Retirement should be your time to relax and enjoy life, without alarm clocks and meetings. Unfortunately, saying goodbye to your boss also involves saying goodbye to your paycheck. If you haven't already saved ample funds to a 401(k), IRA, Health Savings Account, or a regular old savings account, you may be nervous about making ends meet. Social Security certainly isn't going to cover your lifestyle on its own. And it's tough to [...]

Retirement savings plans generally offer several choices for those changing jobs or retiring. This article discusses the "distribution options" you can generally choose from in deciding how you want the money in your plan treated. What is a distribution? A distribution is simply defined as a payout of the amount of money that has accumulated in your retirement savings plan. This may include amounts you have contributed, the "vested" portion of any [...]

How can I best plan for a tax efficient retirement?For many retirees, even those who have meticulously planned their retirement income, the amount of taxes they are expected to pay may come as an unwelcome surprise. It's understandable. This is a new form of income that they may not be familiar with. "Sometimes they think that because they are retirees, they don't have to pay income taxes. Then they are [...]

we explored retirees’ freedom to choose where to live and what kind of home to occupy, along with the many options they enjoy. As retirees get older, or any time their need for household support and medical care increases, the availability of care becomes a dominant factor in the housing equation. Many people move twice in retirement, first to fit their lifestyle and later to receive needed support and care. [...]

Choosing when to file for Social Security benefits is an important decision, particularly if you expect to depend on your monthly checks for a substantial portion of your retirement income. The age at which you begin claiming benefits has a direct impact on the amount you receive each month. By claiming as early as possible at age 62, you'll receive smaller checks. But if you wait until age 70 to file for [...]

When you've spent decades preparing for retirement, it may feel as if it can't come soon enough. But it's crucial to ensure you're actually ready to retire before you dive in, or else your senior years may not be as enjoyable as you'd hoped. There's no one-size-fits-all approach when it comes to choosing the right age to retire. However, there are a few signs that you're ready to start this [...]