Several years ago, a book titled Men Are From Mars, Women Are From Venus was quite popular. As the title suggests, the book argues that men and women are vastly different from each other, particularly in their emotional needs and in the way they communicate. While not everyone agrees with the notion that men and women might as well be from different planets, most of us would probably concur that the two genders frequently behave differently — and this divergence in behavior may also show up in the way that we invest. read more »

Here’s a sobering statistic: 46 percent of workers surveyed had little or no confidence that they will have enough money to live comfortably throughout their retirement years, according to the 2010 Retirement Confidence Survey, issued by the Employee Benefit Research Institute. So you may want to explore all possible retirement savings vehicles — including a variable annuity.

Generally speaking, when saving for retirement, it’s a good idea to contribute as much as possible to your IRA and your 401(k) or other employer-sponsored retirement plan. But if you’ve fully funded those plans for the year, and you still have some money left to invest, you may want to consider a variable annuity, which offers these benefits: read more »

You may have read about a vast “transfer of wealth” that is taking place as baby boomers start to inherit money from their parents. While it’s true that the wealth being transferred is enormous — in the billions of dollars — it may not have much of an impact on your life.

In any case, if you get an inheritance, you’ll want to make the right moves. read more »