Retirement

A measure to close North Dakota’s public pension plan is headed to Governor Doug Burgum’s desk for signature. Before enacting the measure, the state’s chief executive would be wise to look at the experience of other states that have made such a drastic move. State leaders have learned the hard way that ending pension benefits

Step Transaction Doctrine May Ruin Your Estate Plan The What Doctrine? While the step-transaction doctrine might sound arcane it is one of many tax constructs that might well undermine steps you might take to plan your estate to reduce future estate taxes or to protect your hard-earned assets from a malpractice claim. In the simplest

Tax planning is a great way to help increase your take-home pay as a small business owner. Setting up a Cash Balance Plan could save a business owner $100,000 or more in yearly taxes. These tax savings can be even higher for business owners in high-tax states like California or New York. Who Benefits The

Some of you may contribute to your 401(k) to stay on track for financial freedom. Others are motivated by the huge tax savings that come with maxing out their 401(k) plans each year. There is probably a group of 401(k) contributors who have yet to learn why they are doing it beyond someone telling them

The SECURE Act 2.0, passed in the very last week of 2022, has provided a few opportunities regarding tax-sheltered savings vehicles and how we use them. Most people have already heard about the Required Beginning Date (RBD) for Required Minimum Distributions (RMD) being pushed out to age 73, for those born before 1960 who have

When it comes to 401(k) savings, women are doing better than men in every way — except their account balances. That’s according to a recent study examining the different ways male and female savers treat their workplace retirement plans. Not only did women demonstrate better savings habits than men, but they also enrolled in their

Since the Great Resignation in 2021 when employees across industries quit their jobs in large numbers, private sector employers have begun revisiting their benefit offerings to align with current employee preferences. As cited in a recent JP Morgan Asset Management report, “Pension Defrost: Is it Time to reopen DB pension plans- or at least stop

Retirement planning is probably the most common topic that I get questions about, whether on our financial coaching line or our group workshops and webcasts. I find there are quite a few recurring myths that could be hurting people’s ability to plan properly for their retirement. Here are 10 of the ones I hear most

Few taxpayers were interested in or needed to know the “wash sale” rules, until recently. When stock prices rose steadily, the wash sale rules didn’t come into play. The rules matter only when investors sell stocks at losses. That’s why the wash sale rules have been more important since 2021. The wash sale rules were

We are accustomed to the utilization of equations in financial planning, and while most of those tend to be numerical, there are a growing number of formulas that apply to the utilization of our non-financial resources. These resources—such as our time, influence, energy, and relationships—can be as important as our money and can often be

Millions of Americans move abroad each year. If you’re considering being one of them, be sure to avoid the most-frequent financial mistakes of emigrating Americans. Though the politics of moving abroad attract a lot of headlines, only a small number of the four million or so U.S. citizens living abroad left for political reasons. Most

A friend called me for advice after getting this message from her dermatologist’s office. “As recommended by the Skin Cancer Foundation, we encourage all patients to schedule an annual skin exam. It has been more than one year since your last one. Please call to us today.” My friend wanted to know whether she should

In 2019, before the pandemic, older adults constituted the lion’s share of the travel market. However, when Covid hit, that number plummeted. Because we knew early on that older adults were more vulnerable to this plague, many put their travel plans on hold. Fear, coupled with the freedom of choice that most older adults possess,

No matter how far you got in your education, or what you studied, chances are you never had a primer on how to manage aging parents in failing health. The exceptions are those who specifically pursued healthcare, geriatrics or a related field. For everyone else, it may feel like you are totally lost when it

The age-old question of philosophers and financial analysts is: Does more money increase happiness? For years, the consensus answer was: Yes, but only to a point. The landmark research on the issue found that happiness doesn’t increase much once a person’s income exceeds $75,000. That 2010 research was led by two Nobel Prize winners, Angus

We’re awash in knowledge in 2023, but do you think our general level of understanding is greater? Do you think we’re wiser? I’m not so sure, so when I was challenged to re-read through one of the great collections of ancient wisdom last month, the book of Proverbs, it was an easy Yes. Indeed, I

Higher interest rates are making annuities more popular than ever. But despite rising annuities sales, misunderstandings keep many people from taking advantage of annuities. Insurers have been dealing with waves of applications in 2023 as yields on multi-year guaranteed annuities (MYGAs) leapt to 3%, 4%, and then above 5%. Let’s look at the misunderstandings that

This is a case that really happened as I report it. A 93 year old grandma played all kinds of sweepstakes and got mailings from them regularly. She loved the excitement of entering contests. She got a letter from one of them, informing her that she had won a huge cash prize. Shortly after, she

The latter part of your career — in your 40s, 50s and early 60s — is the prime time to position yourself for a successful retirement. While your “post-work” years may still seem a long way off, the time will pass quickly. For some, retirement may come sooner than expected as layoffs, illness or the

Arriving at a conference, I went to hang my coat on the rack and noticed one that was almost identical to mine. I hung my coat as far away from that one as possible. A couple of hours later while heading to a session, I noticed a woman wearing my coat. She was furiously checking