I was in a neighborhood group on Facebook where someone was sharing that they were having to sell their home that had been in the family for generations. They can no longer afford living in the Seattle area and had made the difficult decision to move their family. If you’re 62 or better, you may not have to sell your home to create a more affordable lifestyle. [Read more…]
Help for Seniors Being Priced Out of their Homes
Your Mortgage and Home Equity should be part of your Financial Planning

A recent MarketWatch article featured a reader question that probably sounds familiar to a lot of people approaching retirement. Here’s the situation as the reader described it:
“I’m 57, single, have $300,000 in a 401(k) and about $12,000 in savings in different accounts. I owe $93,000 on a house and have $20,000 in credit card debt. I make about $100,000 per year. Should I consolidate my savings? Should I pay off my credit card with the savings and then rebuild my account? I am working on paying off the credit card but I have terrible spending habits. I really don’t want to work until I’m 67. What advice do you have? Should I hire a financial planner to help me?”
— MarketWatch reader question
Retirement, random thoughts and your mortgage
I read an interesting article about planning for retirement. This is a topic that I find very important. I’m not a financial planner, however as a Mortgage Professional I see a financial snapshot of what people have when applying for a mortgage. I concur with this article from CNBC, most people do not have enough money saved up for their golden years. [Read more…]
My 50th Birthday!
This past weekend, I celebrated my 50th birthday with family and friends. I have two (not much) younger sisters who love to ask “don’t you feel older” and my answer is typically “not really”. I’m actually pretty excited to be the big 5-0…beyond being able to join AARP! [Read more…]
Happy Birthday, Son!
Today is my son’s birthday. Although to me, it seems like just yesterday he was toddling around in his Barney slippers, he is now entering his third year of college. I simply could not be more proud of him.
The one piece of advice that I would offer anyone with children is to start saving for your child’s education NOW if having your son or daughter attend college is important to you. I’m thankful that I’m able to help my son out with his tuition. He does have student loans…however I’m at least able to help contribute. I set up an auto-payment into a 529 account years ago and before that, bought savings bonds. I didn’t miss what was taken from my checking account. Of course it did take a hit in recent years – but I’m still so glad I’ve been able to save some money for him.




