Are you retiring sometime within the next 20 years? If you can answer this question yes, you are certainly among the many. These are very interesting times in elder law circles because of the fact that so many people are reaching retirement age at the same time. It is hard to wrap your head around this statistic but there are 10,000 people applying for Social Security every day right now and this is expected to continue for the next two decades. With so many people … [Read more...] about Medicare, Medicaid, & Your Retirement
Retirement Planning
What If Your Retirement Plan Falls Short?
It is easy to give advice about making sure that you start your retirement planning efforts early so that you are fully prepared when the time comes, and clearly this is the best course of action. But there is an ideal reality, and there is the real world where many people find themselves residing. Not everyone is positioned perfectly when their retirement years come into focus, and while it is true that this is sometimes due to a lack of planning there are also forces at work that are out … [Read more...] about What If Your Retirement Plan Falls Short?
Getting The Most Out Of Social Security
Most people who are planning for their retirement years are going to be building around Social Security as a centerpiece. But even if your resources would allow you to enjoy retirement to the fullest if you did not receive Social Security, since you did make contributions into the program it is only natural that you would expect something in return. One could simply invest his or her Social Security benefits and add the earnings to the estate that family members will draw from in the … [Read more...] about Getting The Most Out Of Social Security
Social Security Eligibility
The sooner you get started planning for your retirement the better. When you speak with people who seem to have "all their ducks in a row" they will usually tell you that they have it easy as retirees because they had the foresight to plan ahead early in their lives. If you want to get started but are uncertain about where to begin you may want to arrange for a consultation with an elder law attorney who will help you to structure a personalized plan that leads to the fruition of … [Read more...] about Social Security Eligibility
Proactive Approach To Health Care Costs
In a perfect world everyone would be able to set aside adequate resources to handle any and all expenses that may come their way throughout their lives while they make estate plans with a separate block of untouchable assets. In fact, you hear a lot of people speak about estate planning as if the above scenario is the rule rather than the exception, but in reality this is not the case, even for people who have been quite successful throughout their lives. There is a very wide range of … [Read more...] about Proactive Approach To Health Care Costs
5 Shortcomings of Retirement Planning Software
Retirement planning software can help by generating quick overviews of where we’re headed financially, but unless you know the major shortcomings of these programs, you’re likely to miss some important information that could make or break your retirement plan. First, many retirement planning programs use return rates that are unrealistic, whether through user setting or a program default. A 2009 study of popular retirement planning software condenses the 5 primary shortcomings of these … [Read more...] about 5 Shortcomings of Retirement Planning Software
How To Boost Your Retirement Savings
Along with estate planning naturally comes thoughts about your golden years. Where will you live? How will you take care of yourself? Will you have enough money to live on for the rest of your life? Worries about running out of money as you get older is a common fear. And for good reason. Some studies show that many over the age of 55 have only $10,000, if that, in retirement savings. That's woefully short. Although we all know people who have lived comfortably, but frugally, on almost … [Read more...] about How To Boost Your Retirement Savings
Developing A Retirement Plan
Although everyone should be saving for retirement, few actually are. According to statistics published by the Employee Benefit Research Institute, approximately 60% of adults in the workforce are actively saving for retirement and only 65% of those that are saving have more than $50,000 saved. The worst statistic, however, is only about half the savers actually crunch the required numbers to know how much they need to save. Before you can make a plan, you need to know a few things: 1) What … [Read more...] about Developing A Retirement Plan
The 411 on 401Ks
It’s difficult to imagine a retirement plan without a 401(k) account, but in reality they have only been in existence for 30 years. A traditional 401(k) is a retirement savings plan, usually sponsored by an employer, which allows a person to save for retirement by having their savings invested. This savings tool defers income taxes for the employee on both the money saved and its earnings until the funds are withdrawn. With a 401(k) sponsored by an employer, a worker will normally have a … [Read more...] about The 411 on 401Ks
What is a 403(b)?
A 403(b) plan is an employer-sponsored retirement savings account that’s for employees of public schools, 501(c)(3) charities, and other tax-exempt organizations. It’s very similar to a 401(k), which is the better-known type of retirement account available to employees of for-profit companies. Sometimes 403(b) plans are called tax sheltered annuities (TSA’s) or tax deferred annuities (TDA’s). As an employee, a 403(b) plan offers you several advantages for saving for retirement. When you … [Read more...] about What is a 403(b)?
