MachiLaw.com Articles

The Wall Street Journal shows unemployment figures aren’t as bad as they look. They’re worse. It isn’t just that the headline jobless rate topped 10%. Behind these figures you’ll find that 16.3% of the workforce, or one person in six, is either unemployed completely or working part-time. And the numbers of long-term unemployed are staggering: more than a third of unemployed Americans, 5.6 million people, have been out of a job for more than 27 weeks, according to the federal government. And the employment picture isn’t expected to improve significantly until mid-2010.
If you are worried that your job is in peril, you are not completely powerless. You can protect what you’ve earned. This may be especially important for older workers, many of whom are having a tough journey back into the workforce.
The first step toward shielding yourself is to protect your home. Many states, including Florida and Texas, offer homestead protection, which will shelter some or all of the value of your home from creditors (other than the mortgage company). Getting homestead protection may be as simple as filing a form at your local registry of deeds.
Next, take steps to protect your savings. Most people know that money held in an individual retirement account (IRA) or a retirement plan such as a 401(k) or a qualified pension plan is protected from taxes until withdrawals are made. That money is also protected from creditors—so if you’re able to make additional contributions to these accounts, this may be a good time to do so.