Mutual Funds

With Democrats in control of both the White House and Congress, there has been considerable speculation about some of the recent legislative proposals and the potential tax impact—especially on high-net-worth individuals and families. Among the bill proposals that could have an effect on estate and tax planning are: ·      For the 99.5% Act. Senator Bernie Sanders

Readers, I am embarrassed to admit that a radical change to our retirement system, tucked into the “Build Back Better” Budget Reconciliation bill, wholly escaped my notice until just recently. As explained by Ashlea Ebeling, also at Forbes, “Under the proposal, starting in 2023, employers with five or more employees would have to offer a retirement

Today’s column addresses questions about the family maximum that can be collected on a single record, answering a question about working this year while applying for Social Security benefits and potential availability of divorced survivor’s benefits. Larry Kotlikoff is a Professor of Economics at Boston University and the founder and president of Economic Security Planning,

One collateral effect of the Covid-19 pandemic might be the protection offered by your homeowner’s insurance. You’re no doubt aware that two consequences of the pandemic are increased demand for homes and shortages of many building components and supplies. Skilled labor to build homes also is in short supply. The result is that the cost

Today’s column addresses questions about whether it would be good to wait till January to file ensure all current earnings are used to determine benefit amounts, requesting an Administrative Law Judge hearing and the availability of larger childhood disability benefits (CDBs) when the higher earner files. Larry Kotlikoff is a Professor of Economics at Boston

What’s a “hidden” 401(k) fee? As the name suggests, it’s likely one that’s not readily disclosed or easily accessible. If you use this definition, almost all fees are hidden because they’re too hard to find. “The plan sponsor/employer does receive an annual fee disclosure,” says Stuart Robertson, CEO of ShareBuilder 401k in Seattle. “However, this

By Richard Eisenberg, Next Avenue Editor We’ve all known that Covid-19 has taken a cruel toll on the health of older Americans. Now, a new study from The Commonwealth Fund foundation finds that the coronavirus has been equally brutal financially. In fact, the 2021 International Health Policy Survey of Older Adults shows Americans 65+ have been facing greater

By Richard Eisenberg, Next Avenue Editor Rudyard Kipling famously wrote: “If you can keep your head when all about you are losing theirs…” And that about sums up a key rule for investing: Make your decisions about when to buy and sell and what to buy and sell based on thinking rationally, not emotionally. It isn’t easy. But my “Friends

By Paul Irving, Next Avenue We learned from the 2020 U.S. Census that the fastest growing metro area in the nation is The Villages, a master-planned retirement community in central Florida. In a demographically changing and urbanizing America, this dominantly white, politically conservative stronghold bucked the trend as retirees lured by warm winters, pastel-hued homes, golf

On August 31 the Trustees of Social Security and Medicare finally issued their 2021 annual report. The news wasn’t good, but not as bad as many expected. Normally the trustees issue their annual report sometime in the Spring. Last year it was issued April 22. This year the actuaries apparently spent more time massaging the

                              Romance scams surged for seniors during the Covid-19 pandemic, the Senate Aging Committee was told today. Losses reported to the Federal Trade Commission alone by the elderly from phony suitors rose to $139 million last year from $84 million in 2019. The loneliness and isolation during the pandemic made the elderly particularly vulnerable because

Parental leave has been on the agenda not merely of Democrats but also of moderate Republicans for quite some time. To be sure, Republican proposals have been far more restrained — Marco Rubio’s ill-fated 2018 proposal to allow parents to “borrow” from their Social Security benefits never went anywhere, but at about the same time,

The core of US hegemony is the role of the US dollar as the only world-wide acceptable means of payment. But China would like to supplant the dollar, and the US Congress can make it easy for them — by its inaction. If Congress fails to modify the existing Federal debt ceiling, sometime in October

The shortage of staff in long-term facilities and home care agencies has gone from a problem to a crisis. ·      Three rural nursing homes in Maine close because they cannot hire enough staff to maintain care for patients and residents. ·      A nursing home in Oklahoma shuts its doors due to a staff shortages. Same in Kansas.

