Certain Uncertainties in Retirement Two financial unknowns may erode our degree of confidence. The financial uncertainties we face in retirement may risk reducing our sense of confidence, potentially undermining our outlook during those years. Indeed, according to the 2018 Retirement Confidence Survey by the Employee Benefits Research Institute, only 17% of pre-retirees said they are...Read More
Could Assumptions Harm Your Retirement Strategy? Three common misconceptions to think about. 1 – Assuming retirement will last 10-15 years. When Social Security was created in the 1930s, the average American could anticipate living to age 58 as a man or 62 as a woman. By 2014, life expectancy for the average American had increased...Read More
Your Emergency Fund: How Much is Enough? An emergency fund may help alleviate the stress associated with a financial crisis. Have you ever had one of those months? The water heater stops heating, the dishwasher stops washing, and your family ends up on a first-name basis with the nurse at urgent care. Then, as you’re...Read More
Tax Considerations for Retirees Are you aware of them? The federal government offers some major tax breaks for older Americans. Some of these perks deserve more publicity than they receive. If you are 65 or older, your standard deduction is $1,300 larger. Make that $1,600 if you are unmarried. Thanks to the passage of the Tax Cuts...Read More
Why You Might Want to Create a Donor-Advised Fund A DAF can be a great way to give, with potentially great tax breaks. Do you regularly donate to charities and other non-profit organizations? Then you may want to open a donor-advised fund. Donor-advised funds are becoming popular. It is easy to see why. They offer...Read More
Investing Means Tolerating Some Risk That truth must always be recognized. When financial markets have a bad day, week, or month, discomforting headlines and data can swiftly communicate a message to retirees and retirement savers alike: equity investments are risky things, and Wall Street is a risky place. All true. If you want to accumulate...Read More
Debunking a Few Popular Retirement Myths It seems high time to dispel some of these misconceptions. Generalizations about money and retirement linger. Some have been around for decades, and some new clichés have recently joined their ranks. Let’s examine a few. “When I’m retired, I won’t really have to invest anymore.” Society still...Read More
Probate subtly reduces the value of many estates. It can take more than a year in some cases, and attorney’s fees, appraiser’s fees, and court costs may eat up as much as 5% of a decedent’s accumulated assets.1 What do those fees pay for? In many cases, routine clerical work. Few estates require more than...Read More
Many people save and invest vaguely for the future. They know they need to accumulate money for retirement, but when it comes to how much they will need or how they will do it, they are not quite sure. They will “wing it,” hope for the best, and see how it goes. How do they...Read More
How much does eldercare cost, and how do you arrange it when it is needed? The average person might have difficulty answering those two questions, for the answers are not widely known. For clarification, here are some facts to dispel some myths. True or false: Medicare will pay for your mom or dad’s nursing...Read More
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