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Show Page 8 The OGDEN VALLEY NEWS Volume II, Issue III December 1999 How to Harvest The Rewards of Retirement Fourth in a four-part series Retirement involves making changes — to schedules, priorities, activities and finances. One of the major transitions many people experience at retirement is going from the predictability of receiving a paycheck to the relative unknown of relying on pension checks, Social Security and personal savings and investments. In this final article, you’ll find helpful information that outlines how you can take action to make your program work. Step 4 Take Action On Your Program Take your time. Some of the choices you make when you retire are irreversible (especially those concerning your retirement plan distributions). Other decisions don’t need to be made immediately, so you can make changes gradually. Take the time you need to make the decisions that are right for you. Get information about your options Gather as much information as you can about your benefits and options for retirement: · Write or call for the resources that will help you in planning your retirement. · Talk to your employer about the specifics of your retirement program and any additional benefits offered to retirees (such as health insurance, employee discounts, etc.). · Check your local paper for seminars on retirement planning. Talk it over with someone else Review the information you’ve gathered with a spouse or friend before making a decision. There’s a good chance you know someone who has already retired. Also, consider getting advice from an expert — such as an accountant or financial professional — who is familiar with the concerns of retirees. Many people hope to provide an inheritance to a spouse, their children or favorite charity. To make sure your money goes where you want it to go, rather than to the government, you must plan just as carefully as you planned when accumulating the money. Making a will and keeping it up to date is the first step. Next, consult with a financial professional to learn about any special tools that can help you distribute your estate, minimize taxes and/or supplement your retirement income. Manage your risks Risk management means planning for unexpected expenses and avoiding financial liabilities that can undo your financial strategies. Tools that can help you manage your risks include an emergency fund and insurance (health, disability, property, life). Don’t stop investing You may retire, but that doesn’t mean your personal finances should do the same. You may live 15 to 20 years in retirement. Helping your money perform over this period of time will require careful management to make sure you stay on track with the goals you’ve set for the years ahead. You should also understand the risks, as well as the potential rewards, associated with different types of investments. Retirement is an ongoing process. Because both your personal circumstances and economic conditions change over time, think of your retirement as an ongoing process, not a one-time event. With careful thought, effort and planning, you’ll be well on your way to creating the kind of retirement life that you want. This information has been provided to you courtesy of Ascend Financial Services, Inc., member NASD/SIPC. 98-0227-85002R Information submitted by Calvin Welling, CLU, ChFC, CEP. Call 801-399-5409 for more information. Valley Residents Hung Up on Poor Phoneline Service having the problem, and that I By Jeannie Wendell Ogden Valley residents have been experiencing some problems with their phone lines during the past year. About six months ago we were plagued with a phone service problem. You would call someone and perhaps break, unintended, into a conversation already in progress. You could hear them, but they couldn’t hear you. Important or personal information could have been, and was, leaked during this situation. After calling U.S.West’s customer repair service to find out what was going on, I was informed that I was the only person having this problem and so the phone company would check out my lines. If they did find a problem with my phone line, I would be required to pay for the repair. After speaking with other friends and neighbors, I soon found that they, too, were having the same thing happening to them. About a month after this problem was resolved, another arose. When talking on the phone, the line would suddenly go dead as if the other party had hung up on you, or they may have believed you had hung up on them! Again I spoke with customer repair service, and again they informed me it was an isolated incident, and I would be responsible for the costs to pay for any repairs to my phone lines. In speaking with other residents of the Valley, I soon found that, again, everyone was experiencing this same problem. Problems continued. It wasn’t long ago that customers found they were unable to place a call anywhere outside Ogden Valley. When trying to dial an outside number, all you would receive was a busy signal. A Valley resident could not even call a toll free number or a repair person from the phone company! Again I called the customer repair service—on my cell phone—to find out if this were a wide spread problem. The phone company told me they had checked my lines before, that it was probably my phone would have to pay for the repairs— now inferring I was a “chronic complaining customer.” The customer service representatives I spoke with at U.S. West were not helpful; in fact they were down right condescending. Now we are experiencing yet another phone anomaly. During a telephone conversation, local or long distance, have you noticed a short period of gurgling as the other person talks, a sound as if there is an interruption of service, or a sound as if your battery on your phone may be dying? Again, it isn’t your line or phone that is having problems, it’s our Valley service, yet again! The person on the other line can hear you fine, even while you may continue to hear the sporadic gurgling noise. Recently I came across an article from the Associated Press that related a U.S. West customer service policy in force in recent years, a company policy directing employees not to disclose to consumers possible service delays. A so-called “Customer Not Educated” policy had been in place since 1997. An internal document allegedly stated, “Do not advise the customer that there could be a problem providing service.” Under this policy, even if a customer representative couldn’t tell the customer that an area wide problem existed, couldn’t they have at least treated the inquirer in a professional and customer oriented manner. Threatening a “complainer” –the paying customer—with personal out-of-pocket costs in order to resolve a company problem, while perhaps knowing what the situation was, was “out of line (no pun intended).” Is it right that Valley customers pay full price for a service that is spotty, at best, and then have to receive even poorer customer service when trying to resolve a substantial, or even critical problem? OGDEN VALLEY REAL ESTATE SPECIALISTS PLEASE CALL FOR A NO OBLIGATION MARKET ANALYSIS ON YOUR HOME 745-4663 DICK OR KEN Now Open Owners - Heather Holbrook & Brandee Hudgens Over 10 years combined experience in two of Ogden’s top salons. ♦ Weekly & Special Occasion Styles ♦ Blow Outs ♦ Color ♦ Haircuts ♦ Highlights ♦ Lip & Brow Wax ♦ Perms Call Now for an Appointment 745-1979 *Located in the Eats of Eden Plaza Ken Turner Realtor 745-4222 Dick Dixon Branch Broker 745-3119 We Make It Happen! WARDLEY IS #1 IN UTAH! WE SELL A HOME EVERY 11 MINUTES! MORE THAN OUR NEXT TWO COMPETITORS COMBINED! 30 OFFICES AND 1600 SALES EXECUTIVES TO SATISFY ALL OF YOUR REAL ESTATE NEEDS! EDEN OFFICE 745-4663 2595 NORTH HIGHWAY 162, EDEN UT |