Advisors

vitapix | E+ | Getty Images Tax breaks for retirement plans, such as 401(k) plans and individual retirement accounts, may reward workers for saving more money, but these write-offs may also be widening the racial wealth gap. That’s according to a new analysis from the Tax Policy Center that is based on the Federal Reserve’s latest Survey

FatCamera Most workers over age 40 don’t have sufficient retirement savings and aren’t setting aside enough to catch up, according to a survey from the Insured Retirement Institute. Despite the nest egg shortfall, many still expect to retire early and believe they will have ample retirement income.   More than half of older Americans have less

Cecilie_Arcurs | E+ | Getty Images With fewer employer pensions these days, some retirees are hesitant to draw down their nest eggs. However, older Americans may spend more freely with a guaranteed source of income, such as Social Security or a private annuity. That’s according to a research paper that examines spending in retirement. The

PeopleImages | E+ | Getty Images In his poem “If,” British author Rudyard Kipling famously wrote that learning to “keep your head when all about you are losing theirs” is part of growing up. That very statement is also part of growing wealth. I wish I could go back to March 2020, when some investors

Peter Cade | Getty Images Most retirees — including those with less wealth — aren’t tapping their nest eggs before their required withdrawals, according to research from J.P. Morgan Asset Management and the Employee Benefit Research Institute. Some 80% of the retirees studied didn’t withdraw money from accounts before their required minimum distributions, known as

Hero Images | Getty Images At some point, individuals who are charitably inclined might determine that writing checks here and there to various nonprofits is no longer cutting it. For those who want a more permanent way to help the greater good during their lifetime, and perhaps beyond, options include either a private foundation or

FG Trade | iStock | Getty Images Help may be on the way for workers who lose track of their 401(k) accounts as they move from job to job throughout their careers. Under a proposal included in retirement legislation that’s pending in Congress, an online “lost and found” database would be established to help locate

Getty Images The enhanced child tax credit captured America’s attention this summer as millions of families began receiving payments. But Congress also boosted a lesser-known write-off this year for working families: the child and dependent care tax credit. Often conflated with the child tax credit, the child and dependent care tax credit offers working parents

Image Source | Getty Images Many Americans have trouble covering their costs of living with income solely from Social Security. Now, a bill has been reintroduced in Congress aimed at reducing the risk that older Americans, women and people of color will live in poverty despite receiving their monthly checks. The proposal, called the Social

Although many Americans continue to face financial uncertainty due to the pandemic, the outlook for retirement savers is only improving. Retirement account balances, which took a sharp nosedive in 2020 when the coronavirus outbreak caused economic shock waves, are now at new highs, according to the latest data from Fidelity Investments, the nation’s largest provider

@Sabi32 | Twenty20 One in 3 American families couldn’t handle a mid-sized financial emergency before the pandemic, according to a report from the Stanford Center on Longevity and the Global Financial Literacy Excellence Center. Roughly 27% of American families couldn’t cover an unexpected $2,000 expense within a month, and 33% were struggling to make ends

krisanapong detraphiphat | Moment | Getty Images About 1 in 3 of the lowest-income families have a savings account, according to research published Monday by the Consumer Federation of America, a consumer advocacy group. Thirty percent of households in the bottom fifth — those who earn less than about $26,000 a year — owned a

Hector Pertuz | iStock | Getty Images If you’re handling the financial affairs for an older person who has died, you may wonder how the government knows to stop sending Social Security payments. Or maybe there’s a surviving spouse or dependent who is hoping those benefits can continue. Although Social Security rules can be complicated,

Sawitree Pamee / EyeEm | EyeEm | Getty Images When a financial advisor discusses the appropriate asset allocation for a portfolio, they are essentially trying to construct a plan that maximizes expected returns based on a given level of risk. The advisor pays less attention to the behavior of an individual security and instead focuses

In this article MS BLK skynesher | Getty Images Direct indexing, which allows investors to buy the stocks of an index, instead of purchasing a mutual or exchange-traded fund, may soon be available to more investors. While ultra-high-net-worth people have historically used the strategy, those with fewer assets may soon have access as more financial

PamelaJoeMcFarlane | E+ | Getty Images The first half of 2021 was very different than the volatile first six months of 2020. To that point, the Standard & Poor’s 500 Index returned 15% in the first half of this year — healthy growth in just about any full year. Yet, with the potential for inflation

Billy Hustace | Corbis Documentary | Getty Images After being hobbled by the pandemic recession, real estate investment trusts are rebounding rapidly, and the economic recovery isn’t the only thing driving growth this year. Share prices are rising from demand rooted in investor concerns about inflation and the potential for rising interest rates. As a

Getty Images As inflation pushes prices on everything from food to gasoline higher, your emergency cash could be in danger of losing value. Persistently low interest rates likely will not keep pace with surging costs. Rapid inflation may continue for several months, Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen said in a recent interview, while other experts see

David Paul Morris | Bloomberg | Getty Images Most individual investors — 67% — think they have a responsibility to put money toward companies that have a positive impact on the world, new research shows. That doesn’t mean they are necessarily acting on the sentiment. While more than half (51%) of retail investors avoid investing

Cavan Images | Cavan | Getty Images Covid-19 prompted many women to leave the workforce. That’s because many women were forced to choose between working and taking care of their children and families amid a pandemic often opted for the latter. The difference in earnings and career prospects can be seen immediately. And it could