When most people think about financial and retirement planning, feelings of stress, worry and anxiety rise in our throats. And, this stress exists for good reason. Less than 50% of people have a written retirement plan. The majority of people simply don’t have enough saved for this time of their lives. And, even if you…
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Kathleen CoxwellAs a founder of NewRetirement, Kathleen is passionate about delivering empowering tools and articles to people who are concerned about retirement. She works with teams of writers and designers to deliver easy to understand information that help you make the right decisions about your financial future.
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Recent posts by Kathleen
We all love reading lists of the best places to retire. They interest us and they make us think about what is possible in retirement. Should you relocate? Or, is staying put one of the best places to retire? Why Relocate for Retirement? Days in a hammock on the beach? Fishing mountain streams? Long afternoons…
An Investment Policy Statement (IPS) is a document that is usually drafted by a financial advisor for their client. An IPS is meant to define: Investment goals Strategies for achieving those objectives A framework for making intelligent changes to your plan Options for what to do if things don’t go as expected Keep your retirement…
Your brain is not necessarily set up in a way that makes it easy to plan a secure retirement. You have cognitive biases — faulty ways of thinking that are unfortunately hardwired into your brain — that work against you. Wikipedia lists 185 different kinds of cognitive biases. While they are all probably somewhat damaging…
Jumbo reverse mortgages – also known as proprietary reverse mortgages – are loans designed and offered by financial institutions that enable owners of high-value homes to access greater amounts of their home equity than is available from the government insured HECM reverse mortgages. Unlike the standard HECM reverse mortgage, jumbo reverse mortgage products generally do…
Sometimes it feels like the world is designed for couples. People throw dinner parties for couples. Most forms ask about your spouse. And, let’s face it, retirement and aging — an era when you’ll genuinely sometimes need a helping hand — can feel kind of scary on your own. Whether by circumstances or choice, the U.S.Census…
Figuring out what you are going to do in retirement and how you are going to pay for it is not something you do once and just “forget about it.” You should plan for a quarterly retirement check in. Retirement planning is kind of like owning a house — you put in an upfront investment,…
Spiders. Snakes. The dark. Boogey men. Clowns. It’s likely that you have at least one of these fears. However, if you are around retirement age, then what scares you most is perhaps more menacing and real than any of those things. Transamerica recently published a new survey that lists the greatest retirement fears. Wouldn’t it…
The Internal Revenue Service (I.R.S.) is not usually thought of as an institution that adds a lot of value to our lives — to the contrary in fact. However, a few years ago, the researchers at the Center for Retirement Research at Boston College came up with a simple and relatively safe retirement withdrawals strategy…
We might be getting older, but there is till time for learning some new retirement savings tricks. Do you have enough retirement savings? Are you feeling unprepared? Thanks to the following quick fixes, those worries end now. Old (and not so old) dogs can learn new tricks… Saving for retirement may seem daunting. You are probably…
We have announced this before, but it is true again: the NewRetirement Planner is now better than ever. We are VERY excited to announce the availability of 7 big powerful new features — some part of the PlannerPlus launch — a new premium subscription service. All of these new features are part of our continued…
Contrary to what many financial planners suggest, you can live on a lot less than 100% or even 80% of your pre-retirement income. In fact, a survey by T. Rowe Price of new retirees who have 401(k) account balances or rollover IRAs found that you can live comfortably on a lot less. The report suggests that nearly…
Social Security and Medicare are in real financial trouble. If you are of retirement age now, your benefits are probably not in peril. However, nothing is certain and if you dive into the numbers, you can see that there are very real concerns about the future of these programs. Big Problems for Social Security Become Real…
Preparing for retirement means having a financial plan as well as a good idea for what you want to do during this period of your life. Estate planning has a similar duo of goals: You want to establish a clear instructions for how your money and other assets will be distributed as well as figure…
Are You Ready to Catch the Early Retirement Wave? The Big Takeaways… About half of Americans retire early, between the ages of 61 and 65. For younger people, FiRE (Financial Independence, Early Retirement) is a movement gaining significant traction for its ability to let people live the lives they want from a young age. The…
Retirement planning has never been more complicated. With changes in the economy and uncertain times ahead, you might think you need a finance degree to get it right. But then again, it’s never been so simple. Fortunately, there are tools called retirement calculators that help clear the murky water. A quick Google search will show…
Don’t Worry… Be Happy… About Your Retirement!!! You can be happy in retirement The Big Takeaways… There are several financial strategies you can use to manage stress, like increasing savings and being proactive about your debt. Reserving time to focus on your happiness can help relieve stress in other areas of your life. The NewRetirement…
The Big Takeaways… Long Term Care Insurance is a great option for many people, but with uncertain prices and a qualification process, it’s important to do your research to find the right plan. It can be a challenge to determine exactly how much Long Term Care Insurance to purchase, but can be very worthwhile if…
When we reach the age of 70 ½ we must — in order to avoid tax penalties — take Required Minimum Distributions from IRAs, 401ks and other types of tax advantaged accounts — all retirement accounts funded with pre-tax contributions. Here are some strategies to manage Required Minimum Distributions ( (RMD s). So what exactly is…
Used wisely, getting a reverse mortgage early in retirement can result in getting more out of both the reverse mortgage and your investments at the same time. If used strategically, reverse mortgages can be valuable financial planning tools to help retirees cover a variety of lifestyle expenses and can also strengthen the spending power of…
The Big Takeaways… Annuities are a great way to provide guaranteed lifetime income in retirement while hedging against inflation and other financial woes. Though less risky, annuities generally yield lower returns than other investment products, and often come with high fees, so it’s important to do your research before buying. You can quickly figure out…
The Big Takeaways… The way you create your lifestyle in retirement impacts your health, wealth and overall happiness. Health, happiness and wealth all rely on each other, so it’s important to not let your finances take priority over your wellbeing. You can create your own retirement plan in 5 minutes with the NewRetirement Planner. If…
Your longevity is one of the most significant unknowable factors that determine how much you need for retirement, how much you can spend, how much time you have to do the things you want to do and more. Estimating your longevity using one of the best life expectancy calculators can be a good way to improve…
You have probably read about the perils of loneliness as you age. And, how feeling alone can actually reduce your life span by as much as regular smoking does. However, did you know that some research suggests that it is not just a matter of having relationships, it is also who your friends happen to…
One of the biggest fears you probably have about retirement is will your money last as long as you do. It is likely that you are also asking: How much can I spend? How much do I need? How much do I actually have? There are so many questions. Good news: the Stanford Center on…
