In honor of National Estate Planning Awareness Week, we invited estate attorney Virginia Hammerle on the show to break down how to tackle the often emotionally fraught topic. Hammerle says instead of diving in head-first, it is helpful “to focus on an isolated issue, like titling of a bank account or making a beneficiary designation,” which can lead to a broader discussion of family finances and estate planning.

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Once you break the ice and start the process, figure out what you are trying to accomplish and try not “to get stuck on the next fifty years,” says Hammerle. “Every estate plan can be changed and in fact should be revisited every few years." Here are the basic documents that you will likely draft:

• Will: A legal document that ensures that your assets are passed to your designated beneficiaries, in accordance with your wishes. In the drafting process, you name an executor, who is the person or institution that oversees the distribution of your assets. If you have minor children, you need to name a guardian for them.
• Letter of Instruction: This may also contain appointment of someone who will ensure for the proper disposition of your remains. This is especially important if you are choosing something that is contrary to your family’s tradition.
• Power of Attorney: Appointment of someone to act as your agent in a variety of circumstances, like withdrawing money from a bank, responding to a tax inquiry or making a trade.
• Health Care Proxy: Appointment of someone to make health care decisions on your behalf if you lose the ability to do so
• Trusts: Many have either revocable (changeable) or irrevocable (not-changeable), depending on family and tax situations. For 2016, the first $5.45 million of an estate is exempt from federal estate taxes. If an estate is above the threshold (or twice that for married couples), a revocable trust may be suitable to consider.

Thanks to everyone who participated this week, especially Mark, the Best Producer/Music Curator in the World. Here's how to contact us:

• Call 855-411-JILL and we'll schedule time to get you on the show LIVE 

• Send an email: askjill@jillonmoney.com 

• Tweet us: @jillonmoney and @MTalercio

Cam Marston, a leading expert on the difference among generations in the workplace, joins the show to help us become better co-workers, bosses and employees. Marston’s books, articles, columns, and blog describe and analyze the major generations of our time: Matures (born before 1946), Baby Boomers, (born 1946-64), Generation X (born 1965-79), and Millennials (born 1980-2000).  He explains the basic characteristics  of each generation and their differences, some of which may surprise you.

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We also answered some questions on the soon-to-defunct Social Security claiming strategy, file and suspend. Here's a great synopsis from Money Magazine.

How can you determine the correct amount to save for a specific goal? Easy--just use EBRI's Choose To Save Ballpark Estimate...

And if you are worried about your savings habits, one way to cut to the core is to create a financial plan--it will open your eyes as to how your spending patterns today may be robbing you of the ability of achieving your long term goals.

Thanks to everyone who participated this week, especially Mark, the Best Producer in the World. Here's how to contact us:

• Call 855-411-JILL and we'll schedule time to get you on the show LIVE 

• Send an email: askjill@jillonmoney.com 

• Tweet us: @jillonmoney and @MTalercio

For years, small investors have complained that the big firms don’t want their business and when they do, it’s often expensive. Not anymore…There’s been a revolution in the financial advice business, which could help. It’s not a WHO, but a WHAT… automated systems are replacing humans! They’re called ROBO-ADVISORS and we have one of the industry's stars--Betterment co-founder and COO Eli Broverman to explore this amazing trend.

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Eli explains how Betterment works and why he has embraced the pejorative ROBO ADVISOR. If you are wondering if robo is for you, check out my post here.

As stocks stage another run at records, Mike is concerned about a downturn, which would give back a lot of the fantastic returns he has seen over the past six years. What should he do?

Nancy is a widow in her late fifties and still working. Should she re-fi her 30 yr mortgage? We also answered Mary's estate question about rolling over a spouse's retirement account and Mike's titling issue around his deceased in-law's.

Mary's husband will retire by the end of the year and has to make a pension election-what is the best choice for them?

Thanks to everyone who participated this week, especially Mark, the Best Producer in the World. Here's how to contact us:

• Call 855-411-JILL and we'll schedule time to get you on the show LIVE 

• Send an email: askjill@jillonmoney.com 

• Tweet us: @jillonmoney and @MTalercio

This weekend marks the 71st anniversary of the Allied invasion of Normandy (D-Day). In the sports world, the weekend could mean the  end of thoroughbred racing's 37-year Triple Crown drought. As American Pharoah tries to reign at the Belmont Stakes, we’re tackling your financial questions. The "Jill on Money" Triple Crown means that the show aims to be fun, informative and free!

