Examining the potential differences between assumption & reality. Financially, how might retirement differ from your expectations? To some degree, it will. Just as few weather casters can accurately predict a month’s worth of temperatures and storms, few retirees find their financial futures playing out as precisely...
Your assets matter more than your age. Isn’t 65 the traditional retirement age? Perhaps, but baby boomers are modifying the definition of a traditional retirement (if not redefining it altogether). The Social Security Administration has subtly revised its definition of the traditional retirement age as well. If...
Certain financial & lifestyle choices may lead you toward a better future. Some retirees succeed at realizing the life they want, others don’t. Fate aside, it isn’t merely a matter of stock market performance or investment selection that makes the difference. There are certain dos and...
Read this if you want to preserve more of your nest egg & lower your tax bill. Location, location, location ...
New & old concepts to address the retirement savings gap. How many 401(k)s have more than $100k in them? According to the Employee Benefit Research Institute (EBRI), the average 401(k) balance at the end of 2012 was $63,929. Even with stocks rising last year, the average...
Little things you could do that could help you leave work a little sooner. Little things matter. When planning for retirement, people naturally think about the big things – arranging sufficient income, amassing enough savings, investing so that you don’t outlive your money, managing forms of...
If you’re 40 or 50 and haven’t begun, you must make the effort. Some people start saving for retirement at 20, 25, or 30. Others start later, and while their accumulated assets will have fewer years of compounding to benefit from, that shouldn’t discourage them to...
Next year’s small COLA isn’t the only adjustment related to the program. Here are six things you need to know about Social Security for 2014. For clarity’s sake, here is a rundown of what is changing next year, and what isn’t. Social Security recipients are getting a...
A reminder about mandatory withdrawals from IRAs & other retirement plans. Just what is an RMD? After you turn 70½, the IRS requires you to withdraw some of the money in most retirement savings accounts each year. These withdrawals are officially called Required Minimum Distributions (RMDs).1 You...
Rules changes for IRAs, 401(k)s & other savings vehicles. The IRS has made minor adjustments to retirement plan limitations for 2014. As inflation has been tame in 2013, these COLAs aren’t dramatic; as a result, some retirement plans won’t see any next year. Here is a...