According to a recent survey of U.S. households by Schroders, only 27% of respondents who were still working reported ‘very good’ and ‘fully on track’ when asked how they feel about their retirement planning. Even more alarming, only 18% of workers between age 60 – 67 say the same. But how can you tell if
Retirement
Superficial observations and shallow thinking can lead to all sorts of faulty conclusions that could negatively impact the decisions we make in our lives. Take, for example, the question of if you should move to Mexico. Please take a look at the drawing to the right. What do you see? Do you see the young
A Roth IRA is a magnificent planning tool that offers some huge opportunities: · Growth and income can be tax-free · There are no Required Minimum Distributions for the owner, a spouse beneficiary and a ten- year distribution window for most non-spouse beneficiaries · Basis on assets from a Roth are automatically stepped-up. Roth assets are tax-free and
In the current low interest rate environment, many mortgage borrowers of advanced age are considering the wisdom of paying off their mortgage with low-yielding assets. This can be a good idea or a bad idea, depending on the circumstances of the borrower. Consider the following example: The borrower has a 4% mortgage with a remaining
It began as an extended snow day and quickly accelerated to a nation-wide shutdown with no end in sight. With markets falling in a tailspin, could you blame anyone who became anxious? The future looked bleak—assuming you believed you would have a future. “Obviously a year ago people were scared,” says Craig Kirsner President, Retirement
By Kerry Hannon, Next Avenue Boomer women are “on pause” and thinking about quitting, according to a recent LinkedIn survey of 1,000 female professionals. Almost half (49%) of working women between 57 and 74 say their career is on pause (more so than Gen Z, Millennials and Gen X). And the boomer women’s conviction about
This article is part 2 of a series. Read part 1 by clicking here. The ability for the insurance company’s general account assets to earn returns that exceed what households could otherwise obtain, combined with the tax deferral provided by the insurance policy, means that it is possible for life insurance to serve as an
By Richard Eisenberg, Next Avenue Editor How big a financial toll can family caregiving take? Well, Amy Goyer, who is AARP’s family and caregiving expert, says the costs of caring for her parents led her to file for bankruptcy. “I wish I’d met with a financial adviser from the very beginning who would have kept
By Jacqueline Snyder, Next Avenue Have you ever heard that a millionaire becomes a millionaire by having seven streams of income? I believe the same to be true for small-business owners, even ones selling products out of their homes. But how do you get there? If you consider a large brand like Nike NKE ,
By Andrea King Collier, Next Avenue My husband, Darnay, and I turned 64 at the end of 2020. He’s an elementary school teacher; I’m a freelance writer. It occurred to me that we should be doing some serious financial planning before we hit 65. We have a pretty good handle on our future pensions and
By Nancy Collamer, Next Avenue If you’re looking for work or think you will be soon, you undoubtedly know to update your LinkedIn profile, refresh your resumé and up your networking game. But in today’s competitive, pandemic-fraught job market, just doing the basics isn’t enough. Fortunately, I recently picked up several timely job-search tips while
Retirees with limited assets face the specter of outliving them. The only assurance offered by investment advisors that this will not happen is application of what is called the 4% rule. The rule says that if the retiree draws 4% of his assets every year and increases the draw amount by 4% every year, the
When we try to define “old age,” most of us want to determine where it starts, as though anything beyond X number of years is old and everything that comes before that is something else – maybe childhood or teenage or middle age. Where we draw that line might change over time. When you were school
Three topics to understand as you start your trust planning Like other sound financial management and stewardship tactics, trusts are about planning for the future and planning for the ones you love. While you may think of trusts primarily as a part of planning for what happens to your wealth when you die, you may
Today’s column addresses questions about the ability to take spousal benefits after first receiving retirement benefits, what benefits may be available after a divorce and whether Social Security requires beneficiaries to switch from survivor benefits to their own retirement benefit at 70. Larry Kotlikoff is a Professor of Economics at Boston University and the founder
Create a monthly payout without making middlemen rich. You can spend a lot of time struggling to turn a pile of capital into monthly income. Or you can spend a lot of money. What if you don’t want to spend either of those things? Then you may find this guide very helpful. The model income
Some people are uncomfortable with the idea that their children will find out they are the beneficiary of a trust. After all, what parent wants their child turning into a trust fund baby. Stories abound of young people who waited for their trust money, spent it on a lifestyle they could not afford, and had
Preparing for natural disasters is one thing. We are urged by local government to plan for them. But what about the crises that are nearly inevitable with aging parents? They can turn into disasters too. No one wants to think about that possibility, but it’s real. Planning for emergencies is basic and essential. And few
Have you ever thought about retiring early…extremely early? We’ve been seeing an increasing amount of interest in the concept of FIRE, which stands for financial independence, retire early. The FIRE movement is largely one of younger people planning to achieve financial independence before 50 and sometimes before 40 or even by 30. If you’re interested
New Stimulus Payment The third round of Economic Impact Payments (EIP3), stimulus money for individuals — even retirees — was authorized as part of the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 that was signed into law March 11, 2021. Payments are already arriving in bank accounts and mailboxes throughout the U.S. In order for EIP3