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We started with Mitch from MN, a 26-year-old engineer, who just got engaged. He and his soon-to-be wife are juggling savings, paying down student loans and retirement planning. What’s the best game plan to attack the debt? Should they refinance their mortgage to pay it off early? So many questions and we have the answers!

Jan from Alaska is 62.5 years old and wants to know if she should avoid filing for Social Security retirement benefits before her Full Retirement Age -- YES! Steve wants to minimize losses before a stock market correction occurs and Stanley from CT is wondering about rolling over his 401 (k) into an IRA.

It was a delight to have guest Eleanor Blayney, the CFP Board of Standards’ Consumer Advocate join the show to discuss inheritance disputes. As Eleanor says, fights over estates “are not just a problem for the rich and famous, or for blended families.” Find out who has a right to contest a will and the ways that families can take proactive steps to avoid these messy post-mortem dustups. You can read Eleanor’s great post about the topic here.

Thanks to everyone who participated this week, especially Mark, the Best Producer in the World. Here's how to contact us:

• Call 855-411-JILL and we'll schedule time to get you on the show LIVE 

• Send an email: askjill@jillonmoney.com 

• Tweet us: @jillonmoney and @MTalercio

We always talk about the importance of working with fiduciary advisors, but who's keeping tabs on them? Guest and current FPA President Ed Gjertsen weighs in on the question. He says that the oversight is conducted by a trio of entities: the CFP Board of Standards, the SEC and FINRA. Ed also discussed why he and the FPA remain "fee-neutral".

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Jack from GA needed advice about his future retirement from the military, we discussed in greater detail why revocable trust may not be necessary for most and reviewed new IRA rollover rules for Marilyn.

In case you missed it, last week was the official start of tax season. Here's last week's CTM segment outlining what you need to know about changes to your tax returns and here's how to stick to your New Year's Financial Resolutions.

Thanks to everyone who participated and to Mark, the BEST producer in the world. Check out Mark's first-producing credit for this CBS Evening News segment that aired recently. If you have a financial question, there are lots of ways to contact us:

• Call 855-411-JILL and we'll schedule time to get you on the show LIVE 

• Send an email: askjill@jillonmoney.com 

• Tweet us: @jillonmoney and @MTalercio

Oh sure, I wanted to call this episode, "Islanders Shutout Rangers," but this is a financial, not a sports show...and after all, I can only torture Mark so much. After a brief recap of the game, we spoke with Tom (a Bruins fan), who needed help deciding whether or not he should downsize prior to retirement.

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Vicky and John sought guidance on putting cash to work, which allowed me to explain how hard it is to time the market and why even if you are risk averse, you may want to allocate a small percentage of your portfolio to stocks.

Jennifer had an interesting question about how to treat her rental properties; Rosetta and an anonymous e-mailer had estate questions; Jeff, JD and Mark asked about index funds vs. ETFs vs. Robo-Advisors; Alan asked about scrubbing his credit report of errors; and Vicky asked about ditching whole like policies for her kids.

Here's last week's CTM segment about weak retail sales and the negative impact on stocks.

Thanks to everyone who participated and to Mark, the BEST producer in the world. Check out Mark's first-producing credit for this CBS Evening News segment that aired recently. If you have a financial question, there are lots of ways to contact us:

• Call 855-411-JILL and we'll schedule time to get you on the show LIVE 

• Send an email: askjill@jillonmoney.com 

• Tweet us: @jillonmoney and @MTalercio

In honor of the recent Veterans' Day holiday, guest Ann Marsh, Senior Editor and West Coast Bureau Chief of Financial Planning Magazine joined the show. In a must-read article, Ann highlighted how financial problems are weighing on our servicemen and servicewomen, and in some cases, contributing to suicide.

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If you want to help, contact your favorite lawmaker and encourage him/her to support the Holt Amendment, which designates $1 million to study the links between financial stress, financial abuse, and military suicide and to generate recommendations to address these issues.

The two organizations that Ann mentioned are: www.giveanhour.org, which is in the process of considering launching a financial planning arm of its services and www.psycharmor.org, which is putting together a new network of private sector professionals to help soldiers and vets, including financial planners.

Your calls and e-mails are always great-this week was no exception. Kurt from Alaska is considering selling his home, just one year after buying it; Cheryl needs help allocating her investment accounts; Michael wants to know about buying real estate inside his IRA and a Petty Officer was wondering about the impact of rising mortgage interest rates on his VA loan.

When a complicated estate planning question arises, like one from Keith, I recommend consulting an attorney. I know it costs money, but these are thorny issues that require an expert. Edward is weighing a lump sum pension pay out versus an annuity and Philip wanted to know whether he should invest in an insurance policy on his mother.

