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Two Views of This Thing Called a “Retirement Crisis”
It just depends what vantage point you have. As Forbes contributor Teresa Ghilarducci points out in her post on www.forbes.com, you can either interpret it as a revenue/spending crisis or a savings crisis, but either way it’s a problem. Check out her…
Debating the Family Leave/Social Security Connection
Despite revenue neutrality, there are pros and cons associated with the concept of using Social Security to finance family leave. As a reform measure, it’s a pretty substantial redirection of thought in a world of tradition, and it will require…
How do low interest rates affect retirement thinking?
Long-range planning (or short-range, for that matter) for retirement funding hinges quite a bit on interest rates, since returns tend to influence withdrawal rates which in turn can dictate the durability of your accumulated wealth. But exactly how do interest…
Rep. Ron Kind Challenges Administration on National Debt, Cites Social Security/Medicare Growth
In a recent House Committee on Ways and Means hearing on the President’s Fiscal Year 2019 Budget Proposals, Rep. Ron Kind (D-Wisconsin) challenged Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchen on the national debt, suggesting that the federal government is not in position to…
Some Quick Pointers on Social Security
The CheatSheet’s Karen Bennett, posting on their :Money & Career page, provides a snapshot of some basic Social Security parameters. Her items range from taxation of benefits to the nagging solvency issue, with some important details in between. Read her post…
Social Security’s BEST: A Resource You Can Use
Social Security’s BEST–Benefit Eligibility Screening Tool–is a set of tools that should be on the favorites list of anyone trying to get a handle on the basics of this critical senior benefit. Using a questionnaire approach, BEST can guide you through…
Retirement Planning for the Long Haul
Your retirement–that light at the end of the tunnel you feel you’ve been toiling in for so long–might be a brightly lit road of a length longer than you expected. It’s important, therefore, that you take steps at appropriate waypoints…
A Reminder…File Your Tax Returns Quickly to Thwart the Scammers
Tax ID fraud is a real and growing problem these days so, if you’re one of the 14% of American taxpayers who wait until the last minute to file your return, you could be putting yourself at risk. This type…
The Impact of Inflation on Social Security Benefits
In a post on seekingalpha.com, Daniel Amerman, CFA offers viewpoints on how inflation, in reality, affects the purchasing power of Social Security benefits. Challenging the assumption held by many that Social Security benefits are inflation proof via its COLA provisions, Amerman…
More Reasons to Not Wait Until Age 70
If you’ve been thinking about when to draw benefits, you know that the longer you wait, the larger your monthly benefit will be. In an article and video posted on kxan.com, a spokesman from REAP Financial offers some thoughts on why…