Retirement Planning

2012 Retirement Confidence Survey

May 4, 2012

The Employee Benefit Research Institute recently released its 2012 Retirement Confidence Survey (pdf download). It’s not a pretty picture. The survey covers a lot of retirement issues, including confidence you’ll have enough to retire (most aren’t so confident), what age you think you’ll retire (in 1991 11% said 65; in 2012 it jumped to 37%), [...]

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Medicare ‘As We Know It’ Dead in 2024

April 24, 2012

So this is a good news, bad news, more bad news, and really bad news situation. The good news is that the financial stability (or lack thereof) of medicare and social security haven’t changed much since last year. I’m afraid the good news stops there. The bad news is that Medicare Part A (hospital insurance) [...]

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What’s New for IRA Retirement Accounts (2012)

April 19, 2012

Each year the IRS puts out a comprehensive guide to Individual Retirement Arrangements (I always thought IRA stood for Individual Retirement Accounts, but it’s Arrangements). Called IRS Publication 590, it was last released on December 16, 2011. It covers new rules for both 2011 and 2012. Because the deadline for 2011 IRA contributions was April [...]

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Roth IRA Contribution and Income Limits (2011 & 2012)

March 26, 2012

In response to The Ultimate Guide to Traditional and Roth 401(k) and IRA Retirement Accounts, a reader recently asked the following question: I retired 12/31/2010. I received my last pay check in 01/2012. Can I put money into my Roth IRA in 01/2012 (up to the amount of my gross or net income)? When it [...]

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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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