Unless you are physically unable to continue working, there are a number of benefits to working past the traditional retirement age, according to an article in Kiplinger, “6 Reasons to Work Past Retirement Age.” All of them are worth serious consideration.

Employee Benefits. The added fringe benefits that accompany your paycheck can be worth hundreds or even thousands of dollars. That includes employer-paid life insurance and employer contributions to your 401(k). Don’t forget about health insurance, which can be cheaper than Medicare and provide better coverage. This coverage is valuable, especially if your spouse is under age 65 and covered by your plan.

[Read more…]

Wage-earners are not permitted to put money into a traditional IRA in the year they turn 70 ½ according to the Kiplinger article, “Tax-Smart Ways to Save When You’re Too Old for a Traditional IRA.” But you would still be able to contribute to a Roth IRA, as long as your income in 2017 is less than $133,000 if single or $196,000 if married and file taxes jointly. In addition to the money growing tax-free in the Roth IRA with no time limit, you don’t have to take any RMDs (required minimum distributions).

You can contribute up to the amount you earned for the year (your net income from self-employment), with a maximum of $6,500—that’s $5,500 for everyone under age 50, plus $1,000 for people age 50 and older. If your earnings are well over the $6,500 maximum, you can just contribute that amount. However, if your earnings are near or under the maximum, you’ll need to know what is considered compensation and how to calculate your allowed contribution.

[Read more…]

Seniors who have finally reached retirement age after decades of work and smart planning may think they’re all set once their nest egg is funded. But that nest egg needs to be protected by an emergency fund—something which most Americans seem to have forgotten during their retirement planning. Fox Business’article, “What Nest Egg? Two-Thirds of Americans Can’t Cover $1,000 Emergency,” talks about the importance of maintaining an emergency fund so you don’t need to take withdrawals from retirement accounts.

Seniors depend significantly on their retirement funds in retirement, as well as their Social Security and pensions. But rather than keeping a contingency fund of three months’ savings, retired seniors should really try to save up even more for the likely event that they need personal or medical care down the road. While it’s more difficult to save when you don’t have a steady income every month, it is possible and important.

[Read more…]

As we head further into summer, many of us are heading on vacations. Some may be thinking of a more permanent vacation: retirement! This month, we’ll be discussing the important estate planning concepts you should know when it comes to retirement and qualified retirement plans, from powerful ways to plan for children and grandchildren to ways to incorporate creditor protection or how to most effectively plan for your retirement accounts.

[Read more…]

As we head into wedding season, we’ll be taking a look at the impact of marriage, divorce and re-marriage on estate plans. As many of you may know, any change in your marital status impacts your estate plan.

If you’re marrying for the first time, you’ll need to ensure your estate plan will take care of a surviving spouse and makes the most efficient use of the tax planning benefits of a marriage. If you’ve recently divorced, you’ll want to ensure your estate planning—and especially asset ownership—are in line with not just your divorce decree, but also an updated estate plan. And for those re-marrying, you may have children from a previous marriage to care for and there can be many ways to handle that in an estate plan.

[Read more…]

If a working spouse participating in a company retirement plan passes, the surviving spouse receives 100% of the 401(k) unless that partner has specifically waived the right to inherit the asset and the waiver is properly documented. This is the result of a federal law designed to protect spouses.

When a worker takes a retirement plan payout as an annuity, he or she must select a plan that will continue lifetime payments to the surviving spouse equal to at least 50% of the original benefit amount. A spouse can also waive that right, but again, this must be in writing.

[Read more…]