Retirement Planning

Traditional IRA Contributions and Deduction Limits For 2012

February 1, 2012

As I’ve written about in the past, an IRA is a great way to save for retirement. If you qualify, you can stash money away for retirement, deduct your contributions from your taxable income, and let your nest egg grow tax-deferred until you take it out during retirement. The rules on contribution limits and whether [...]

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Reader question: Should you invest in a 401(k), a Roth IRA, or pay off credit card debt?

January 8, 2012

Recently a reader e-mailed me with the following question: I definitely do want to open a Roth IRA as soon as possible because I hear it’s typically better than the Traditional IRA. However, I’m not certain whether one should be putting money way in one’s 401K or Roth. As you can tell, I’m not that [...]

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Social Security Increase (COLA) for 2012–3.6%

October 20, 2011

The Social Security Administration announced that monthly Social Security and Supplemental Security Income (SSI) benefits will increase 3.6 percent in 2012. Called a Cost-of-Living Adjustment, or COLA for short, the 3.6% increase is the first raise in benfits since 2009. About 55 million Social Security beneficiaries will see the increase beginning in January 2012. Another [...]

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Retirement Income Security Made Simple

September 1, 2011

If you’re about to retire, you’ve got to be deadly serious about your retirement income security. All kinds of thoughts might be running through your head; “What if I need more income for some unexpected reason? What if my investments don’t do as well as planned? What if I live longer than I expect? Should [...]

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Everything You Want To Know About Annuities

March 16, 2011

An annuity is an insurance product by which you make a lump-sum payment or series of payments. In return, the insurer agrees to make periodic payments to you beginning immediately or at some future date. Annuities can be used as part of a retirement strategy as many retirees want to receive a steady stream of [...]

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The Disappointing Status of Social Security

December 22, 2010

As part of the recent tax deal, President Obama has proposed a 2% reduction of the payroll tax paid by workers to support Social Security. While that would mean savings for working families, a worker making $50,000 in wages would bring home an extra $1,000, it would also mean smaller revenue for the Social Security [...]

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401(k) and IRA Contribution Limits for 2011

October 31, 2010

The IRS recently released retirement savings contribution limits for 2011. These caps cover 401(k), 403(b), 457(b), and traditional IRA retirement accounts. For the most part, the limits are unchanged from 2010, although there are some small inflation adjustments with respect to qualifying income limitations. So here are the 2011 401k and IRA contribution limits: Elective [...]

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Social Security Benefits Flatlined Until 2012

October 21, 2010

Social security, first passed in 1935 as part of Franklin Delano Roosevelt’s New Deal, encompasses a host of social insurance programs, including well-known federal benefits such as temporary assistance for needy families, unemployment insurance, Medicare, Medicaid, and the State Children’s Health Insurance Program. In common parlance, however, Social Security is usually used to refer to [...]

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How Much Dough Does A Roller Need to Retire?

August 12, 2010

A simple question, with such a complicated answer. Just how much money do you need to retire?  The short answer is that you should certainly have enough in savings to bridge the gap between your retirement income and expenditures. Trouble is, that it can get complicated pretty quickly. First, you’ll need to figure out an [...]

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