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Comprehensive Guide to Third Stimulus and SSI/SSDI
The third stimulus checks for $1,400 are going out to millions of people. This extremely comprehensive article by Alison DeNisco Rayome of CNET explains the new qualification rules for SSI and SSDI recipients and their dependents, a timeline for when the payments…
5 Social Security Oversights That Could Cost You Thousands
Chuck Saletta notes the complexity of Social Security despite how straightforward it appears to many. He lists five Social Security oversights could cost people thousands over the course of their retirement. They are: 1. Claiming early while still working; 2. Not claiming…
Timing is everything with Social Security
Bruce Helmer and Peg Webb of the Wealth Enhancement Group explain some of the considerations one should make when deciding when to start Social Security benefits. They begin by noting that people decide for themselves what they get, as benefits are…
What Americans don’t understand about Social Security
What do Americans understand about Social Security? Not as much as they should, according to this piece by Levi Leidy first published on GoBankingRates.com. A majority of Americans don’t know when they can start claiming benefits, though most did know about…
5 Signs You’re Ready for Your First Social Security Check
Robin Hartill explains there’s no magic bullet for deciding when to start one’s Social Security benefits. Claim too early and you could be in for a cash-strapped retirement. Claim too late and you risk leaving money on the table that you paid…
Retirement plans and special needs trusts is a complicated one
Retirement plans often make up a significant portion of assets for retirees. Parents of children with special needs, or of individuals who have become disabled as adults, question whether their retirement plan can be put into a special needs trust.…
$86 billion to help troubled pension plans
Not only will the $1.9 trillion American Rescue Plan issuing stimulus checks to most Americans, give aid to states and local governments, and expands unemployment benefits; the bill includes $86 billion to help troubled retirement plans. Currently, there are about…
How an HSA can help you save for expenses now and in retirement
A recent survey by the HSA Bank Health & Wealth Index found “83 percent of consumers over 65 worried about current or future medical bills and of those consumers, more than a third reported they rarely save money for future…
How to live like you’re retired, even when you’re not
The financial industry and society as a whole have an image of what retirement is; total control over your time to do whatever you want. But why do we wait until then, why not now? Jacob Schroeder, Manager of Investor…
You can still switch your Medicare Advantage plan
If you discovered your Medicare Advantage plan is not a good fit, you have until the end of March to either drop your plan and return to basic Medicare or switch to another Advantage plan. If you choose to switch…