Headlines
The Social Security Solvency Dilemma–Some Thoughts for All Age Groups
If you’ve kept up with media accounts of Social Security’s looming solvency problem, it’s no secret that absent substantial corrective measures, benefits face reduction in the not-too-distant future. There have been quite a few corrective proposals put forth, but whether…
Bipartisan Policy Center on Social Security Reform
The co-chair of The Bipartisan Policy Center’s Commission on Retirement Security and Personal Savings, James B. Lockhart III, provides commentary on the need for Social Security reform in an article posted on www.cnbc.com. In the article, he recaps the projected Trust Fund…
Early Retirement and the Related Taxation Issues
If you’re approaching age 62 and considering taking the step into early retirement, there are a few key strategic considerations that come into focus as you think ahead to how your income will be taxed. In an article by retirement planning specialist Michael…
Careful Social Security Planning is Critical in Senior Divorces
Asset valuation in a late-in-life divorce situation needs to take into account the value of spousal benefits, an area that tends to be often overlooked. Most settlement calculations focus on defined assets, like cash on hand, property values, and vested…
Retirement Investing Myths Dispelled
We all have heard the “standard” advice about investing for your retirement but are they accurate? Judith Ward, Forbes contributor and Senior Financial Planner and Vice President of T. Rowe Price Associates, Inc., dispels the three most common investing myths that…
Tax Deduction and Medicare
In Maurie Backman’s article for The Motley Fool (www.fool.com) she writes that Medicare premiums for Part B, Part D, supplement premiums for added insurance, out-of-pocket costs (such as copayments, prescription expenses) are indeed tax-deductible. However, you can only deduct expenses…
It’s about Balancing Your Income, Savings, and Debt
Ben Steverman writing for BloombergBusinessweek appearing on the Bloomberg website (www.bloomberg.com) reviews the latest book from Thomas Anderson, “The Value of Debt in Building Wealth.” Anderson, a former Morgan Stanley financial adviser who now heads a firm that markets educational materials…
Comparison of benefits under Railroad Retirement and Social Security
(CHICAGO — Employers and employees covered by the Railroad Retirement Act pay higher retirement taxes than those covered by the Social Security Act, so that railroad retirement benefits remain higher than social security benefits, especially for “career” employees who have…
Checking Your Earnings History
In fiscal year 2016, the Social Security Administration processed 92,000 complaints about Social Security statements. In Tom Anderson’s column posted on CNBC website (www.cnbc.com) he reminds us that this time of year (tax season) is a great time to review…
Retirement Savings — Not a Priority?
According to GoBankingRates’ 2017 Retirement Savings Survey, about one in three adults has $0 saved for retirement and another 21 percent of Americans have less than $10,000 saved. In Cameron Huddleston’s column appearing on GoBankingRates website (www.gobankingrates.com), he reviews the…