Jeff Motske advocates a special kind of date with your spouse – “a financial date night” – to discuss the family’s finances…
Jeff Motske advocates a special kind of date with your spouse – “a financial date night” – to discuss the family’s finances…
You’re in a pinch and in desperate need of money. You’ve already asked family members for help, but nobody can assist you. You’ve heard of a personal loan before, but is taking one out a good idea?
In short, it depends on your particular financial situation. If you’ve racked up high-interest credit card debt, for example, and you can take out a personal loan with a lower interest rate to consolidate and pay off that debt, a personal loan might be right for you. But if you have other assets you can borrow against that will have lower interest rates — such as a 401(k) loan or a home equity line of credit (HELOC) — you might want to consider pursuing those lines of credit instead of a personal loan.
Here’s everything you need to know about when a personal loan might be worthwhile, and when you might want to look elsewhere.
...Much has been said about the rise of robo-advisors in the financial services industry. With tens of billions of dollars being invested in these online platforms, it is undeniable that consumers are craving the speed, efficiency and data that they can provide. While many of us agree that no computer can offer the one-on-one relationship that a client-advisor relationship can, we would be remiss to ignore this growing trend.
Some advisors react to the rise of these platforms by dismissing the trend and lamenting about the good old days when an account application could fit on a postcard. What they should be doing is exploring why robos are so appealing and what aspects of that technology could be incorporated into their practices.
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