Retirement Watch Weekly
Not-So-Grumpy Old Men
The latest research on happiness concludes that for most people happiness is highest earliest and late in life but declines in the middle. The burdens of being middle-aged weigh on most people. The study relied on people’s self-reporting of their happiness. It also didn’t try to measure people’s happiness relative to each other and find […]
Where to Age Well
I always caution about studies that rank areas of the country for retirement or other purposes, but especially for retirement. Yet, they always are good to read and review if you’re considering moving during retirement. (Keep in mind that most people don’t move in retirement.) The Milken Institute has perhaps the most interesting survey of […]
December 2014
December 19, 2014 04:28 p.m. Your Retirement Finance Week in Review I wish each of you a Merry Christmas. Since next week is shortened by the holiday and not much economic data will be released, I probably won’t be sending an e-mail next Friday. Central bankers gave investors an early Christmas present this week. The […]
Estate Planning for Small, Yet Important, Personal Items, Art and Collectibles
Small, personal items often cause the biggest Estate Planning problems. Those with experience handling estates know the worst disputes among heirs often are over what seem like trivial items. Even in a large estate, heirs might aggressively contest the disposition of a few pieces of furniture or personal mementos. Those small, personal items are most […]
Avoiding Financial Scams and Abuse
The world is rife with financial fraud and abuse, but many people don’t know enough about it, to their detriment. Even people who think they know the facts of financial fraud and abuse don’t, especially those most likely to suffer from it. You need to under-stand financial fraud and abuse, and then prepare and take […]
Making the Most of Home Equity in Retirement
Some of the biggest mistakes and lost opportunities in retirement finance involve the family residence. A home usually is among the most valuable assets on a family’s balance sheet and one of the largest sources of expenses. Yet, most retirement plans don’t give much consideration to the home and home equity, leaving a lot of […]
Roth Accounts: Not Only for the Young
Roth IRAs aren’t very old, but they al-ready spawned some rules of thumb. The most common rule of thumb for Roth IRA is that they’re for relatively younger people. Unfortunately, this rule of thumb is the result of some good research that is distorted and misapplied. It’s causing many people to not use Roth IRAs […]
New Rules for Rolling Over After-Tax 401(k)s
New IRS rules make it easier for higher-income workers to shift their money to Roth IRAs. The rules apply to people who make after-tax contributions to 401(k) plans. These are contributions that exceed the maximum allowed tax-deferred contribution. You can make contributions above the tax-deferred ceiling, but the excess can’t be excluded from gross income. […]
