Retirement

If you’re deciding whether to pay off your mortgage in retirement, carefully consider all the … [+] factors. getty Some pre-retirees and retirees might be wondering if it makes any sense to pay off the mortgage on their home in the current low-interest environment. As it is with many seemingly simple questions, the answer is

Economic Security Planning, Inc. Today’s column addresses questions about whether continuing income can replace earlier years with low or no income taxed by Social Security, whether to file for lower retirement benefits after spousal benefits and potential benefits based on a deceased parent’s record. Larry Kotlikoff is a Professor of Economics at Boston University and

By Stephenie Overman, Next Avenue Contributor getty An 18-year-old American soldier who went to fight in Vietnam in 1968 — the year of peak deployment —is now 70 years old. In addition to the usual health problems affecting that age group, many Vietnam veterans struggle with Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and the effects of Agent

A California street getty It sounds preposterous, and the headline of a recent article here at Forbes by Marilyn Cohen is certainly eye-catching: “The Lunacy Of Using City Streets To Collateralize New Municipal Bond Deals.” And these aren’t just any municipal bond deals — two cities in California are issuing bonds with their own city

getty Is there a budding bull market in “boring?” Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway made news this week when they disclosed their latest investment. The giant conglomerate now owns about 5% of the outstanding shares of 5 Japanese trading companies. Or, as they call them in Japan, sogo shosha. Berkshire also owns nearly $6B worth of

Social Security requires more than a power of attorney getty Hopefully, Baby Boomers are paying more attention to their power of attorney (POA) documents.  A previous post pointed out that, as valuable as these POA documents are, they will not stand alone for Medicare. The same holds true for Social Security. POAs do not give the

By Nancy Collamer, Next Avenue Contributor Barbara Sher Courtesy Barbara Sher’s YouTube channel With entire industries pummeled by the pandemic, millions of older American workers are being forced to find new career paths. If you’re one of them, you’re likely struggling to find your way forward. There’s no surefire formula for navigating a successful career

getty Yes, the Netherlands! Some time ago (almost exactly a year ago, in fact), I started researching what eldercare looks like in other countries, and had put this article together but waited to publish it until I could provide a series of such articles. At the time, my interest was in eldercare per se, and

Traders wearing masks arrive before the opening bell at the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) on May … [+] 26, 2020 on Wall Street in New York City. – Global stock markets climbed Monday, buoyed by the prospect of further easing of coronavirus lockdowns despite sharp increases in case rates in some countries such as

Lori Lightfoot, mayor of Chicago, speaks after being sworn in during an inauguration ceremony in … [+] Chicago, Illinois, U.S., on Monday, May 20, 2019. Chicago makes history Monday as Lightfoot becomes its first black, female mayor after sweeping all 50 wards by promising to reform the third-biggest U.S city. Photographer: Daniel Acker/Bloomberg © 2019

WASHINGTON, Aug. 27, 2020 — Photo taken on Aug. 27, 2020 in Arlington, Virginia, the United States, … [+] shows a screen showing U.S. Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell delivering a speech to the Kansas City Fed’s annual Jackson Hole research conference, which is held virtually this year because of the pandemic. Jerome Powell announced

This past week, the Federal Reserve made a significant change to its policy on interest rates and inflation. While this change has significant implications for all investors, the policy shift is particularly important for those in retirement. Getty Images Before the new policy, the Fed set an inflation rate target of 2%. This meant, in

We have outlined many factors that impact deferred variable annuity performance: rollup rates and the frequency of their vesting, as well as how long they are applied, step-ups and their frequency, whether rollups stack on step-ups, guaranteed withdrawal rates, death benefits, investment choices, allowed asset allocation and the range of investment offerings, use of volatility-managed

Having more tax-free retirement income is reason to celebrate Getty Whether tax rates are high or low, I will hear people complaining about the taxes they get to pay. Let’s be real; no one likes paying taxes. 2020 is an election year, and your vote could also affect your future tax bills. But with tax

By Kerry Hannon, Next Avenue Contributor Getty Lots of retirees have regrets about their retirement choices. The primary problem: they were too optimistic about their anticipated retirement benefits, which led to them not saving enough during their working years. If they could go back in time, they’d have postponed retiring, paid off debts before leaving

WASHINGTON, DC – AUGUST 27: Democratic Vice Presidential nominee Sen. Kamala Harris (D-CA.), … [+] delivers remarks during a campaign event on August 27, 2020 in Washington, DC. Harris discussed President Donald Trump’s failure to handle the COVID-19 pandemic and protect working families from the economic fallout prior to the last night of the Republican

getty There are a lot of misunderstanding about the Social Security rules. Some of these rules are coming into play more than usual during the Covid-19 pandemic, so it’s important to know the rules. A misunderstanding can lead to poor decisions and lower lifetime benefits. When someone is both working and receiving Social Security benefits,

WOBURN, MA – APRIL 8: Family members participate in a drive-by birthday celebration for 102-year-old … [+] Agnes Carson outside the New Horizons at Choate independent and assisted living community. (Photo by David L. Ryan/The Boston Globe via Getty Images) Boston Globe via Getty Images Hundreds of thousands of older adults and younger people with

Now is a great time to refinance your home. getty Two weeks ago, both Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae FNMA announced a new mortgage refinancing fee of 0.5%. The new fee was scheduled to start on September 1, 2020. However, yesterday, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac both announced the new fee will be delayed until

WASHINGTON, DC – AUGUST 22: U.S. Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) speaks to reporters at … [+] her weekly press conference at the Capitol on August 22, 2020 in Washington, DC. The House was called back from recess to vote on H.R. 8015 Delivering for America Act to allocate funding to the US