With most financial experts advising that primary wage earners delay taking Social Security until age 70 (as delaying can result in payments that are 70% higher), the author of today’s article acknowledges that “for those who do want to maximize their benefits, that means utilizing other assets in the meantime which requires some strategizing.” He proceeds to outline one potential…
It’s an unwelcome surprise for many retirees: having to pay more taxes in retirement than when they were working. In fact, one financial security expert cited in today’s article warns that “tax-deferred retirement accounts such as a 401(k), IRA, or 403(b) can be like sitting on a tax time bomb”. What are the two main reasons Americans are paying higher…
The median retirement account balance among all Americans of working age? $0.00. And that’s the median amount, meaning half of working-age Americans have even less than $0.00 to their name. And if the paltry state of Americans’ retirement accounts isn’t enough to convince you that there’s a retirement crisis, consider the fact that total U.S. consumer debt is now sitting…
“While the market has long periods of high returns, it has even more long period of low returns. Investors have seen entire decades delivering nothing but losses,” notes the author of today’s article – and this reality is critical for retirement planners to be cognizant of, given that financial advisors often use overly optimistic return assumptions when creating retirement plans…
When it comes to determining how much money you need to retire, there is no lack of opinions out there. Today’s article, however, highlights “an elegant solution to the problem” devised by one financial advisor that the author describes as a “divergent thinker”: a simple formula based on the market value of your house. For this formula – and why…
Only save in tax-deductible accounts – and disregard Roth accounts. Claim your Social Security benefit at age 62 – whether you need it then or not. Plan on your expenses dropping significantly once you leave the workforce. Double down on your employer’s stock. Ditch stocks for bonds when the market goes south. These are five of the 20 ways identified…
As part of its 2019 Guide to Retirement, J.P. Morgan Chase includes a simple chart that presents a “sound plan for retirement.” The chart depicts six different factors (two that retirement planners have total control over, two they have some control over, and two that are out of their control), with the investment bank advising to “Make the most of…
When it comes to de-risking your retirement portfolio, the author of today’s article suggests thinking of it as being akin to de-icing your car, noting that “de-risking is important. It helps insulate your future retirement income from a market plunge that could occur near, or soon after, your retirement date.” In terms of how to de-risk, however, she advocates taking…
It’s hard to imagine that what is perhaps most people’s primary financial preoccupation today – retirement – was not always a common thing. In fact, today’s article notes, there was a time when this life stage that everyone strives to achieve today was not considered desirable! Today, the question is not so much whether retirement is desirable but what type…
Today’s article calls it “the nastiest hardest problem in finance”: retirement spending strategies. And unfortunately, despite the complexity inherent in retirement spending strategizing, it is often subject to simplistic rules of thumb, most notably the 4% rule. The author outlines the dangers associated with the 4% rule, how it “can go very badly”, and the implications of this for the…