This Week’s Must Read

It’s common knowledge that you can collect Social Security retirement benefits as early as when you turn 62. Only one problem: That generally isn’t the case. Only about 7% of people can get a check for the month they celebrate their 62nd birthday. Read the rest of the story.

Why do some people get bored in retirement and others don’t? Is there a secret?  Good question. Let me start by describing what many Americans do in their first year in retirement, give or take a few months. Read the rest of the story.

Because federal tax law reaches deep into all aspects of our lives, it’s no surprise that the rules that affect us change as our lives change. This can present opportunities to save or create costly pitfalls to avoid. Being alert to the rolling changes that come at various life stages is the key to holding

If you’re wondering (and who’s not) how much you should have saved for retirement by now in order to have the same lifestyle in retirement, this table should satisfy your curiosity. It’s adapted from research by J.P. Morgan Asset Management and based on your current age and income level. Read the rest of the story.

For Americans, few decisions are as financially consequential as choosing when to take Social Security. Or as hard.  While you can tap retirement benefits as early as age 62, the federal government offers big financial incentives to wait. The rules are complicated, however–books have been written on Social Security’s intricacies. And choosing to delay activation raises

What’s the biggest threat to a comfortable retirement? Ignorance. The decisions you make leading up to retirement, including how much to save, how to allocate your investments, when to take Social Security and how to anticipate your retirement expenses can make a big difference in your old age. And the decisions don’t stop on Day

When it comes to tax planning, procrastination can be costly; the deadline for implementing most investment-related strategies to help reduce your tax bill for this year is December 30, 2016.  We have assembled a number of valuable tips you may be able to implement before the year ends to help reduce the amount you send

Supersizing the savings you have invested for retirement likely sounds too good to be true. You may have heard that some people managed to amass a $1 million-plus IRA balance and wondered how they did it. While I don’t know about everybody’s strategy, let me turn your attention to the wonders of compounding and time.

Maximizing Medicare Medicare pays for much of the cost of hospital stays and doctor’s office visits for people age 65 and older. This government health insurance program has also more recently added preventive care and prescription drugs to its covered services. Here’s how to make the most of your Medicare benefit. Read the rest of

People saving for retirement in 401(k) plans are the epitome of hands-off investors. Even during the 2008 financial crisis, fewer than 1% of investors made a move, Vanguard data show. And that inertia might be a very good thing for retirement savers as financial markets digest the surprising victory of Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump,