CLEVELAND, Ohio — Maybe you have a specific retirement age in mind. Or maybe you’re just fantasizing about when you’ll be able to retire. No matter, the time to do some deep thinking starts years ahead of time. In a perfect world, people would start developing a retirement plan, or at least start saving, in [...]
It’s always what you don’t know that can trip you up when planning for retirement. And there’s a lot about Social Security you probably don’t know – but should. Or at least you should if you want the largest possible benefit for you and your household. So, what then, are some the quirkiest rules to [...]
The Secure Act became law on Jan. 1, and some provisions are becoming clearer. This law was passed because of the widely known lack of retirement planning by many Americans. Baby boomers are the first generation for which many workers are responsible for their own retirement. Many will not receive a pension. While some have [...]
THE NEW YEAR IS THE perfect time to start getting your finances on track, and that doesn't necessarily mean cutting back on the things you enjoy. But sometimes getting a handle on your finances can mean a little sacrifice now that will pay off in the future. Here are five things you can do to improve [...]
MANSFIELD -- Suzanne Meister has seen it all during her 31 years as a 911 dispatcher working with Mansfield police and fire departments. "We've been through it," said Lisa Abrams a fellow dispatcher. "We've done bank robberies, shootings, pursuits ... Suzanne has taught me a lot of things being a dispatcher. "She taught me it's [...]
As planners and advisors, one of the most common opening questions we get when sitting down with a client is the age-old question of ‘how much do we need to retire’, coupled with ‘will we be able to retire’. Somewhat surprisingly, these questions come more frequently from those who have done a more than admirable [...]
Spend today, plan for retirement tomorrow is an attitude shared by Americans of all generations, but to a lesser degree by older baby boomers. Going into 2020, more than one-third of baby boomers near retirement age have not done any financial planning within the past two years, according to a survey sponsored by the National [...]
They say money can’t buy happiness. As a financial planner, I imagine being broke is miserable. Given a choice, let’s at least strive for financial freedom. Either way, here are the 12 worst reasons for you to ignore retirement planning. Admit it, you’ve probably said a few of these over the years. Reason #12: “I don’t [...]
Knowing how to spend your retirement money is often harder and more confusing than knowing how to save it. The basics for saving for retirement are pretty simple. For four, five or even six decades, you painfully learn how to spend less and save more. But once you reach retirement, there are few really good [...]
There are no rules of thumb as it relates to your Social Security planning, and each and every situation is different. You get one chance to make the correct claiming strategy, and you don’t want to get it wrong. But over the years of helping people plan for the overall Social Security claiming strategy, below [...]