Jill on Money: Christmas, Cash, Rollovers

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Arline from WA kicked off the show, telling us about selling her risky assets at the beginning of the market melt-down in 2008. Now that she and her husband are retired, they are wondering what to do with $325K in cash. Must they go back into the scary stuff? Maybe not...Conversely, 36 year-old Joe probably needs to do something with his $110K cash cushion.

Joe from CO is ready to leave the large brokerage firm world. Before he does, I cautioned him to find out whether there are any fees to pull out. Meanwhile Jason from KY needed advice about rolling over an old employer plan. Should he move to Vanguard or TIAA-CREF?

I asked my old pal Dan Forbes, President of Forbes Financial Planning, to join the show to help us think about what actions we should take before year-end. Dan also has a deep knowledge of the whacky world of insurance, so I had to ask him about term life and long term care insurance. Jerome probably could use Dan's expertise, since he is considering using life insurance in conjunction with his wife's pension choices.

Speaking of year-end, Brent from TX has a great decision to make: should he realize a $50,000 penny stock gain this year or next? Similarly, Don has stock options and is not sure whether he should exercise and sell them in 2012 or 2013.

After I provided a brief explanation of the Roth 401 (k), William asked about pre-tax versus post-tax retirement contributions. Finally, I had to tell Dylan that buying only Apple stock with his trust fund money was not a good idea.

Here are web sites and resources mentioned in this week's show:

-- Jill's Blog

-- How to Choose a Financial Advisor: 10 Questions

-- NAPFA: National Association of Personal Financial Advisors (fee-only advisors)

-- Best CD Rates

-- Long term care conundrum

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: [e-mail]

Tweet me: @jillonmoney

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