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Once you are truly good and retired – no phase out, no gig jobs, no income-earning hobbies – most people end up living on a “fixed income.” While that income may fluctuate somewhat…
There are many steps to planning for retirement. Some are legal and financial, some are about communication and some involve introspection – thinking about your life now and how you want to live the rest of it…
One of the more insightful quotes of baseball great Yogi Berra was, “If you don’t know where you’re going, you’ll end up someplace else.&rdquo…
If you would like to donate artwork to an eligible charitable organization, you might be able to take a deduction on your tax return. However, the rules are complex. There are different requirements for different values, and…
One of the positive aspects of sustained high interest rates is higher yields on bonds, particularly high-quality municipal bonds. It is possible that 2024 will present a different scenario, as the Federal Reserve begins a schedule of monetary…
For many, buying a home is the biggest asset they will ever own. However, you aren’t able to fully benefit from that asset until you pay off the mortgage; until then it is technically a liability. The most common…
The biggest difference between managing taxes throughout your career versus during retirement is that when you are retired, you are responsible for calculating how much you owe and paying it on a timely basis. Retirees…
In one year’s time, the U.S. inflation rate dropped by more than half, from 8.2 percent in September 2022 to 3.7 percent in September of 2023.
You can work and still receive Social Security benefits, but how much you receive depends on a number of factors…
A widow or widower is eligible for a survivors benefit from Social Security even if they never worked – as long as the deceased spouse qualified for benefits based on his or her own income record. Also note that surviving spouses must…
When a company decides to conduct a reverse stock split, also referred to as a stock consolidation, the number of shares available to investors is…
The Continuing Appropriations Act, enacted at the end of 2022, included several provisions that impact retirement plans going forward. Specifically, the legislation enacts SECURE 2.0, an updated version…
Some economists and market analysts have been predicting a U.S. recession ever since last fall. They’ve been wrong before – but they’ve also been right. Rather than try to predict how the stock market will react during the next…
Estate and inheritance (“death”) taxes are levied on the transfer of property at death. The difference between an estate tax and an inheritance tax is based on who pays the bill. An estate tax is levied on the estate of the deceased…
The Roth IRA is a retirement savings account in which you invest only after-tax dollars. Subsequently, all earnings grow tax-free and may be withdrawn tax-free. However, there are limits to who can contribute and how much they can contribute…
The College Savings 529 plan offers a way for modest-income families to save and invest for college expenses for their children as early as birth up to college age. When invested 529 funds are used to pay for the beneficiary’s qualifying…
Apart from the spike in inflation, 2023 ended the year with a relatively strong economy, boasting an unemployment rate of 3.5 percent (below the market forecast of 3.7 percent) with increases in wages, corporate…
Even if you have no heirs, you should have an estate plan. Otherwise, the state will determine the fate of your worldly possessions. In fact, if you pass away “intestate” (without a will), the state…
Although you might get busy with the holiday season, don’t forget to consider ways to strengthen tax efficiencies for 2023 and beyond…
Are you a trader or an investor? The difference is frequently discerned by how closely you monitor the stock market and how quickly you move in and out of investments. Traders are often referred to as market timers because…
Long term care (LTC) is associated with the elderly for good reason. Over the past 50 years, life expectancy has increased significantly and is therefore something all families should be prepared to address. Even…
During the first year of the pandemic, many homeowners spent their down time upgrading their homes. The year 2020 alone experienced at 3 percent uptick in spending on home improvements – to the tune of…
Imagine selling slices of a large pizza. You can cut it into four even slices and charge $2 a slice. Or, you can cut it into eight even slices and charge $1 per slice. Either way, the total value of the pizza will still be $8…
Often the first house a person buys is an affordable condominium, townhouse or older single-family dwelling, also referred to as a “starter home.” It might be small and lack features they dream about, from…
Thanks to the Great Resignation trend over the past year, there is a high availability of jobs. Therefore, now is a good time for retirees who would like to go back to work to ease into the job market. However, if you’ve…
Starting in 2020, new legislation increased the age to begin Required Minimum Distributions (RMDs) from 70½ to 72. More recently, the IRS updated the Uniform Life Table for alignment with longer life expectancies. Note…
If you really want to make impact in your new grad’s life, make an investment in his or her future with a 529 College Savings account. There are two versions: an investment account and a prepaid account. Assuming…
One of the easiest ways to save for retirement is to participate in an employer-sponsored retirement plan. You simply select a percentage of your paycheck that you would like transferred to your 401(k) (or similar)…
