Dave Carpenter

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  7 retirement planning myths debunked

  By Dave Carpenter  |  December 7, 2012

  The days of counting on Uncle Sam and a company pension to carry you through old age are long gone. We're living increasingly in a "yoyo" economy — short for "you're on your own."

• Mood of the nation

  By Dave Carpenter  |  October 29, 2012

  On the eve of the 2012 elections, dozens of Americans have been asked about jobs, housing, retirement and other issues. A Chicago couple remain optimistic, despite unemployment.

• Coming changes in estate, gift taxes stir 'frenzy'

  By Dave Carpenter  |  October 25, 2012

  Taxes that are largely a concern of the very rich will soon affect far more people unless Congress steps in. Family members are creating trusts and making financial gifts.

• Economists predict weak but improving growth

  By Dave Carpenter  |  October 15, 2012

  Economists foresee only tepid growth for the coming year, with unemployment back above 8 percent for the first half of 2013.

• Retirees turn more attention to personal legacies

  By Dave Carpenter  |  October 4, 2012

  A growing number of retirees are looking to pass along more to the next generation than money and possessions, through life histories, ethical wills and video recordings.

• Fidelity issues new retirement savings guidelines

  By Dave Carpenter  |  September 12, 2012

  Fidelity now suggests that workers save at least eight times their final salary in order to meet basic income needs in retirement.

• Study finds 401(k) matches back at pre-meltdown levels

  By Dave Carpenter  |  August 27, 2012

  More companies are now offering a 401(k) match to their employees than were before the 2008 financial crisis, according to new data by Charles Schwab.

• Overlooking disability insurance can be costly

  By Dave Carpenter  |  July 25, 2012

  Long-term disability insurance is the forgotten insurance.

• Shared-care insurance gains as option for couples

  By Dave Carpenter  |  June 15, 2012

  It's the financial protection that many will need in retirement but few are willing or able to buy. Long-term care insurance scares off most people because of the cost.

• Stocks helped lift US household wealth in first quarter

  By Dave Carpenter  |  June 7, 2012

  Americans' wealth rose in the January-March quarter, boosted mainly by the best quarterly gain in stock prices since 1998 and partly by the first rise in home values since 2006.