Whether you’re getting your finances in order, setting goals, or trying to stick to a budget—our investment specialists can help you create a plan of action that suits your needs. Explore our worksheets, portfolio tools, and articles.
Featured
Featured
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How Did the Bucket Portfolios Perform in 2023?
Christine Benz
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Pay Off Your Mortgage Early or Invest?
Christine Benz
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Morningstar’s Tax Guide and IRA Resources
Carole Hodorowicz
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Today Is the Best Time to Check on Your Financial Health
Danielle Labotka
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Tax-Efficient Portfolio Makeovers May Be Less Painful Than You Think
Christine Benz
Personal Finance Topics
Personal Finance Topics
Taxes
Taxes
- Morningstar’s Tax Guide and IRA Resources
- Tax-Efficient Portfolio Makeovers May Be Less Painful Than You Think
- This Bond ETF Promises T-Bill Returns Without Taxable Income
- 4 Mistakes to Avoid During Tax Season
- 25 Top Picks for Tax-Efficient ETFs and Mutual Funds
- What You Can Learn From Your 1099 Forms
- Ed Slott: ‘Your IRA Is an IOU to the IRS’
- Should You Gift Your Appreciated Assets During Your Lifetime?
- Ed Slott: What Investors Need to Do Before the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act Expires
Saving and Spending
Saving and Spending
- 4 Lessons from My Credit Card Points and Miles Journey
- Charlie Munger, Warren Buffett Built Berkshire Hathaway to Thrive After They’re Gone
- Does the Apple Savings Account Live Up to the Hype?
- Markets Brief: Why the Budget Deficit Suddenly Matters
- What’s Going on With Consumers?
- Back to School Basics: Saving
- Back to School Basics: Budgeting
- Does #GirlMath Add Up?
- How to Calibrate Your Target Savings Rate
Estate Planning
Estate Planning
- 3 Charitable Investment Strategies That Deliver Higher Tax Benefits
- 3 Tax-Friendly Charitable-Giving Strategies for Retirees
- How Advisors Can Help Clients Benefit From Legacy IRAs
- How to Give to Charity and Save on Taxes
- Year-End Charitable-Giving Strategies
- A New Way to Achieve Charitable Goals While Saving on Taxes
- 5 Money Mistakes to Avoid in Q4 2023
- How I Handled an Unexpected Inheritance
- How Fidelity’s Charitable Gift Fund Stacks Up
Healthcare
Healthcare
- 3 Key Retirement Decisions Affected By Higher Yields
- How to Preserve Your HSA Eligibility Beyond Age 65
- How Medicare and Social Security Affect HSA Eligibility
- Are the Latest Alzheimer’s Treatments Worth the Cost?
- Howard Gleckman: ‘We Pretend This Isn’t a Problem’
- What Can My HSA Be Used For?
- When Do You Get Kicked Off Your Parents’ Insurance?
- Make the Most of Your HSA Benefits and Investments in 2024
- It’s Time for a Checkup on Your Medicare Coverage
Save for College
Save for College
- Tips for Navigating the New FAFSA
- Why You Should Fill Out the FAFSA (Even if You Think It’s a Waste of Time)
- What Can a 529 Plan Be Used For?
- The Best 529 Plans for 2024
- Saving for College: What I Did Right and What I’d Do Differently
- Morningstar 529 Ratings: The Best Plans of 2023
- Payment Pause Ends: Student Loan Expert Shares Repayment Tips
- Student Loan Repayments Are Back. What Does That Mean for Your Financial Plan?
- My 8 Biggest Financial Mistakes
Housing
Housing
- Pay Off Your Mortgage Early or Invest?
- Jonathan Clements: ‘Humility Is a Hallmark of People Who Are Financially Successful’
- When Will Mortgage Rates Go Down?
- Will You Owe Taxes When You Sell Your Home?
- Why I Don’t Own a Home
- Katie Nixon: Bringing a Blurry Market Into Focus
- How Rising Interest Rates Affect First-Time Homebuyers
- What Climate Change Means for the Housing Market
- What Is a Mortgage?
More in Personal Finance
More in Personal Finance
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JB Taylor: Small Caps Haven’t Been This Cheap in 25 Years
The CEO of Wasatch talks small-cap equity investing in the age of the ‘Magnificent Seven.’
Christine Benz
3 Key Retirement Decisions Affected By Higher Yields
How to factor in higher rates when deciding whether to purchase an annuity or buy long-term-care insurance.
Christine Benz
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Crypto, REITs, Private Equity: Long-Term Investments or Short-Term Trends?
What to know before you dive in.
Samantha Lamas
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Can I Take a Loan From My 401(k)?
Learn the differences between a 401(k) loan and hardship withdrawal, plus why you should set up an emergency fund.
Carole Hodorowicz
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Annuities Unveiled: A Guide to the Different Types of Annuities
Breaking down income annuities and savings annuities.
Spencer Look
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20 IRA Mistakes to Avoid
From contributions to conversions to distributions, don’t fall into these traps.
Christine Benz
Marc Freedman: The Case for Encore Careers
The author and entrepreneur discusses the benefits of age diversity in the workplace, the importance of purpose later in life, and why older workers might consider a ‘gap year.’
Christine Benz
The Key to Personal Financial Planning: Being Lazy
There are benefits to following a simplified approach.
Samantha Lamas
Uncashed IRA Distribution Check? Here’s What to Do
Tax treatment depends on who wrote the check.
Denise Appleby
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Fees Are Rising for These 4 Funds
Should spiking costs concern investors?
Russel Kinnel
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What You Can Learn From Your 1099 Forms
These forms can yield valuable information about your portfolio’s asset location and tax efficiency.
Christine Benz
Should You Gift Your Appreciated Assets During Your Lifetime?
The strategy can yield a tax benefit, but it isn’t a sure thing.
Christine Benz
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Will the Institutional Private Equity Push Leave Investors With Scraps?
These firms are implementing investor protections.
Jessica Hamlin
The Bucket Investor’s Guide to Setting Retirement Asset Allocation
Use anticipated spending needs and probabilities of a positive return over your time horizon to back into the right mix of cash, bonds, and stocks.
Christine Benz
Seeking Yield? Avoid These 5 Mistakes
Higher interest rates are mostly a positive, but investors need to watch out for pitfalls, too.
Christine Benz
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How to Preserve Your HSA Eligibility Beyond Age 65
Retirees may need to delay starting Medicare and Social Security.
Kitces.com
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Can a Taxable Account Beat a 401(k)?
Investment quality and expenses, as well as tax costs, are big swing factors.
Christine Benz
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When Will I Get My Tax Refund?
The different types of taxes you owe, how much to expect from your tax refund this year, and more.
Carole Hodorowicz
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Tips for Navigating the New FAFSA
The revamped financial aid application is still buggy, but there are ways to increase your chances of success.
Laura Lallos
How Medicare and Social Security Affect HSA Eligibility
Those 65 and older who want to contribute to a health savings account must plan ahead.
Kitces.com
