After the storms

This is a wicked year, meteorological disasters. This year will be a record-breaking floods and unusually high numbers of storms and tornadoes caused by rising homeowners insurance rates policy of the country a. L,

Home owners insurance is not destroyed by flooding e-mail, it will not affect the rate of mass destruction along the Mississippi River and its tributaries. However, depending on where you live, and other disasters may lead to higher interest rates. The average homeowner insurance rates to rise over last year by about 5%, and possibly, but not affected by this year’s severe weather in most parts of the rise at the same rate. There has been a lot of claims for area residents may see their interest rates continue to rise.

Although tornadoes have received the most attention recently, 2011 was the fourth consecutive year, the insurance company paid thunderstorms, hail, lightning and high winds substantial claims. These claims are often in the Midwest, often with part of the country than homeowners insurance rates average – especially in comparison hurricane-prone coastal areas. Alabama, Arkansas, Georgia, Kentucky, Missouri and Tennessee – – southeastern parts of the homeowners affected by the storm might see when their policies come up for renewal in the next two years, the biggest increase (the insurance companies need to develop new interest rates and obtain regulatory bodies will pass them to the applicant) be approved before.

Flex funds for child care

When I made my contribution to flexiblE dependent care spending account, I may have overestimated my expenses. If I did not spend my full $ 5,000 contribution by the end of this year, what will happen? I can change my contribution in the Kristen Gustafson, Woodridge, Illinois

In general, you can not not qualified life-changing events change your FSA contributions mid-as. Marriage, birth of a child or a related deaths. You will not lose your schedule using any money in the end. But you can use FSA money to realize more money than you. As long as your child is under 13, you need child care so you can work or looking for work (or parents make aCan go to school full-time), it can be used for health care or special projects or money before school, after a nanny or babysitter, even during the summer school holidays and pay for the cost of day camp. School tuition (outside the kindergarten) and camping are not eligible.

Roth IRA do that in

I put my traditional IRA to a Roth last year, but because I’ve changed my mind conversion. Is not too late to switch back to a traditional IRA, to avoid the tax bill Troy Cornick, Maple Grove, Minn.

It is not too late to undo the 2010 Roth IRA conversion. You must October 17, 2011, to change the account back to a traditional IRA (technically called qualitative ), and get back the taxes you pay money or avoid paying the conversion tax bill. The reason to undo the conversion: to reduce the value of your investment account you convert to the Roth, you do not want to pay taxes at a higher account balance, or you do not have enough money to pay the taxes owed.

To undo a Roth conversion, please contact your IRA administrator requires heavy qualitative account back to a traditional IRA. If you have paid tax, submit the revised rate of return (using Form 1040X, available at www.irs.gov), to obtain a refund. Or, if you had planned to split the special provisions on your 2011 and returns between 2012 your tax bill, allowed only 2010 Roth conversion, can be avoided by recharacterizing your Roth conversion to pay the tax bill before October 17

Fly or drive calculator

With gas prices so high, I’m trying to figure out if it’s me cheaper car or my next vacation. Any suggestions S.R, Chevy Chase, MD

Yes. There’s a www.befrugal.com/tools/fly-or-drive-calculator a new tool to help you whether the figure is more economical to fly or drive. The calculator will ask you to provide detailed information on these options, including the model and year of your car, (such asIf necessary), hotel accommodation and transit costs – and it can automatically estimate the cost of the flight. The calculator also factors often overlooked costs such as transportation to and from airports, car parks, airports, any extra baggage fees, and even wear your car (but you must increase in car rental costs). You will immediately see the total cost of the two options.

Overdose employer stock

I need to (k) investment advice in my 401. I like a positive attitude, so I’m in my employer, Abbott, and a variety of mutual funds, the rest of the stock investment of my 401 (k) of 50%. Can help Y.C, Arecibo, P.R.

to your 401 (k) to 50% of your employer’s stock is too risky, even the most aggressive investors. Abbott’s drugs and other medical products diversified manufacturer, it is a good company. This increases the profitability of its 39 consecutive years; it has increased its dividend for 39 years in a row, too. There is something to be said about the production, you should know best bet a large company.

However, in such a large concentrated in a single stock, too much of your financial life – your retiremen half regressed assets and

All the income from work – bound to a company’s health. If Abbott is to enter serious trouble for any reason, you may lose a large part of both their jobs and retirement savings (use only ask who work for Enron people). In general, you should limit the employer share of 401 (k) plan is about 10%. If you have other accounts to invest in significant retirement assets, you can stretch the rule a bit. Before

Divorce social security benefits

My mom married my dad for 27 years, they divorced. She is a stay at home mom most of their marriage did not return to work until after the divorce. She has since remarried. She was told her my father’s work is not eligible for retirement benefits records, because she remarried before age 60 is that right? Her current husband has not yet retired. David Schultz, Houston

This is a positiveCorrect. Although your mother will be eligible based on your father’s record of profitability, because she married him ten years of Social Security retirement benefits, she, she remarried lost this right. She can not, because of your father’s work record her current husband’s death, unless divorce, the abolition of her current marriage ended or collect benefits. You may be confusing for widows and widowers a different set of rules. They may even remarry, as long as they do so at least until the age of 60 work records of their deceased spouse to collect social security benefits. In this case, for example E, widows can choose to collect

If your mother did not have enough credits to her ex-husband’s record-based or current husband’s, whichever is higher interests of spouse own earnings record – usually covering more than a decade of work – she will have to wait until her husband now start collecting retirement benefits of spouses of interest. Her advantage is half the value of his benefit amount, assuming that she is at least 66, or normal retirement age at the time.