Thanks to everyone who participated and to Mark, the BEST producer in the world. Check out Mark's first-producing credit for this CBS Evening News segment that aired recently. If you have a financial question, there are lots of ways to contact us:

• Call 855-411-JILL and we'll schedule time to get you on the show LIVE 

• Send an email: askjill@jillonmoney.com 

• Tweet us: @jillonmoney and @MTalercio

Guest Paul Auslander the Director of Financial Planning at ProVise Management Group, LLC and the former FPA President and Chairman of the Board, joins the show to discuss why it is so important to hire a FIDUCIARY advisor--one who puts YOUR interests first!

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Paul and I discussed the startling report from the The Financial Planning Coalition, which highlighted the fact that some financial service providers “are contributing to the confusion in the marketplace by identifying themselves as financial planners but not providing financial planning services.” If you want to read more about the report, check out my post "Investors are 'Confused and Harmed'".

We love guests, but we also love your calls. Melanie is a second-time caller, seeking additional advice on how to invest her husband's retirement money. E-mailer Lupe needed help getting started with investing, while Keith is trying to juggle the income tax impact of his 10 rental properties.

Thanks to Ben and Paul who weighed in on collecting Social Security on a former spouse and to Caroline, Beverly and Gail, who wrote in about my recent article "Estate Planning Checklists".

Jan and Debbie wrote in about their retirement accounts and Rich wanted to know about 2015 limits for Roth IRAs.

Thanks to everyone who participated and to Mark, the BEST producer in the world. Check out Mark's first-producing credit for this CBS Evening News segment that aired recently. If you have a financial question, there are lots of ways to contact us:

• Call 855-411-JILL and we'll schedule time to get you on the show LIVE 

• Send an email: askjill@jillonmoney.com 

• Tweet us: @jillonmoney and @MTalercio

Ah, the change of the clocks, the never-ending temptation of Halloween candy and the mind numbing exercise of choosing new benefits! It's that time of year -- open enrollment -- and we have special guest Paul Essner of The Signature Group to help wade through the choices.

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Paul raised an important issue, but luckily it's one that you can address. As the cost of insurance rises, many are not taking into account their specific health care situations and as a result, they are not choosing the most affordable health care option.

The solution is easy: you need to understand how you are using health care and project what the year ahead will look like to determine the best plan for you. (Hint: Some may be better off using high deductible plans, paired with Health Savings Accounts!) Paul also addressed some of the nuances of the Affordable Care Act and its impact on employers, as well as how some companies are rolling out new benefits that could be advantageous.

Karen is 61 years old and plans to retire next year. Her big question is whether she will be able to supplement her pension and Social Security, to the tune of about $20K per year. The answer is yes, with a caveat…

We helped Sally figure out whether or not to take an employer buyout and discussed how Barbara and her husband should pay for long-term care.

Thanks to everyone who participated and to Mark, the BEST producer in the world. Check out Mark's first-producing credit for this CBS Evening News segment that aired recently. If you have a financial question, there are lots of ways to contact us:

• Call 855-411-JILL and we'll schedule time to get you on the show LIVE 

• Send an email: askjill@jillonmoney.com 

• Tweet us: @jillonmoney and @MTalercio

Nationally recognized expert on credit reporting, credit scoring and identity theft John Ulzheimer joins us for a pre-holiday season credit boot camp! John is the President of The Ulzheimer Group, the Credit Expert at CreditSesame.com and the credit blogger for Mint.com. Formerly of FICO, Equifax and Credit.com, John is the only recognized credit expert who actually comes from the credit industry.

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John scared the you-know what out of us, as he discussed identity theft. Did you know that Phishing is out, but SPEAR-PHISHING is in? Bottom line: it's going to happen to you, so you better be smart about how you handle your information.

As we head into the holiday season, John offered tips about debit versus credit cards and rounds out our conversation with credit score basics. As a reminder, here's what determines your score:

• Payment History: 35%
• Total debt outstanding: 30%
• Credit History: 15%
• Inquiries (Hard): 10%
• Credit Mix: 10%

Here are links to John’s blogs:

• Mint.com
• CreditSesame.com
• CreditCardInsider.com

We had a great call from Mary in KY, who is contemplating retirement at the end of this year. Take a listen to hear how you might start thinking about your own retirement!

Thanks to Rita and Julie, who sent us lovely thank you notes and to Tucker, who gave us the opportunity to discuss having "THE TALK" with your aging parents. As a reminder, here is my updated post on "Estate Planning Checklists".

