Some investors value real estate as an asset class. One of the positives of the use of real estate is that it is not highly correlated to the stock market and can be used as the source of diversification inside of a portfolio. Other investors prefer physical properties as a way to invest in the real estate asset class. Using a single property to invest in the real estate asset class does have some drawbacks, which include being concentrated in a single property or geographic location … [Read more...]
Tax Law Change Summary
As you may know, new tax law changes were recently implemented which may impact you. In reviewing these changes, I came across a good article on CNN news that does a nice job of summarizing the changes. (From http://money.cnn.com/2017/12/15/news/economy/gop-tax-plan-details/index.html ) … [Read more...]
How & when to apply for Social Security retirement benefits
You’ve decided that you’re going to apply for Social Security retirement benefits, but how does that process work and when do you need to apply? When to start In order to apply for Social Security benefits, you need to be at least 61 years and nine months old, but you won't begin receiving benefits until you turn 62. Of course, you don’t have to start collecting your retirement benefits at 62 years old and you can apply for Medicare without collecting retirement benefits at the same time. … [Read more...]
10 Medicare Mistakes Part 2
Last week we highlighted our Medicare resource partner, Paul Davis and shared part 1 of his article, 10 Medicare mistakes. This week we continue with part 2. Choosing the least expensive health care option at 65 thinking you can change to the better plan later when you need it. You have an open enrollment at 65 to choose from all of the options in the marketplace. Medicare supplement plans will require health history questions to enroll at a later date. Medicare supplement plans are … [Read more...]
10 Medicare Mistakes Part 1
This week we would like to highlight our Medicare resource partner, Paul Davis. Paul has been in the health insurance industry for more than 33 years, specializing in Medicare and Medicare Advantage plans. If you have a question about Medicare or would like to find the best Medicare and Medicare Supplement plan options, I encourage you to get in touch with Paul. Here are several ways to contact him: … [Read more...]
Ready for Retirement?
Today, I was thinking about the retirement planning process that I take my clients through. I spent time thinking about each step that is important to plan for in order to have a successful blueprint. These stages include understanding how much retirement expenses will be, how to create reliability of income in retirement, how to deal with uncertainty of healthcare expenses and market risk, to name a few. … [Read more...]
Two circumstances that allow you to suspend your benefits now for higher future benefits
There are some circumstances in which it makes sense to suspend Social Security benefits that are being received now in order to receive higher benefits in the future. It could be the circumstance in which a Social Security benefit was activated early based upon incomplete or poor advice that needs to be reversed. It could be a circumstance in which an individual did not think that they would be working before full retirement age but later took on employment that was subject to … [Read more...]
Make Sure to Test Your Retirement Plan Against These Two Risks
Whenever we help a prospective client test their current plan for success, we also make sure to test two potential risks as well. The first tests a retirement plan in the event of a premature death of the spouse and loss of pension or Social Security income associated with that spouse. If the loss of this income is not sufficiently offset by the reduction of the expenses of the surviving spouse, it will cause an increase in the required distributions from investments to maintain the lifestyle … [Read more...]
The value of Roth conversions for future Social Security taxation
Nearly all types of income in retirement can create a potential tax trap for Social Security benefits to be taxed as well. This includes not only work income but distributions from traditional IRA accounts and even passive income such as rental income. Distributions from a Roth IRA accounts, though, do not count toward income for the purpose of how much of your Social Security benefit gets taxed, assuming that the Roth IRA account has been in place at least five years and you are over the age … [Read more...]
The pitfalls of large IRA and 401(k) balances in retirement
Company retirement plans can be a great place to save for retirement. Not only are contributions are tax-deductible against income, there are much higher contribution limits than their IRA counterpart. Add to that company matching provisions, and it becomes irresistible. What most of us know but may not understand completely is that there is a trade-off to the tax benefit that we got when we contributed to the plan. … [Read more...]
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