Retirement

It’s already been done. Or at least, depending on your point of view. Here’s the scoop: The Earned Income Tax Credit is a federal benefit paid to low-income workers, with benefits varying by family size. Unlike SNAP/food stamps and similar benefits, it is intended as a work incentive by paying benefits only to the working

Today’s Social Security column addresses questions about how suspending a benefit taken at 62 while working more might have on benefit rates, filing for spousal benefits after taking retirement benefits and whether to take benefits early when children are part of the equation. Larry Kotlikoff is a Professor of Economics at Boston University and the

In 2014, Rep. John Larson introduced for the first time a bill called the Social Security 2100 Act, which consisted of seven provisions intended to boost Social Security’s benefits and revenues, with revenue increases intended to be sufficient to remedy forecasted shortfalls and fund the benefit increases, and with confirmation of such by the Social

November and December are the months when most people gather with family. You may have traditions that go back to your childhood, involving where you gather, what you cook, how you treat one another, etc. And, hopefully, you look forward to these family holiday get-togethers.  Holiday gatherings in 2021 may be especially meaningful to you

By Chris Farrell, Next Avenue An email I received from Caryn Lindsay of St. Paul, Minn., grabbed my attention because her story, sadly, is all too common these days. Lindsay, who’s 58 and single, was worried that she’ll need to dig further into her retirement funds and remain on Medicaid when her unemployment benefits run out.

The Economist recently insisted that the “employment of older workers is vital if prosperity is to be maintained.” But as much as pundits insist work in old age is vital, meaningful, and fulfilling, the truth is that many of the jobs older people find themselves in sap their vitality and are hardly rewarding.  In 2020,

With talks of major long-term changes to retirement planning as part of the potential tax reform legislation, it’s a great time to start thinking about Roth IRA conversions. As 2021 comes to a close, you might be considering Roth conversions as part of your end-of-year planning, especially in light of the historic low tax rates

Over more than three decades as a wealth advisor, business owner and coach, I’ve talked a lot about the value of saying “no.” That’s because the ability to say no to time wasters and activities that distract from your core purpose, or things that are not aligned with your values, helps to open doors to

Although this is supposed to be a “wonderful time of the year”, it’s not always so. It can turn sour for some families when they are together. Old habits trigger disputes. Simmering conflicts explode. Aging parents can get cranky and difficult. Not everyone is aware of how their own actions create disconnection rather than a

Recent media reports about individuals accumulating mass wealth in Roth IRAs have piqued interest in Roth IRAs, and consumers want to know how they can get in on the Roth game. This includes my friend, Howard Jackson, an Information Technology Manager who lives in Winter Garden, Florida. Howard’s Roth IRA questions range from the basic

You’ve just turned 72, you are feeling good, you are still working for a living and contributing to your 401(k) at work. Should you have to take RMDs from your 401(k)? Seventy-two is the age when you have to start taking required minimum distributions (RMDs) from your retirement accounts. “Age 72” replaced “age 70 1/2”

Is the Build Back Better Bill is fully paid for? It seems to be a never-ending dispute, doesn’t it? On November 18, the Congressional Budget Office released its cost estimate for the Build Back Better Act, according to which the bill would spend $1.7 trillion over the years 2022 to 2031 and increase the budget

The congressional proposal to increase federal funding for Medicaid’s home and community-based (HCBS) long-term care program likely would benefit the US economy, although it could increase costs for those not receiving Medicaid.   The HCBS expansion is included in the current House version of President Biden’s Build Back Better (BBB) social spending, climate, and tax

I’m getting letters from followers who are asking for guidance on the SECURE Act’s 10-year rule that applies to inherited IRAs. For example, there is confusion about whether the rule is retroactive (it is not). What’s the ‘10-year rule’? The 10-year date comes from the SECURE (Setting Every Community Up for Retirement Enhancement) Act, which

It’s the topic nobody wants to think about, let alone talk about: what do I do once I can no longer live independently? Long-term care is not a cheap expense, but where you live can have a big effect on how much it’ll cost. A new study by Seniorly ranked the states in order of

Ohio is one of the few states in the country that does not have a state “false claims” law modeled after the federal “qui tam” law. A long-overdue clean-up of all the state pensions may be coming if Wall Street vendors to the public pensions can finally be prosecuted under state law for fraud.  

It was a good year for China’s richest 100 on the Forbes China Rich List unveiled in November. Overall, China’s 100 Richest saw their collective net worth rise to $1.48 trillion from $1.33 trillion a year earlier.  Mainland China is second only to the United States in its number of billionaires. What’s next for this powerful group?

SLATs have been the planning acronym du jour for several years. You create a trust for your spouse and perhaps other beneficiaries, and your spouse creates a trust for you and other beneficiaries. The groovy part of the SLAT pitch is that now you have all the assets in both trusts outside the reach of

To say 2021 has been an interesting year in the market is an understatement. The Total Return on the S&P 500 for 2021 through 11/26/21 has been over 25%. Some stocks, like Moderna (MRNA), Ford (F), NVIDIA NVDA (NVDA) or Nucor NUE (NUE) are up over 100%. The pressing question is what to do with

By Kerry Hannon, Next Avenue Inflation rocketed by 6.2% in the 12 months through October 2021, the fastest pace since 1990, and retirees on fixed incomes are feeling the painful pinch. They’re seeing prices soaring for everything from rent to gasoline to Medicare prescription drug premiums, and low rates on bank savings accounts aren’t helping. The