How can you responsibly spend your IRA and 401(k) accounts in retirement? This is a mission-critical, complex question for 60-something pre-retirees and retirees who’ve been saving for retirement throughout their working lives. Technically, this retirement planning task is called “decumulation,” and there are hundreds of articles, research reports, and books written on this topic. They all

Trusts are an integral part of estate planning. But they are not always suitable beneficiaries for IRAs. In private letter ruling (PLR) 202136004 released on September 10, 2021, the IRS explained why they allowed the surviving spouse of a Roth IRA owner to roll over a distribution from an inherited Roth IRA when the surviving

Second marriages, third ones, step-siblings and the issues we see at AgingParents.com are a heads-up for everyone with divorced aging parents. Those rivalries among step-siblings and the lack of cohesion in decision making can go very wrong as parents age and need help. Sometimes the “blended family” may be blended enough to work together for

Some headlines are sure to draw eyeballs. Case in point, each time the Social Security Administration issues its annual report, there will be a series of articles discussing the fact the that the Social Security trust fund will run out of money. The attention is especially likely in years like this one where the time

Women study, earn, and work more than they did 100 years ago – a sign of progress in the fight against sex discrimination.  However, women with equivalent skills and education still earn less than men, which adds up to much worse retirement security in old age.  As a result of lower lifetime earnings, lower retirement

I recently attended a celebration of life for a good friend who passed. It got me thinking about the widow’s penalty and what it means for the surviving spouse, beyond the nightmare of losing a spouse and companion, of course. It is common for spouses to leave their life savings to each other. Yes, there

By Richard Eisenberg, Next Avenue Editor Don’t hate Michael Clinton for the ways he’s roaring into the second half of life — running marathons in every continent (even Antarctica), launching a foundation that makes random acts of kindness grants and enrolling in a master’s program in nonprofit management at Columbia University. Instead, try to emulate and learn from

Today’s column addresses questions about eligibility for spousal benefits, what being born after 1/1/1954 means for spousal benefit eligibility and working while receiving disability benefits. Larry Kotlikoff is a Professor of Economics at Boston University and the founder and president of Economic Security Planning, Inc. See more Ask Larry answers here. Have Social Security questions

By Chris Farrell, Next Avenue In the quest to rethink and reimagine the second half of life, growing numbers of professionals, white-collar workers and highly skilled trade people are making the transition to the nonprofit sector. And they’re often delighted about it. I talked to two of them recently about this — Donna Svendsen and

By Kimberly A. Eddleston and Jonas Ruzek, Next Avenue Editor’s note: This article is co-written by a member of the board of editors at EIX.org from The Richard M. Schulze Family Foundation, which is a funder of a Next Avenue. The new, buzzy Netflix NFLX documentary on the late, beloved, iconic public broadcasting TV host, painter Bob Ross — “Bob

For some fortunate older adults, 2020 and 2021 have proved to be financial boon years. They spent less than in normal years because they weren’t traveling, weren’t eating out, weren’t paying for theater tickets and expensive excursions, and those who are invested in the stock market have seen their portfolios soar. However, the stay-at-home years

ICUs are overflowing into hallways, filled with Covid patients. Hospitals are short of staffing to care for the critically ill. In some states, people are being turned away at emergency rooms and administrators desperately search for another hospital to take the patients they can’t accept. They are too full for even one more person in

Ordinary common sense and experts in psychology and neurobiology say most people at older ages want a long, healthy life; satisfaction (with a bit of joy and happiness thrown in); and agency (more specifically, most people want “locus of control”). Some people might express these aspirations in terms of what they don’t want: i.e. ‘I

Forbes compared more than 500 locations in America on everything from air quality to availability of doctors. But unlike other retirement lists, this one places greater emphasis on access to leisure pursuits —from the arts, learning and fine dining to hiking, skiing, sailing and golf.  Last year, Penny and Brad Bibey sold their Camarillo, Calif.,

Last year, Brad and Penny Bibey realized they could make a killing selling their Camarillo, Calif. house, 60 miles west of Los Angeles and just five minutes from the beach in the booming real estate market of Ventura County. They’d lived in the house for 23 years, and in the city for 35, but were

Recent Proposal The House Democrats are proposing a $3.5 trillion spending plan. To support that package the Democrats have proposed tax increases to fund a large portion of that plan. The House Ways and Means Committee just issued statutory language for the tax increase proposal. While the tax legislative process will no doubt evolve with