Earning

Earlier this week I traveled to Chicago to attend the Retirement Income Summit — a financial advisor industry conference focused on the latest ideas about how to improve and secure retirement income. I saw presentations, met up with insiders in the financial services industry and found a few ideas to help you have a better…

Hosted by Steve Chen, founder of NewRetirement, the NewRetirement Podcast offers interviews about the wise use of both money and time in retirement. Explore ideas and great insight so that you can achieve a secure and meaningful future. Episode 2 is an interview covering two perspectives about work, working less and jobs over 50: Kerry…

You have a lot of decisions to make about retirement. And, if you are married, you have nearly twice the number of choices – plus the complications of competing priorities and sometimes differing goals and expectations.Your Social Security decisions can profoundly impact your spouse today, tomorrow and long after you are gone.The good news is…

Social Security 2017: You might want to keep your eye on the money. While President Trump promised on the campaign trail that Social Security would not change if he achieved victory, many pundits are worried that this is one promise he will not be able to keep. Most experts have assumed that Social Security would…

It is no secret that delaying the start of your Social Security benefits will probably pay off big in the long run.  However, most retirees eschew the advice and start getting Social Security paychecks almost as soon as they are eligible. According to a report by the Center for Retirement Research at Boston College, 90%…

A recent study reports that jobs for seniors are easier to find. The average retirement age is being pushed back each year and there is no longer a “typical” definition of what retirement is. A large number of older Americans don’t necessarily ever want to stop working completely, for reasons such as keeping themselves busy,…

Should retirement issues influence how you vote?We are in the midst of a presidential election like none that has ever come before.  And with record numbers of people turning age 65, retirement issues are important. If you are at or approaching retirement age, you may wonder which candidate is a better bet for your interests…

An illness or injury can totally derail the best laid retirement plans, making it difficult or impossible to earn an income. In 2014, 2.5 million Americans applied for Social Security Disability. But only 810,973 were granted disability payments. What happened? What went wrong? Government agencies can be tricky to navigate at the best of times,…

A few big new Social Security changes will begin being implemented on May 1, 2016 Most of these rules aim to eliminate the ability to manipulate benefits so that you can continue to delay the official start of your own Social Security payments — thereby maximizing your monthly benefit amount.  The longer you delay starting…

Rebecca Wiggins is the Executive Director of AFCPE and holds a Masters of Family Financial Planning from Kansas State University. Search for an AFCPE Certified Professional in your area by using the association’s search tool. Now in its 80th year, Social Security is still the cornerstone of the American retirement plan. Following the Great Depression,…

Choosing the right time to claim your Social Security benefits could improve your retirement plan. If you review your Social Security choices — your options for claiming Social Security benefits, you will find that you can increase your monthly Social Security income by waiting until after you are 62 years old to claim your benefit.…

Most people have big dreams for how they hope to spend their retirement. Unfortunately, sometimes people end up bored or without enough money to fulfill their goals. When people discover they cannot continue with their desired standard of living, they may end up not retiring at all (or decide to get a part-time job to…

With Social Security celebrating its 80th birthday this year, it’s a good time to reassess whether the program still works, and whether it might even exist once your retirement rolls around. It’s seen its share of negativity, with many people doubting its solvency and ability to roll with the unsteady times. But a funny thing…

Today, more people are continuing to work at some capacity during retirement compared to past generations. And the reasons—as well as the benefits—leading Americans back to the labor force in what’s supposed to be their “non-working years” are not entirely money motivated, a recent study finds. Many retired Baby Boomers (Americans born between 1946 and…

August 14 marks the 80th birthday of the program that we know as Social Security. Eighty years ago, the country was suffering through the Great Depression. Jobs were worse than scarce, and families were worse than poor. Pensions had all but disappeared, so the elderly suffered along with younger people who couldn’t find adequate work.…

Most Americans approaching retirement have acknowledged — even embraced — the notion that they will want or need to work in retirement. But they may be in a for a few BIG surprises. A new study of nearly 3,300 baby boomers suggests retirement job expectations may not be realistic. Commissioned by the Bankers Life Center…

Retirement doesn’t mean what it used to, at least not for everyone. There was a time when leaving work meant winding down for good. Now, it’s often just the beginning of a whole new life phase, one where you can learn new things, put established skills to work, and supplement your retirement income in a…

It’s no secret that many older Americans are working past traditional retirement age. Whether working later in life is due to financial necessity or a desire to stay active, it’s clear that many people are trying to retire later. A recent Gallup poll shows that nearly four in 10 Americans plan to still be working…

Whether to keep working or retire is one of the most difficult decisions you’ll make in life. It changes everything, and starts a whole new phase. While there’s no crystal ball, one thing is for sure: Being cautious with this choice can only serve you well. CNBC’s Kelly Holland explains in the article, “Ready to…

If you are debating whether or not to take a lump sum pension offer in place of lifetime benefits, it’s important to understand key information in order to make an informed decision. According to a new Government Accountability Office report, many of the informational materials provided by sponsors offering lump sums do not present enough…

Choosing when to claim your social security benefits can be one of the most important decisions that you make in retirement. Proper timing is important, but with conflicting information and advice, it can be hard to determine what the best course of action is for you. Let’s explore what factors you should consider when making…

You can reasonably count on Social Security benefits once you retire, but determining how much you’ll receive is a different story. There is a formula, of sorts. But as Mark Miller for Morningstar explains, it’s still complex. Although you might not come to a precise dollar amount in predicting your benefits, it’s still interesting to…

Retirement is not what it used to be. In the past, retirees could get by on a combination of Social Security payments, their company’s pension, and their retirement savings, but this model is slowly fading. Now, many people don’t have enough to fund their retirement and find that they have to work during this time…

Being retired doesn’t mean that you have to stop working. Many retirees enjoy part-time work both for the boost in income and for staying active in the world. Not every job is right for every person. There are some that might not suit your style, but others could be exactly what you’re looking for. Here…