Dear Liz: Could you possibly recommend a financial advisor I could sit down with who could counsel me on ways to save money? I work a full-time clerical job, but worry all the time about being homeless someday.
Answer: Talking with a financial expert can help you formulate a sound plan for your future, which in turn can help allay your fears.
Start with your employer. Some companies offer financial wellness programs that may include one-on-one counseling. Others offer financial advice through their 401(k) or other retirement plan providers.
Another option is an accredited financial counselor. These professionals provide advice on budgeting, debt, credit, retirement savings and other money topics. They’re fiduciaries, meaning they’re required to put your best interests first. Some are employed by credit unions or the military, and others offer a sliding scale. You can start your search at findanafc.org.
The National Foundation for Credit Counseling at www.nfcc.org primarily helps people pay off credit card debt, but its member agencies also offer budget counseling. You can find its budgeting tool at www.nfcc.org/resources/monthly-expense-tool/.
Dear Liz: My wife and I are well over 70 and receive Social Security. We pay for Medicare Part B as well as IRMAA (Income-Related Monthly Adjustment Amount) for Part B and Part D via deductions from our monthly checks. We just received our annual notice from the Social Security Administration of the 2.8% cost-of-living increase for 2026. At the same time, our Medicare deductions were increased such that we ended with a monthly $20 increase in Social Security for my wife and $80 for me. That hardly goes along with the sentence in the standard letter from the SSA that the COLA helps us keep up with the cost of living. Are we just lucky that our monthly checks from the government did not actually decrease?
Answer: In a word, yes.
The cost of healthcare and healthcare insurance typically rises faster than the general rate of inflation. Medicare costs haven’t increased as quickly as those for private insurance. However, it’s still not unusual for higher Medicare premiums to wipe out Social Security cost-of-living increases for the year.
Fortunately, you have other resources to help you cope with inflation. IRMAA is a Medicare surcharge that kicks in for people with modified adjusted gross incomes over $109,000 if single or $218,000 if married filing jointly. The surcharge is determined by your income tax return from two years ago, so your 2026 IRMAA is based on your 2024 filing.
Dear Liz: Your recent response to the person giving bad advice about closing credit accounts was truly a public service. Over the years, I have opened and closed many credit accounts. Only once was a credit card closed for non-usage by the issuer and there was no major degradation of my credit score. Never has one of my actions altered my score by more than a few points or for more than a few months at a time. Misinformed statements such as those made by that individual can confuse people who are new to the world of credit or unfamiliar with how it works.
Answer: Before the advent of credit scoring, your ability to get a new loan or credit card may have been affected by a notation on your credit reports that a previous account was closed by the issuer. Today, though, it doesn’t matter who closes an account and there’s no need to add a notation that you were the one requesting the closure. If you mishandled the account, that will be evident from the missed payments that would show up on your credit reports (and be incorporated into your scores). If you handled the account responsibly, that will also be evident on your reports.
As mentioned in previous columns, closing credit accounts can have a significant impact on your scores if you have a few accounts or major blemishes on your credit. Closing a card with a high limit can ding your scores more than closing one with a lower limit.
But people with multiple credit accounts and a history of managing credit responsibly aren’t likely to suffer significant or lasting damage to their scores when they close an account.
Liz Weston, Certified Financial Planner, is a personal finance columnist. Questions may be sent to her at 3940 Laurel Canyon, No. 238, Studio City, CA 91604, or by using the “Contact” form at asklizweston.com.
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