koya79/iStock/ Thinkstock The term "estate planning" generally includes documents such as a Last Will & Testament, financial power of attorney, health care power of attorney and maybe a trust. However, to address the growing online presence of individuals from young to old, estate planning has grown to include planning of an individual's digital assets on their death or disability as well.

When balanced against the income tax treatment of a nonqualified portfolio of investments, post-death distributions from qualified plans and individual retirement accounts (retirement benefits) will generally produce a significantly inferior result.

Checking your credit reports from the three major credit bureaus is always a good idea. A misdirected bill that has gone to collections or someone with the same name but bad credit habits could torpedo your credit score.

Travelers would be wise to include their tax and immigration legal teams on speed dial. January 1, 2016 marked a new era for Americans living abroad, as the ''Fixing America's Surface Transportation Act'' (FAST) is now effective.

Ever wonder how you spot a tech support scam? Ads that pop up on your computer with messages like 'SECURITY ALERT' or 'Urgent Notice: your data may be at risk' - those are signs of a scam. The FTC has been after tech support scammers for many years.

If you want to improve your retirement, look into how you can get more benefits from Social Security - because it's a significant retirement income generator for most of us.

What will you do to make Social Security financially sound for future generations? The key to preserving Social Security and other programs that benefit AARP members is to have an economy that is robust and growing. For too long Americans have had a great deal of uncertainty in their lives, and the reforms I will bring to D.C.

Family caregivers are doing more than ever to support their family members, neighbors and friends who have long-term or chronic health needs. They shop, cook, drive and manage finances. They bathe, dress, toilet and feed. Most also do things they never even dreamed they would need to do - unless they went to nursing school.

My friend's distress was acute. For weeks she'd been running herself ragged, attending to her ailing octogenarian father. Daily visits to the hospital had given way to frantic efforts to turn his apartment into a home hospice after he made clear that he wanted to return to his apartment.

Reverse mortgages have taken heat, and often rightly so, as risky, expensive financial products. But in 2014 the federal government changed rules for those loans, adding a number of safeguards. With the improvements, reverse mortgages are a better tool for seniors who need to shore up financially shaky retirements.