Retirement Watch Weekly
How to Take Write Offs for Helping Relatives
In many families, younger members help care for older members for at least a brief period. Care can take several forms. It could involve financial help for at-home services or residence at an assisted living or other facility. Care also could involve personally providing a person’s needs in either the caretaker’s home or in the […]
March 2009
Short-Term vs. Long-Term March 26, 2009 12:00 p.m. The stock market indexes have been on a tear since March 9. It is quite a turnaround. January and February were among the worst months on record for the indexes. The decline finally ended with new 12-year lows on March 9. The markets were oversold at that […]
How to Revise Your Spending Plan
The swift declines in most asset classes in late 2008 damaged many portfolios. For those who are retired or near retirement, one step you have to take after such an event is to re-evaluate retirement spending. Specifically you have to check the rate at which you are withdrawing money from your retirement portfolio and decide […]
Everything You Need To Know About Trust Estate Planning
Trusts are fairly simple. Lawyers and estate planners make them seem more complicated than they are. That’s too bad, because nonlawyers need to understand the different Types of Trusts and how they work to ensure they have effective estate plans. Trusts used to be for only the very wealthy or for special situations. But now […]
What is the Best Way to Buy Long-Term Care Coverage?
Congress made a change in 2006 that makes a long-term care insurance option more attractive. The Pension Protection Act of 2006 enhanced combining annuities or life insurance with long-term care coverage. Insurers are cranking out more of these policies to meet anticipated demand. The change was a simple one. The combo policies have been around […]
New Plan for Unneeded Life Insurance
Don’t dispose of an unneeded permanent life insurance policy just yet. In 2010 there will be a new way to take advantage of these policies that you might find more profitable. A permanent life insurance policy, such as whole life or universal life, might be surplus when the reason for buying it changed. Perhaps you […]
Why the Beneficiary Form is Key
One point we emphasize regularly is the importance of the beneficiary designation form for IRAs, pensions, annuities, and a few other assets. The disposition of these assets is not influenced at all by your will or a trust. Only the beneficiary designation form on file with the IRA sponsor or other custodian of the assets […]
Estimated Taxes are Different This Year
The year’s first required estimated tax payment is coming due, and many retirees should re-evaluate how they compute their payments this year. Estimated tax payments are a traditional trap for many retirees. Most were employees during their careers and had income taxes withheld from their paychecks. They never had to deal with the estimated tax […]
