The Prosperity Blog

The Best Financial Calculator App for Personal Finance!

by Partners 4 Prosperity | Nov 8, 2019 | 0 Comment

Most people have a calculator on their smartphone that can add, subtract, multiply and divide. But you need a financial calculator (or financial calculator app) to figure out how much interest you can expect from your bank CD over time, or how your mortgage payment would change with various interest rates.

Perhaps you’ve found yourself Googling for an online financial calculator to find the answer to a personal finance question… but the functionality is limited. Or maybe you’ve learned how to use a Texas Instruments or HP financial calculator… but you’d love something simpler. If so, the free financial calculator app we share today will help you make smarter financial decisions with ease!

My husband, Todd Langford, develops financial calculators that create clarity around personal finance decisions. The Truth Concepts software is a suite of tools and calculators that helps advisors compare various financial strategies—such as different investments, loans, rental properties, or tax strategies. Truth Concepts can do complex work, such as calculating the internal rate of return of a whole life policy or comparing different types of investments with unequal cash flows. We use and love the Truth Concepts financial calculators, however, the learning curve and investment is a bit much for the layperson. Fortunately, now there is a user-friendly app that puts calculating power right at your fingertips!

Healthcare Sharing Plans: An Affordable Health Insurance Alternative?

by Kate4Kim | Nov 4, 2019 | 0 Comment

Today’s article is a guest post from Kate Phillips and an update to our previous articles about healthcare sharing plans. Kate uses a healthcare sharing program called Liberty HealthShare that we have previously covered on our website. Since there have been recent challenges with healthcare sharing ministries, it’s time for a fresh look at both the promise and potential problems of medical cost-sharing programs. This article outlines the pros and cons of healthcare sharing plans and may help you determine if they are worth your consideration.

The Search for Healthcare Alternatives

Open enrollment for health plans through the Affordable Care Act (ACA or Obamacare) insurance exchange runs from November 1 until December 15. While the majority of people with ACA plans receive subsidies—87 percent, according to Kaiser Health—an income of roughly $50,000 for an individual or more than $100,000 for a family of four will disqualify you. And if you’re in that boat, there’s nothing “affordable” about health insurance these days.

According to ehealthinsurance.com, in the four years from 2013 to 2017, health insurance premiums increased by 99% for individuals and a stunning 140%—from $426 to $1,021—for families that did not qualify for subsidies via the ACA. Families with children can expect to see premiums as high as $20,000 per year—or more.

How to Raise Financially Responsible Children

by Kate4Kim | Oct 25, 2019 | 0 Comment

This article is adapted from Perpetual Wealth: How to Use “Family Financing” to Build Prosperity and Leave a Legacy for Generations by Kim D. H. Butler and Kate Phillips. The book contains a whole chapter on raising financially responsible children! Right now you can download the entire PDF at Partners4Prosperity.com/pwbook.

There is a saying attributed by some to Abraham Lincoln, “You have to do your own growing no matter how tall your grandfather was.” This is especially true when it comes to money!

Even when great sums of money are passed on to future generations, multi-generational wealth rarely lasts more than a generation or two. It fails when the children—even if they are middle aged “children”—haven’t done their own growing. Money given to someone not ready to hold it is like water poured into a leaky bucket.

Lifestyle Inflation: 7 Ways to Curb Rising Costs

by Kate4Kim | Oct 21, 2019 | 1 Comment

“Keeping up with the Joneses? Don’t – most of them are flat broke.”
—Steve Adcock, Think, Save Retire

Homes, cars, healthcare, groceries and a college education all cost much more than they used to. Thanks to inflation, the price of goods and services increases while the purchasing value of our money decreases. But another type of inflation that may have an even greater impact on your finances: lifestyle inflation.

Lifestyle inflation is the natural tendency of human beings to desire improvements. As one blog defined it, “Lifestyle inflation is the unnecessary expansion of spending to match an increasing income.” We especially see it’s effect over time. Let’s look at some examples of lifestyle inflation.

Budgets Are Like Diets—and Nobody Likes Diets!

by Kate4Kim | Oct 11, 2019 | 0 Comment

If the word “budget” does not make you jump for joy, you are not alone. Budgets exist to track, control, categorize and ultimately limit your spending. Although they can provide us with greater control and—eventually—freedom, budgets are based in concepts of scarcity and limitation.

Budgets are the monetary equivalent of diets. Instead of limiting and restricting food, budgets limit and restrict spending. And while diets—and budgets—can produce results deemed desirable, nobody really likes dieting.

Is there a different way to think about managing our money that might produce desirable results—without a sense of deprivation? We think so! In this article we (Kim Butler and Kate Phillips) share ideas of how to manage your spending with a prosperous mindset!

Income for Life: Creating Cash Flow with an Annuity

by Kate4Kim | Oct 4, 2019 | 8 Comments

A guaranteed lifetime income is a compelling proposition. After all—who doesn’t love the idea of being set for life? While it is impossible to know how long you’ll live, it IS possible to make sure you will receive (at least) a certain amount of income for the rest of your life. Let’s see why a lifetime income annuity can be a lifesaver for some retirees!

Single Premium Immediate Annuities (SPIAs) can provide this income, yet few people use them in their retirement strategies. How can you know if a lifetime income annuity makes sense for your situation? Let’s explore.

5 Assets that Don’t Belong in Your Retirement Account

by Partners 4 Prosperity | Sep 26, 2019 | 0 Comment

Are all investments equally suitable for your retirement plan? Do some retirement account assets work better than others… and if so, why?

You can put almost anything into some type of retirement account—from a mutual fund to an alpaca farm! Awhile back, we wrote an article about some of the BEST investments to put in a retirement plan—especially a self-directed retirement account. Today, our focus is on what DOESN’T belong in that retirement account.

Qualified retirement plans or accounts are those that meet government tax code requirements for contributing pre-tax dollars that grow tax-deferred until withdrawal. They include 401(k)s, 403(b)s, and SEP plans. IRAs work very similarly, though not technically “qualified.”

Putting an asset in a traditional 401(k) or IRA gives you tax-deferred growth. But just because you CAN put an asset in a retirement account doesn’t mean you should. In this article, we’ll explain why, and we’ll name five assets you probably DON’T want in your retirement plan: