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It is Never to Early to Start Planning for Retirement

walter — Tue, 15 May 2012 15:42:18 +0000

Saving for retirement is one of those things that most people know is important, but many people find reasons not to do. Competing expenses and other financial obligations (both real and perceived) are common reasons why people are not saving enough for retirement. Another reason that some people have for not saving enough is that since retirement is so far away, they don’t need to worry about it now because there will be plenty of time to save later. Unfortunately, the only surefire way to make sure you have enough for retirement is to start the process early. In fact,...

Watch Out for 401(k) Fees

walter — Tue, 01 May 2012 18:03:44 +0000

As a well-informed investor, you are probably already taking steps to make sure that you’re not paying too much in fees within your investment brokerage accounts. You may already invest in no-load mutual funds that have low annual expenses, and if you trade stocks then you probably make sure that your commissions are not too high. Too many fees (or fees that are too high) can significantly hamper investment performance. But are you also looking out for fees that would affect the returns within your retirement accounts? In particular, you should also be paying attention to the various types of...

The Danger of Over Diversifying Retirement Savings

walter — Tue, 17 Apr 2012 14:08:00 +0000

For years we’ve heard the traditional financial advice that diversifying our investment portfolios is a good idea. The thinking was that if we have a number of different investment types and risk exposures, then a downturn in any particular market segment or asset type would only affect a portion of our portfolio. But over the past few years we’ve seen that the relative degree of “safety” that can be gained from broad diversification may not be as much as we thought. In fact, according to some financial commentators, over diversification might actually be a negative in that it prevents us...

Retirement Advice on the Tax Advantages of an Annuity

walter — Thu, 05 Apr 2012 16:41:14 +0000

Many people have likely heard of annuities when they’ve done research about their retirement planning. But there’s a good chance that not everyone fully understands what annuities are and how they can play a significant role in an individual’s retirement planning. In essence, an annuity is a financial contract between you and an insurance company. In exchange for a single payment or a pre-determined series of payments, the insurance company agrees to provide you with certain benefits once you reach retirement. There are some choices you must make regarding how you want your annuity to be paid out once you...

Advice on Rethinking Retirement in Difficult Financial Times

walter — Tue, 27 Mar 2012 14:05:39 +0000

In difficult financial times, individuals are often forced to reevaluate and rethink many of the plans they’ve made for themselves. Vacations and major purchases can be delayed, downsized or perhaps even eliminated altogether. Another thing that can require rethinking in a difficult financial environment is retirement. Because retirement is such a significant decision (both in terms of the purely financial aspects as well as the emotional component), some people are reluctant to re-examine retirement plans that they may have had in place for a number of years. But a significant change in one’s financial situation, or in the overall economy...

Advice on Paying Off A Mortgage Before Retirement

walter — Mon, 12 Mar 2012 14:57:53 +0000

There are many different ideas and philosophies on how best to save for retirement. You’ll hear lots of retirement advice about how much of your retirement savings should be invested in stocks, how much in fixed income products like bonds or CDs, and how this balance between equity investments and non-equity investments should change as you get closer to your target retirement age. But another form of retirement savings – one that doesn’t get the same degree of attention as those traditional investments – is paying off the mortgage on your home before you retire. Paying off your mortgage before...

Retirement Advice on How to Make Your Money Last Longer During Retirement

walter — Mon, 27 Feb 2012 15:10:26 +0000

Even if you’ve worked hard to save for your retirement, you’re still likely to have some concerns about whether you’re saving enough. Much of the uncertainty comes from the fact that you simply don’t know how long you and your spouse will need to draw upon your retirement savings. It’s therefore important that you have a plan for how you’re going to make your retirement savings last as long as possible. Running out of money during retirement is something that no one wants to face. Regardless of whether you’ve already retired, or retirement is still a few years away,...

How Much Should You Take From Your Retirement Account Each Month

walter — Fri, 10 Feb 2012 15:41:02 +0000

There are a lot of online calculators to help you figure out how much you should be saving for retirement. While it’s certainly important to come up with a plan to reach that goal, the total amount you accumulate in your 401(k), IRA and other retirement accounts is only one side of the equation. In order to make sure that you’re able to live a comfortable and healthy retirement, you also need to determine how much you should be taking out of your retirement accounts each month. Ultimately, you’ll have to balance your living expenses with not depleting your resources...

Information and Advice on IRA Contribution Limits for 2012

walter — Fri, 20 Jan 2012 15:15:29 +0000

Individual Retirement Accounts (“IRAs”) remain the most popular investment vehicle for many individuals and married couples. 401(k)s are certainly popular, but they’re usually much less flexible than IRAs, and many people don’t like going through the hassle of moving or rolling over their accounts when they change employers. IRAs are generally subject to lower contribution limits than 401(k)s and other investment vehicles. Furthermore, in order to receive the tax advantages of a traditional IRA, your income (or your joint income if you file a joint tax return) must be below a certain level. Here is some information and advice about...

Advice on How to Move Your Prior Employers 401(k) Plan Money to Your Own IRA

walter — Thu, 05 Jan 2012 15:14:11 +0000

Long gone are the days when you’d work your entire adult life at a single job, build up a great pension after 30 or 40 years of service, then retire and live on those pension benefits. In fact, the U.S. Department of Labor estimates that the average American worker will change jobs every three and a half years. Instead of offering pension plans, employers have shifted to offering 401(k) plans. With a 401(k) plan the obligations are now on the employee to contribute funds directly and to decide how to invest those funds. Employees are also responsible for eventually...