Your Money Ratios: 8 Simple Tools for Financial Security

Investment adviser Farrell simplifies retirement savings. To make the process of preparing for the golden years less complicated—and less anxiety provoking—Farrell developed a series of simple formulas to help readers understand what they need to be saving based on age and household income, while taking as much of the irrational emotion out of the equation as possible. Swift calculations help readers understand how much they should be saving each year, how much to contribute to 401(k)s and IRAs, when to invest in real estate, how much education debt to carry, how to balance debt, how to calculate investment power and how to find a financial adviser for those situations that require a little extra help. Farrell keeps his readers on track—each decision boils down to what he calls the “Unifying Question:” “Will [x] help move me from being a laborer to being a capitalist?” By focusing on making readers' money work for them, and with the use of simple, clear numbers, Farrell does a wonderful job of taking the worry and stress out of number anxiety—no calculator necessary. (Jan.)