H.Q. La
http://www.hqla.net/
hq.la.ppyx@statefarm.com
503-236-3776
Our mission is to accurately match our clients with their insurance and financial products need so they can properly protect themselves and their families. We will be proud of the integrity and quality of the products sold to the clients, and offer unsurpassed customer service throughout the client/agent relationship, remembering that each client may be a client for life.
State Farm Insurance
2858 NE Sandy Blvd
Portland, OR 97232-2455
Phone: 503.236.3776
Fax: 503.236.0259
* * * * * * * * * * *
Leslie Liao
Financial Advisor
Merrill Lynch Global Wealth Management
leslie_liao@ml.com
503-221-4752
Our most deeply held principle at Merrill Lynch is that clients come first, and I am proud to be part of that tradition. To help you meet your financial objectives and build your wealth, I first listen to your personal goals, and then offer effective approaches to achieve them. At Merrill Lynch, I have unparalleled resources that include planning expertise, investment strategies and state-of-the-art technology designed to streamline any financial picture. Let me put them to work for you.
Pacwest Center
1211 SW Fifth Avenue
Floor 24th Suite 2400
Portland, OR 97204-3793
Cell: 503.481.1973
Fax: 503.342.2291
* * * * * * * * * * *
Rechele Heath
Public Affair Specialist
rechele.heath.gis1@statefarm.com
253-912-6448
Our mission is to help people manage the risk of everyday life, recover from the unexpected, and realize their dreams. We achieve our mission through the products and services we offer, as well as through our involvement in and commitment to the community. We make it our business to be like a good neighbor, helping to improve the quality of life in the communities where our associates live and work.
State Farm Insurance
1000 Wilmington Dr.
DuPont WA 98327
* * * * * * * * * * *
|
Editor's Note: This post by Jorgen Wouters originally appeared on June 21 on WalletPop.com.
The FBI is warning consumers to be on the alert for scammers who tie up their phone lines while emptying their bank accounts.
These "telephone denial-of-service" attacks are similar to ones that have been used by hackers for years to crash websites by flooding them with Internet traffic. But high-tech criminals are now using automated dialing programs and multiple accounts to overwhelm the phone lines of unsuspecting consumers and small- and medium-sized businesses.
The denial-of-service calls, which can include dead air, advertisements or phone sex menus, are actually diversionary tactics designed to tie up a victim's phone lines. And while the lines are busy, the fraudsters -- impersonating the victims -- raid their bank accounts, online trading and other money management accounts.
The FBI first learned about this scheme through one of its private industry partners, which told the agency of a Florida dentist who lost $400,000 from his retirement account after a denial-of-service attack on his phones. So how does this "dialing for dollars" scam work?
Weeks or even months before the phone calls start, the FBI warns, a criminal uses social engineering tactics or malware to extract personal information such as passwords an account numbers from intended victims. These victims may have set set themselves up by replying to phishing e-mails, inadvertently giving out sensitive information during a bogus phone call, or placing too personal information on social networking sites, which are constantly trolled by cyber criminals. Once the scam artists have enough information, they tie up the victim's various phone lines and either contact a financial institution pretending to be the victim or siphon off funds from their online bank accounts.
Financial institutions typically call to verify such transactions, but can't get through due to the denial-of-service attack. If the transactions aren't approved, the criminals will contact the financial institution, pose as the victim and confirm the transactions. They can also add their own phone number to victims' accounts, and simply wait for the bank to call and request approval. By the time the victim or financial institution realizes what has happened, it's too late.
The FBI reports a surge in telephone denial-of-service attacks since April of this year, with reports of numerous incidents in several Eastern states.The FBI has teamed up with the Communication Fraud Control Association -- a collection comprised of security professionals from communication providers -- to educate the public, analyze patterns and trends of telephone denial-of-service attacks, and identify the con artists and bring them to justice.
The FBI urges consumers and small- and medium-sized business to take the following steps to avoid being a victim of this new scam:
• Never give out personal information to an unsolicited phone caller or via e-mail
• Change online banking and automated telephone system passwords frequently
• Check your account balances often
• Protect your computers with the latest virus protection and security software.
If you think you may have been targeted by a telephone denial-of-service attack, contact your financial institution and your telephone provider, and file a complaint with the FBI's Internet Crime Complaint Center.
