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Colorado PERA offers a fantastic 401k and 457b plan to all PERA-affiliated employers, which includes all public school employees. These plans are almost always better than the 403bs or 457bs offered through their school districts by other vendors (see Littleton Public Schools, Cherry Creek, Denver, Douglas County, and Aurora as examples). At Friday's Board Meeting, … Continue reading Colorado PERA Lowers Fees for 401k and 457b Plans
Updated July 2025 to reflect changes in the standard deduction and the bonus deduction for those over age 65 (due to legislation). As we are about to turn the page (click the arrow?) on the calendar to move into 2025, there are many changes that happen around taxes. These include tax bracket changes, changes in … Continue reading 2025: New Year, New Limits
I've written before about 401k, 403b, and 457b retirement plans and the similarities and differences between them. Unfortunately, many school districts offer some truly horrible 403b plans (listen to Learned by Being Burned for more info). But there has been a positive development lately in that some school districts, typically large ones, have now started … Continue reading Aurora Public Schools Single-Vendor 403b Plan: Is It The Best Choice?
You have probably noticed a plethora of stories lately about how young people today are not moving out of the house very quickly after high school/college. There are many, many reasons for this (financial, emotional, and other). The stories you read typically take one of two approaches, depending on the focus of the author. The … Continue reading The (Financial) Advantages of Living at Home
I've been doing some financial presentations for educators in various Colorado school districts. As part of the intro to my presentation I reference the fairly typical "90-minute New Employee Orientation" that school districts often provide for new teachers and that, while these are well-intentioned, they usually fall woefully short of what they could (and should) … Continue reading New Teacher (Financial) Orientation
As we are about to turn the page (click the arrow?) on the calendar to move into 2024, there are many changes that happen around taxes. These include tax bracket changes, changes in the limits of what you can contribute to various retirement accounts, and a variety of other changes. The following is by no … Continue reading 2024: New Year, New Limits