make a plan. Evaluate assets and debts. Check an online retirement calculator to determine how much savings you’ll need to pay for your retirement needs.

2. 9 Years to Go: Have disability insurance in place to protect your income while you are working.

3. 8 Years to Go: Is your home paid off? A mortgage-free home can be a tremendous asset for retirement, both because it frees up a housing payment and because it provides a resource for cash flow through a reverse mortgage if necessary.

4. 7 Years to Go: Build a financial cushion. Fully fund retirement savings.

5. 6 Years to Go: Purchase long-term-care insurance coverage. This insurance covers expenses, at home or in a care facility, that are not covered by health insurance or Medicare.

6. 5 Years to Go: Fully understand your options.

7. 4 Years to Go: Pay off debts. Eliminate credit card debt.

8. 3 Years to Go: Evaluate life insurance needs.

9. 2 Years to Go: Plan your retirement lifestyle. Will you work part-time, travel, pursue a hobby?

10. 1 Year to Go: Apply for Medicare. Recipients must sign up for Medicare as close to their 65th birthday as possible.

For more information, visit bills.com

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For the many Americans who face a tower of unopened and unpaid holiday bills, it’s time to get their financial lives in order, and if they need outside help, they need to know the right questions to ask.

Making a debt-payment plan

1. Cut out all unnecessary expenses, and instead apply those funds to paying off bills.

2. Always make more than the minimum payment on the highest-interest-rate debt, while making minimum payments on other bills.

3. When the highest-rate bill is paid, add the payment to the next-highest-rate debt until it is paid.

Various companies assist with debt repayment:

* Debt resolution firms negotiate on the consumer’s behalf with creditors.

* Debt consolidation rolls multiple debts into one loan or into a mortgage.

* Credit counseling provides lower interest rates, with a repayment term of five to 10 years.

Questions to ask a debt partner

1. Compensation: Does the company get any form of consideration or compensation from the creditors themselves?

2. BBB: Is the company a member of the Better Business Bureau?

3. Individualization: Does the company provide actual consultations and provide advice/education to consumers free of charge?

4. Free education: Does the company provide educational material, including budgeting and financial advice, free of charge?

5. Background: What is the background of the company’s management team?

6. History: How long has the company been in business?

7. Success: What are the company’s dropout and success rates?

For more information, visit bills.com

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Many families are often desperate to get out of mounting debt and will often take the first option that comes along. Following are some tips on how consumers can find the right debt settlement program:

~ Consumer counseling services — These services operate by setting clients up with their own personal counselors.

~ Debt Consolidation is always a great way to bring resolve to debt as long as clients have a process in place before the consolidation to settle the debt.

~ With Fee based Debt Settlement, there are many options, and in several ways, consumers can save money

~ With a Service Fee Based debt settlement there are clearly outlined steps for the best option for debt settlement.

For those considering debt settlement, they should consider these factors while deciding what program fits their needs:

1) First, how did they hear about the company?
2) Does the savings program have their best interests in mind?
3) Is the company willing to share its year to date settlement averages?
4) Are they experienced in both the collection and creditor industry?
5) Are they certified with the IAPDA (International Association of Professional Debt Arbitrators)?
6) Do you believe in the team that will be helping you?
7) Once you start, are you aware there is no looking back?

For more information, visit absolutedebtsolutions.biz

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When posting a resume online, a job-seeker has mostly one thing in mind: finding the ideal job. What many don’t even consider is the risk they are under when all of their personal information is circulating in cyberspace. A leading security and privacy membership prompts its members and all consumers to be very cautious while looking for a job online.

A job-seeker might want his or her resume to be viewed by as many potential employers as possible, and in most cases, people focus on the resume itself: verbiage, experience and overall look. But the possibility that scammers and identity thieves might have access to the same information is something most people don’t even think about. The truth is that they are out there, phishing for all the information they can gather.

The first step for people who want to guard their privacy while job-hunting is to carefully study the privacy practices of the job sites, then choose the ones that seem to have the best practices and controls while providing appropriate exposure to interested employers.

Here are some recommendations:

– Be picky.
– Limit the contact information.
– Control access to complete resume.
– Create a specific e-mail address.
– Omit references.

For more information, visit privacymattersid.privacymatters-program.com

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