If you’re concerned about saving enough money for retirement, you’re not alone. One in five Americans has no retirement savings at all, according to a survey from Northwestern Mutual, and one-third of baby boomers have $25,000 or less stashed away. But while most of the news surrounding workers’ retirement savings seems all doom and gloom, […]
Maybe you won’t hit an actual million in retirement savings. But if you change your strategies now, it’s definitely possible to double or triple the size of your retirement account. It all depends on how much you learn and how much you invest. You can take 100 people who are the exact same age and […]
Estate planning remains one of the most misunderstood areas of planning. Over the years, I’ve met with people who “only needed a financial plan, not an estate plan” or “didn’t need a financial plan, just some help with estate planning.” I’ve also met with people who labeled themselves too young (or too old) to engage […]
We get blanket advice about preparing for retirement, but is that hurting more than helping? Americans are often told not to touch their retirement savings until the future, but the government isn’t entirely sure how well they’re listening because there’s no solid data to show it. The U.S. Government Accountability Office said this week it […]
When you’re in the early stages of your personal finance journey, the majority of your financial goals tend to revolve around specific numbers: I need $12,000 in my savings account for my three-month emergency fund. I need to pay off $45,000 in student loans. I need to contribute 10% of my salary to my 401(k). […]
After paying into Medicare through payroll withholdings at work for many years, some people approach their eligibility age of 65 with a misconception that their coverage will be free. In reality, Medicare comes with a variety of expenses — including premiums, copays and deductibles. High earners pay more for certain premiums, and there’s no out-of-pocket […]
Older workers have seen their wages come to a halt. That’s the takeaway from a new report by researchers at the Retirement Equity Lab at the New School for Social Research. Weekly earnings for workers aged 55 to 64 were only 0.8% higher in the first quarter of 2019 than they were in the first […]
Apple shares gained almost 5% Wednesday, following the release of its earnings report Tuesday, with the company’s current share price hovering around $210. If you invested in Apple 10 years ago, that decision would have paid off. According to CNBC calculations, a $1,000 investment made on May 1, 2009, would be worth more than $13,000 […]
Though retirement might seem like a relaxing, laid-back period of life, the reality is that it can be extremely stressful, especially from a financial perspective. But while some of that boils down to senior living costs coming in higher than expected, it’s also a matter of insufficient planning — and saving. Older Americans are especially […]
The USGA is downsizing. The association confirmed Wednesday that 63 of its employees, roughly 15 percent of its workforce, were offered “voluntary retirement incentive” plans. According to a USGA spokesperson, the plan was offered to employees who were part of the association’s benefit plan which closed to new participants in 2008 and who were 55 […]
LIVING COMFORTABLY during your retirement years doesn’t necessarily mean harsh sacrifices while working or earning seven figures for decades. Retirees who have enough to live well tend to credit years of good financial habits. “It is important to plan properly, know your goal and then initiate the discipline needed to reach your objective,” says Guy Baker, founder […]
The investment business is full of theories and recommendations about how to accumulate wealth. But the field has very little to say about the best ways to decumulate, or spend down wealth. This is an astonishing oversight, considering that the period over which wealth decumulation occurs is often as long as that of accumulation. If […]
