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Len Penzo dot Com

The offbeat personal finance blog for responsible people.

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Is It Better to Borrow From Your 401k or Take an Early Withdrawal?

By Anum Yoon

In the case of a financial emergency, you might have to borrow from your 401k plan to find the money you need. This is never an ideal scenario. Especially because taking money out of such accounts can severely set back progress you've made in saving ...

Continue reading Is It Better to Borrow From Your 401k or Take an Early Withdrawal?

May 20, 2025

Why It Pays to Start Saving Early for Retirement

By Sabado Domingo

No one is suggesting it's easy for someone in their 20s to imagine retirement but the day does come. Saving early for retirement is important because for every year you delay it, time becomes an increasing enemy. With life expectancy increasing ...

Continue reading Why It Pays to Start Saving Early for Retirement

May 7, 2025

How to Retire on Time: 10 Things You Should Be Doing Now

By Mikey Rox

Do you have grand plans to spend your golden years lying on a beach, hitting the links on weekdays, or sipping cocktails until the sun goes down? By following a few simple tips you can retire on your own terms - on time, or even earlier - and live ...

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April 22, 2025

Retirement Planning Tips: Finding the Right Financial Fit

By Sabado Domingo

Retirement planning can be a real head-scratcher, right? It’s this wild mix of daydreaming about lazy mornings and worrying about the bank account. You’re itching for that freedom; time to chill, explore, just live. But the money stuff? That can keep ...

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April 17, 2025

Why You Should Start Building Your Retirement Fund Early

By Corazon Gritar

Retirement may seem like a distant concern when you’re in your 20s or 30s, but the earlier you start saving, the better positioned you’ll be to enjoy financial security in your later years. Building your retirement fund early is one of the smartest ...

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February 18, 2025

Social Security Number Facts: 18 Things You Didn’t Know

By Len Penzo

This weekend I was looking through the safe that holds all of my most important documents, like family birth certificates, insurance policies and the secret recipe for mom's sauce, when I ran across my Social Security card. Now I'll wager that, if ...

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February 17, 2025

11 Ways to Make Retirement Savings Grow Faster

By Mikey Rox

Want to retire early? The fastest way to do that is to step up your savings game and make your retirement savings grow faster. With that in mind, here are some suggestions for building your retirement fund at a quicker pace. Crunch the ...

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January 7, 2025

Retirement Planning: The Cost of Withdrawing Retirement Funds Too Early

By Antonio Fortunato

Deciding when to retire, and perhaps more importantly, deciding when to begin withdrawing funds from our retirement accounts is a major financial decision.  Unfortunately for some people with retirement assets the only “rule” in place is a tax ...

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December 3, 2024

Your Retirement Fund: Avoiding Common Withdrawal Pitfalls

By Tex Freitag

Retirement represents a significant milestone, offering an opportunity to enjoy the results of a lifetime of hard work. However, managing your retirement fund wisely is essential to ensuring long-term financial stability. This is because there are ...

Continue reading Your Retirement Fund: Avoiding Common Withdrawal Pitfalls

November 8, 2024

10 Essential Steps for Preparing for Retirement

By Len Penzo

Preparing for retirement is a significant aspect of financial planning that can impact your quality of life in your later years. Here are 10 essential steps to help you prepare for retirement. 1. Start Early and Set Clear Goals The first step in ...

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June 18, 2024

Mailbag: Should I Contribute to the 401k or Save for a Home?

By Len Penzo

I have been doing financial research and would love your opinion. I'm a young stay-at-home mom, and my husband just graduated from college. He got a great job within a few months of graduating, and we are looking toward buying a home. His job, also ...

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March 25, 2024

A Guide to Retirement Budgeting on a Fixed Income

By Anum Yoon

So you're planning to quit work soon and will be facing retirement on a fixed income? First of all: congratulations! Now, it's time to ensure that your money outlasts your life and that there's some left over for your children. You can do that by ...

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January 23, 2024

10 Tips for Managing Long-Term Care for Elderly Parents

By Mikey Rox

We all dread the day when we may be faced with making important life decisions on behalf of our aging parents. It's never an easy road deciding how to best care for the people who used to care for us, and there are plenty of variables that should be ...

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January 9, 2024

5 Ways You Can Plan For Retirement

By Sabado Domingo

Starting the retirement planning process is crucial in ensuring your financial stability. Strategic and thoughtful preparation is crucial, regardless of your employment status or impending retirement. With that in mind, here are five essential ways ...

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December 18, 2023

How to Make the Most of Your Military Benefits

By Tex Freitag

Armed services benefits encompass a wide range of offerings, from education support to healthcare and retirement plans. However, making the most of these military benefits requires strategic planning and awareness. This guide will explore five tips ...

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December 1, 2023

Is It OK to Borrow from Your 401k?

By Len Penzo

Roughly 3 in 10 people now borrow money from their 401k retirement plans. Generally, you can borrow half your account balance -- up to $50,000 -- for as long as five years. But is it okay to borrow from your 401k? True, it's among the cheapest loans ...

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August 10, 2023

When Is the Right Time to Buy Long Term Care Insurance?

By Sabado Domingo

It's amazing how many people fail to plan for the future. It's also amazing how many people deny the reality that we only have a certain number of years before we have outlived our usefulness. We all know that life is short, but how many of us really ...

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July 19, 2023

Expensive 401k Mistakes People Make

By Anum Yoon

If you're interested in saving for retirement, a 401k plan can't be beat. These employer-sponsored plans let employees save tax-free and choose from a range of investment options. The tax-free savings effectively lower your taxable income, which may ...

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July 18, 2023

34 Financial Tricks to Help You Retire Early

By Len Penzo

The other day our Stacking Benjamins podcast roundtable team was discussing an article on a popular mainstream financial website about how to retire early. I especially loved the story's first recommendation: "Start saving as early as you ...

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March 27, 2023

Is a Roth IRA Conversion Wise for You?

By Donna Skeels Cygan

Unless Congress passes new tax laws during the next three years, the tax brackets from 2017 will be back in 2026, resulting in higher taxes for many people. For people in high tax brackets, wise tax planning is essential. One strategy to counteract ...

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October 7, 2022

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