Ask Money

I am a 25-year-old college graduate with approximately $27,000 of student debt. I have been unable to find a job since graduating and am making $1,000 a month, give or take. I now have $1,500 in my checking and $1,000 in savings. This is the most money I have had at one time and am unsure how best to utilize it. My savings account is for emergencies. My budget allows for $150 a month of disposable income. Should I contribute what remains of my disposable income to the loans, save it or try to invest it? I am currently paying $100 a month to the loans to maintain activity. Thank you for your time. Nathaniel, Raynham, MA

My wife will soon lose her job after several years working in non-profit. I am confident in her ability to find another job, but in the meantime, we have been told that she will have to take money out of her 403(b), totaling about $45,000. What should we do with it? Roth IRA? Something I don't know about? James, Louisville, KY

Why can I put more money each year into a 401(k) than I can an IRA? This is stupid. I'm currently a contract employee and can only put $6,000 a year into an IRA, since I'm 50 and can use the catch-up provision. Last year, as an employee of a company that offered a 401(k), I saved more than $12,000. Plus, my company matched very generously. Thanks, Ernie, Sunnyvale, CA

If watched closely, is it wise to jump between aggressive stock funds and bond funds during market runs such as the bull run so far this year? The year-to-date return is 18 percent for my strategy. My Fidelity account has rules regarding moving between funds, so I have to navigate those rules also. Marty, Cincinnati, OH

How do you plan your investments when you're planning for people of different ages? If a family has one person who is of retirement age and another who's much younger, how should common investments be allocated? Conservatively (keeping in mind the older person) or aggressively (in the interests of the less old person)? Thanks!!! Rina, Bronx, NY

I recently was accepted to grad school, and my wife and I will be moving from Michigan to New Mexico. We are having a debate as to whether we should buy a home. After I finish my degree, I would like the freedom to leave New Mexico, if necessary, without having to worry about selling a home. My wife doesn't like the idea of paying rent and getting nothing back from it. Any and all advice would be much appreciated.

I've got a fair amount of student loans. I've also got a good job as a college professor, and I will be able to pay them off eventually. But I'm concerned about my wife. If something should happen, do student loans transfer to a spouse or do they stick with me? Rudolf, Providence, RI

Hi. I'm 53 years old and have had to go through the little bit of my retirement savings. Now, I have $5,000 to start something, as far as retirement goes. What should I do? I do not have anything through work. Actually, my workplace is on brink of closing right now. Lisa, Louisville, KY

My wife and I are having a disagreement and I hope you can help settle it. We're looking at houses below $100,000. After having looked at our options, I want to wait a year and build up our savings so we can put enough money down without completely wiping out our savings. My wife is concerned that, due to a recovering housing market, it will be more expensive in the long run if we wait, and that will be worth the short-term risk. Should we wait or go for it now? Andrew, Milwaukee, WI

I'm putting the max allowed in my retirement accounts, and it's invested fairly conservatively in index funds. I lost a bunch of money in the tech stock crash in the early 2000s, which makes me hesitant to dump more money in the stock market. I own an apartment and don't really want more exposure to real estate, either. I'm starting to build up enough cash that I don't want to just leave it in my savings account. The only debt I have is my mortgage, and while I have decreased the balance on it, the interest rate is so low that it seems like there must be something better I can do with the cash. Any suggestions? Kira, Washington DC