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Social Security’s Earnings Test: Watch the Details if You’re a Dual Income Couple
Social Security’s earnings test–the rules that govern how much you can earn in those years before attaining full-retirement age (FRA)–are one thing, but when a situation involving two wage earners together arises, it gets even more intricate. InvestmentNews contributing editor Mary…
Some Basic Questions to Help Focus Your Retirement Finance Goals
You hear quite a bit these days about the absence of adequate savings for those retirement years, and many folks are digging in and making an honest attempt shore up their long-term savings goals. If that includes you, it might…
Putting America’s “Retirement Crisis” in Perspective
MarketWatch columnist Jeff Reeves takes aim at one of today’s serious issues by providing a chilling recap of the problems facing our country’s retirement system in the years ahead. Noting the dearth of savings on the part of future retirees, the decline…
Independence and Social Security: Perfect Together!
As Americans celebrate Independence Day, it’s important to reflect on what independence actually means for those in their retirement years. It’s even more important for those planning ahead for this phase of their lives, as noted in an article by Kate…
The “Gig Economy”–An Ideal Way to Defer Social Security Filing?
It’s no secret these days that filing for Social Security at age 62 produces a substantial reduction in monthly benefits. Likewise, retiring early can mean that maintaining a desired lifestyle would require dipping into savings balances that, for many, are already insufficient for…
A Primer on Claiming Strategies for Married Couples
One of the more mystical areas of Social Security law has been the file-and-suspend, restricted application rules previously available to married couples. Although these rules were substantially altered with the Bipartisan Budget Act of 2015, there are still some strategic moves…
A Tool to Assess the Strength of Your Retirement Savings
The Motley Fool’s Maurie Backman, in a post today on fool.com, introduces a tool designed to help future retirees understand how well their accumulated savings will meet their spending needs in those later years. Her article addresses recent survey results…
Social Security survivor’s benefits – Who gets what and when?
Although the rules governing Social Security survivor’s benefit are somewhat complex, these benefits can spell the difference between poverty and financial stability. While survivor’s benefits are based on the earnings of the deceased spouse and age of the survivor when…
Best Retirement Ever
What does it take to have the best retirement possible? In Rob Russell’s column appearing on the Forbes website (www.forbes.com), he lists the top five habits that every retiree should adopt to make their journey to and through retirement so…
Some Things to Consider if You Plan on DIY Your Retirement Plan
Are you a DIY type of person? Do you google how to fix your car, paint your house, or play the guitar? Have you tried googling retirement planning? In Charles Ragonese’s column appearing on the Kiplinger website (www.kiplinger.com), he lists…