WalletPop.com is one of the leading consumer finance sites on the Web. Find the latest deals, bargains, consumer protection and personal finance information quickly. The opinions expressed are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of APACC. |
5 little-known facts about Social Security (posted on 2/18/2011)
By Marilyn Bowden • Bankrate.com
Most Americans watch their money go into the Social Security trust fund in the form of payroll deductions as soon as they begin working, when retirement seems a long way off. As a result, many go through their working lives without giving it much thought.
Here are a few facts everyone should know about Social Security benefits before making any decisions about retirement.
Who is entitled to retirement benefits?
Just about anybody who has worked for 10 or more years is eligible for Social Security retirement benefits.
"You need 40 quarters of employment, earning a minimum income of $1,000 per quarter," says Brett Horowitz, principal and wealth manager at Evensky & Katz in Coral Gables, Fla.
The income requirement is so low that "it could be met with seasonal work," says Richard W. Stumpf, principal at Financial Benefits in Wichita, Kan.
There are some exceptions. Most federal employees hired before 1984 aren't eligible to participate, Horowitz says. Stumpf adds that pastors may choose not to pay in.
Also, railroad workers and their families generally get benefits through a separate retirement system.
How are payouts calculated?
The size of your monthly check is arrived at by a series of calculations.
Your primary insurance amount, or PIA -- the benefit you would get at full retirement age -- determines the size of your monthly retirement check. According to the Social Security Administration's website, the PIA is based on the Average Indexed Monthly Earnings, or AIME, as applied to an inflation-adjusted formula. The PIA is then adjusted for whether you take retirement before or after your normal retirement age -- 66 for those now reaching retirement age, but gradually adjusted to age 67 for those born after 1954.
You can begin drawing reduced Social Security as early as 62. For every month you delay after reaching full retirement age, up to age 70, the monthly benefit increases.
According to a recent report of the Senate Special Committee on Aging, for someone with an AIME of $5,000 in 2009, the PIA would total $1,971.
In keeping with the original intent behind Social Security -- a way to lift seniors out of poverty -- lower-wage earners get a higher proportion of their earnings than higher wage earners. The maximum monthly benefit that can be received in 2010 is $2,346.
What are spousal benefits and widow benefits?
If one partner in a marriage earns significantly less than the other, the lower-earning spouse can collect spousal benefits rather than payouts based on his or her own earnings history. "The spouse can get the greater of their own or 50 percent of the other spouse's PIA," Horowitz says. "The lower-earning spouse is not eligible until the higher earner starts getting benefits, but both can start as early as 62."
Stumpf says this option can be a financial planning tool.
"Imagine a high earner whose spouse is his employee," he says. "If they cut her pay and transfer the rest to him, when she reaches retirement age, one-half of his income will be significantly higher than what she earned."
A divorced spouse who was married for more than 10 years and has not remarried can draw against the ex-spouse's work history. Widows and widowers can receive the higher of their own or their spouse's monthly payment, but not both.
"That's why it's important for the higher earner to delay taking benefits for as long as possible," says Horowitz.
How broke is Social Security?
According to many studies, the Social Security trust fund will be able to cover its retirement and disability obligations for the next 30 years or so, after which there will be a shortfall of about 22 percent. The Senate Special Committee on Aging figures funds will fall short in 2037. Stumpf thinks those estimates are optimistic.
"The Social Security trustees assume an annual 2.8 percent inflation rate," he says. "Historic norms are in excess of 3 percent. That's a big difference when you're talking about trillions of dollars.
"We could make small adjustments now and bring it to fully fundable status; if we delay, it will be more painful. In 10 years the shortfall will be significantly bigger; in 20 years it will be through the roof."
Where do payroll deductions for Social Security go?
In theory, they're held in trust by the government. But it's not as if your money sits there in the Social Security trust fund waiting for you to retire. After current beneficiaries are paid, surplus dollars are used to buy bonds from the U.S. Treasury. So the trust has the bonds, but the money is now in the Treasury, where Congress can use it for any purpose.
"The Social Security trust fund is ... a piggybank holding paper IOUs from Congress," Stumpf says.
This is the first year that Social Security has had to cash in one of those bonds in order to meet its payroll, says Stumpf.
"From this point forward, an increasing number of those bonds will have to be pulled out every year -- and Congress is going to have to find a way to come up with all that money," he says.
Retirement resources
For most people, Social Security is one component of retirement income -- one leg of the so-called three-legged stool.
Pensions are another component, but these days few workers get a pension. The last leg would be personal savings, whether in a 401(k) plan, IRA, an investment account or savings account.
Read Bankrate's Retirement Guide to learn basics about how to construct a retirement plan. |
