You Could Retire...But Should You? It might be better to wait a bit longer. Some people retire at first opportunity, only to wish they had waited longer. Thanks to Wall Street’s long bull run, many pre-retirees have seen their savings fully recover from the shock of the 2007-09 bear market to the point where they appear to have reached the “magic number.” You may be one of them – but just because you can retire does not necessarily mean [...]
Tax Efficiency in Retirement How much attention do you pay to this factor? Will you pay higher taxes in retirement? Do you have a lot of money in a 401(k) or a traditional IRA? If so, you may receive significant retirement income. Those income distributions, however, will be taxed at the usual rate. If you have saved and invested well, you may end up retiring at your current marginal tax rate or even a higher one. The jump in [...]
Accentuating the Positive Retiring? Saving for retirement? Here’s some good news. Are 90% of articles written about retirement pessimistic? Sometimes it seems that way. Repeatedly, we are reminded that most baby boomers haven’t saved enough for the future. There’s no denying this, but the media is giving short shrift to other, more positive developments that may be improving the economic and retirement outlook for many Americans. Here are a few worth noting. 401(k) savings have rebounded tremendously from Great Recession [...]
IRS Raises Retirement Plan Contribution Limits Roth & traditional IRAs won’t get 2015 COLAs, but other plans will. A little inflation means a little adjustment. As the Consumer Price Index is up 1.7% over the last 12 months, the federal government is giving Social Security benefits a 1.7% boost for 2015 and lifting annual contribution limits on key pension plans as well.1 401(k), 403(b), 457 & TSP annual contribution limits increase by $500. You will be able to defer up [...]
Getting Financially Fit for Retirement at 50 Things for trailing-edge boomers & Gen Xers to consider. When you turn 50, retirement starts to seem less abstract. In terms of retirement planning, a 50th birthday can act as a wake-up call. It may offer a powerful reminder to trailing-edge baby boomers and Gen Xers, many of whom are wrapping up their second act with inadequate retirement savings for their third. You may find yourself with such a shortfall, and you wouldn’t [...]