Why make it simple when difficult will do. That seems to be the motto of the Setting Every Community Up for Retirement Enhancement (SECURE) Act, even in its title. The SECURE Act has been the law of the land since January 1, 2020, and the 125 pages of reforms were, allegedly, supposed to make saving for retirement easier and more [...]
The checklist when preparing for retirement is a long one. But you need to be aware of one item in particular if you intended to start taking Social Security before your Full Retirement Age (FRA) and continue working—the Social Security Earnings Test. It can suck Social Security dollars out of the pockets of unsuspecting retirees. To paraphrase a familiar old [...]
If your childhood was like most, when you made mistakes or something went wrong, you really wanted a do-over—another shot at making the right decision? You’re not a kid anymore, but it’s nice to know there’s still an opportunity for a do-over—a Medicare test drive. When you’re eligible to sign up for Medicare, if you choose a Medicare Advantage plan, [...]
One of the advantages of the Social Security system is the Survivor Benefit. Of the 65 million people receiving Social Security, approximately 6 million receive the Survivor Benefit because they are the widow, widower, surviving ex-spouse, minor children, or permanently disabled adult children of a deceased worker. The amount received is based on the deceased worker’s earnings history. Switching [...]
Since its beginning in 1935, Social Security has become synonymous with retirement income. But as with any government program, Social Security is a behemoth with a lengthy list of rules and hidden intricacies that can make a huge difference in the amount you receive. Collectively, Americans lose trillions of Social Security dollars because they don’t understand the system. It’s not [...]
It’s called the survivor trap or widow’s penalty. It’s a financial monster that eats away retirement income after one spouse dies, often leaving the surviving spouse with no hope of the retirement they expected. Here are some of the pitfalls of the Survivor Trap. Loss of Social Security One of the first things to happen when a spouse dies [...]
There are not many advantages to getting old—hair thins, wrinkles show up at an accelerated rate and there’s a cornucopia of new aches and pains we’re introduced to. As crazy as it sounds, for many, one benefit to getting older is having access to Medicare. When Congress passed Obamacare in 2010, healthcare in the United States was thrown into turmoil. [...]
Have you made preparations? It’s a question I’ve asked clients more times than I can count, but I was reminded of the significance of the question and the possible consequences when I recently asked the same thing of a family member. Bill (not his real name) is 70 years old and never been married. He’s in the early stages of [...]
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