Thanks to everyone who participated and to Mark, the BEST producer in the world. Check out Mark's first-producing credit for this CBS Evening News segment that aired recently. If you have a financial question, there are lots of ways to contact us:

• Call 855-411-JILL and we'll schedule time to get you on the show LIVE 

• Send an email: askjill@jillonmoney.com 

• Tweet us: @jillonmoney and @MTalercio

With days to go before the tax filing deadline, don't fret! We have these Last Minute Tax Resources to help you with the process.

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Sandra, Roger, Julius and TC are all in different stages of retirement planning mode, while Ali, Barbara and Janet need help determining what kind of investment advisor makes sense for them, which led to a discussion about target date funds.

Are you in "Timeshare Hell" with caller Joyce? We try to help rescue her with some ways to exit these tough investments.

Thanks to everyone who participated and to Mark, the BEST producer in the world. If you have a financial question, there are lots of ways to contact us:

• Call 855-411-JILL and we'll schedule time to get you on the show LIVE 

• Send an email: askjill@jillonmoney.com 

• Tweet me: @jillonmoney

• Follow Mark on Twitter: @MTalercio

Is your team out of the Final Four? Don't fret - we have a great show, where we dreamed about winning lotteries and planning retirement.

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Although Patricia is 15 years from retirement, she is planning ahead. We help her consider factors about a home purchase. Also planning ahead is Kathlyn, who wants to make sure she knows what to do if she were to win the lottery!

Pete and Kristen were talking about education funding, while Sandy and Jon are just starting their retirement savings process.

We dug into retirement numbers with Joe and helped Louise determine whether she needs long term care or disability insurance...or both!

Thanks to everyone who participated and to Mark, the BEST producer in the world. If you have a financial question, there are lots of ways to contact us:

• Call 855-411-JILL and we'll schedule time to get you on the show LIVE 

• Send an email: askjill@jillonmoney.com 

• Tweet me: @jillonmoney

• Follow Mark on Twitter: @MTalercio

Spring is in the air...which means that the tax filing deadline is around the corner. In addition to fielding lots of retirement and ed funding questions, we discuss audit red flags.

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The college acceptance letters are rolling in...now the hard part: paying for that coveted degree. Roy, Tom and Matthew all have questions about footing the bill for education.

Dick, Brian and Jay are trying to ascertain whether they are on sound enough financial ground for retirement; while Rob and Bola are just starting their retirement planning and need advice on the best vehicles to use.

Chris is seeking guidance on his old 401 (k) plan and Liz wants to know which retirement funds to tap for home improvement.

Thanks to everyone who participated and to Mark, the BEST producer in the world. If you have a financial question, there are lots of ways to contact us:

• Call 855-411-JILL and we'll schedule time to get you on the show LIVE 

• Send an email: askjill@jillonmoney.com 

• Tweet me: @jillonmoney

Over the course of one week five years ago, the U.S. financial system was brought to its knees. Throughout the show, I tell you where we stand five years after this momentous week, when it comes to jobs, income, housing, stocks and much more!

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To recap the action over that horrible 7-day period in September 2008:

• 4 investment banks vanished (Lehman Brothers declared bankruptcy, Bank of America swallowed the ailing and near-failing Merrill Lynch, and Goldman Sachs and Morgan Stanley were forced to become bank holding companies in order to access the government’s discount window)
• The government bailed out global insurance giant AIG
• There was panic in the money market fund industry after the Reserve Primary Money Fund “broke the buck,” dropping below the standard $1 per share valuation
• The Treasury Department introduced the first version of TARP, which was intended to grant the government the authority to purchase $700 billion of mortgage-related assets for two years.

Meanwhile, listeners were equally as interested in NOT repeating past financial mistakes. Margaret from MA started us off with a question about where to invest the proceeds of a CD that is coming due. Kevin followed up with a retirement planning question: how to create a stream of income from a $500K nest egg?

Joe from IN needs to access funds for his daughter’s education: which should he tap first?

Reeves from MO and John from KY are both in their 20’s and starting their first retirement accounts. We discuss their options and the advantages/disadvantages of 401 (k)s and Roth IRAs.

William from WI wrote in about a good problem: a large estate. If you are fortunate to have an estate larger than $5.25 million (for individuals) there are a number of options for addressing your potential estate tax.

Thanks to everyone who participated and to Mark, the BEST producer in the world. If you have a financial question, there are lots of ways to contact us:

• Call 855-411-JILL and we'll schedule time to get you on the show LIVE 

• Send an email: askjill@jillonmoney.com 

• Tweet me: @jillonmoney