Retirement can be scary, no matter who you are. It makes sense that some people are nervous about retirement. How much money do you really need for 20 years? What about 30 years? Will you get bored? Will you be lonely? Planning ahead and predicting the future is extremely difficult. It’s tempting to just make retirement planning tomorrow’s problem.

More than 60% of police officers are feeling the pinch of the Windfall Elimination Provision (WEP). WEP generally affects government workers who qualify for a public pension that didn’t require paying Social Security taxes (a non-covered pension) and who also worked at another job where they did pay Social Security taxes, which qualified them for Social Security benefits. How sharply WEP reduces your Social Security benefits depends on a number [...]

The Internal Revenue Service today has clarified that the deadline for making Individual Retirement Account and Health Savings Account contributions for the 2019 tax year has been extended to July 15, 2020. That’s the new deadline for filing and paying taxes for the 2019 tax year, pushed back from April 15, 2020, as COVID-19 continues to impact the United States. That’s welcome news, giving taxpayers two months extra to beef [...]

Beach chair? Check. Fishing gear? Check. Map of the world with planned travel routes? Check. Retirement should be the reward for a lifetime of hard work and the chance to pursue all the things you’ve always wanted to do. Whether you want to stop working altogether (or just work a little less), you’ll need a plan to get you to the good times and offer shelter from unexpected storms. If [...]

The Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act rolled through Congress and was signed by President Trump this week. While most of the law is devoted to providing economic stimulus for businesses, a few provisions change some of the rules for retirement plans. Required minimum distributions (RMDs) are suspended for 2020. All RMDs are suspended, including those for inherited IRAs as well as traditional IRAs of those over age [...]

It might not have made the headlines, but a recently passed piece of legislation could affect the IRAs and 401(k)s of millions of Americans beginning in 2020. So, if you have either of these accounts, or if you run a business, you’ll want to learn more. The new laws, collectively called the Setting Every Community Up for Retirement Enhancement (SECURE) Act, include these noteworthy changes: Higher age for RMDs – [...]