Is now a good time to buy I-bonds?
Q.  Investor  A. Series I savings bonds earn interest based on combining a fixed rate and an inflation rate. And with more talk of rising inflation, I-bonds deserve a closer look. There is a fixed rate-of-return component as well as a component that adjusts with inflation, said Ken Van Leeuwen, a certified financial planner with Van Leeuwen & Company in Princeton. The inflation component is based on the Consumer Price Index For All Urban Consumers (CPI-U), which measures the changes of prices of goods and services bought by urban consumers. As inflation goes higher, the bonds will increase payments based on the CPI-U reading, Van Leeuwen said. I-bonds are typically used as long-term holdings and come due in 30 years from issue, but you can redeem them after 12 months of purchase.  He said now could be a good time to buy because there is an expectation that inflation will rise. Email your questions to Ask@NJMoneyHelp.com. Karin Price Mueller writes the Bamboozled column for NJ Advance Media and is the founder of NJMoneyHelp.com. Follow NJMoneyHelp on Twitter @NJMoneyHelp. Find NJMoneyHelp on Facebook. Sign up for NJMoneyHelp.coms weekly e-newsletter.