Retirement

Share to Facebook Share to Twitter Share to Linkedin As 2023 winds down to a close, our attention as investors turns to the coming year. What investment vehicles, in which sectors, are going to serve us best in 2024? While none of us have a crystal ball that will reliably show us the future, we

Real family gatherings might not look like a gauzy image on a greeting card. Let’s face it: there is conflict in lots of families, ramped up when they gather. Can you do anything about that tightness in your belly at the thought of who’s coming for dinner? We think so, based on hearing from many

Share to Facebook Share to Twitter Share to Linkedin Investing in a 401(k) plan is one of the most effective options an investor has to plan for retirement. Tax-deferred growth and relatively high contribution limits enable individuals to amass a more substantial nest egg over their working years. Employer matching contributions, where applicable, represent an

The approaching holidays present a golden opportunity to help you gain valuable insights that will help you better plan your retirement. And it’s a win-win—you can also engage with relatives and friends whom you might not know very well and avoid those awkward silences. The ice breaker: Ask them thought-provoking questions about their views on

Share to Facebook Share to Twitter Share to Linkedin Dividend stocks are a core part of many retirement portfolios. But dividend investing is at a unique point in market history, with T-bills yielding 5%. That raises the bar for “high-yield” stocks, since stocks can fall heavily in price. In this article, I toe the line

One of the most common questions when people hear I am a financial planner is some version of “Do you think I am on track for retirement?” The reality is most people could be saving more, but keep reading as we share the average retirement savings by age. Hopefully, this will give you a sense

The SECURE Act 2.0, enacted in late 2022, changed more than 90 rules about IRAs and other qualified retirement plans. The changes are phased in over several years. Here are some key changes that take effect in 2024 or took effect in 2023. For the first time, excess funds in a 529 education savings plan

Has the premium for your Medicare Part D prescription drug policy increased for 2024? Mine has. I recently received notice that my monthly premium would increase by more than 21%, from $28.40 in 2023 to $34.50 in 2024. This increase came on top of a large increase from 2022 to 2023. With increases occurring in

There are few things I love more than sitting down with a bunch of other smart, intentional people and swapping thoughts on how we can do even better at this crazy thing called life. I recently had the pleasure of trading ideas (and a few gibes) with Stacking Benjamins Joe Saul-Sehy, Afford Anything’s Paula Pant,

It’s time to assess your IRA plans and be sure to take before the end of the year the actions that can increase your financial independence. Many actions must be completed before December 31 or the opportunity to reap their benefits for this year is lost. In many cases you want to initiate the actions

The estate of the late actor, James Caan, who appeared in The Godfather and many other films and television shows, lost a recent Tax Court case that has lessons for other taxpayers. The case involved two of Caan’s IRAs. The IRAs owned interests in a hedge fund. The tax code allows IRAs to own non-publicly

Deciding when to retire is one of the most important decisions facing workers in their 50s and 60s. Your decision will significantly influence your financial security, health, and life satisfaction for the rest of your life. It’s a serious decision that only you can make—nobody else can tell you the best age at which you

Share to Facebook Share to Twitter Share to Linkedin The hardest part of investing for retirement is budgeting ample contributions. Solve that issue and you jump into the next hardest part: Deciding how to invest. Your retirement investment decisions should flow from a target asset allocation that aligns with your time horizon and risk tolerance.

The U.S. is desperately short of nurses, personal care aides, and other direct care workers who help frail older adults and younger people with disabilities manage their days. Instead of dealing with the problem, policymakers have, predictably, devolved into their usual partisan blame-mongering. Watch, if you can, this recent hearing of the House Energy and

Many people don’t think too hard about the reasons they want to retire, so they often don’t put enough thought into when it would be best for them to retire. And that’s not a good idea, since deciding when to retire is a critical decision that will impact your financial security and quality of life

If you think retirement planning moves stop at retirement, think again. For high earners, converting an IRA to a Roth IRA while you’re still working could be the worst time of all. Although it won’t make sense in every situation, retirement can be a unique opportunity for Roth conversions for some investors. Particularly for individuals

Immediate Action Advisable The Corporate Transparency Act (“CTA”) is a new federal law that may affect you in significant and unexpected ways. Since the law only becomes effective January 1, 2024 and entities created before 2024 only have to file January 1, 2025 it seems that most folks are just not taking any action now.

A new report from Apartment List by Chris Salviati reveals a surging supply of extra bedrooms amid rising demand for cash by seniors facing a retirement income crisis. This intriguing finding raises the question: Can seniors rent out their spare bedrooms to stave off low income in old age? It’s an age-old question, actually. For

No one loves paying taxes. Building a retirement income you can’t outlive is a challenge for many Americans. Increasing the amount of tax-free retirement income you receive will help minimize these two challenges. Keep reading as we share five ways to get the most tax-free income in retirement. As a Certified Financial Planner, I love

From what we are told, sales of previously owned homes in the United States are at their lowest rate in 13 years, while the average sale price for a home in the US has risen in just the last three years from around $374,500 to around $513,400 today. While I’m not an expert in this