Retirement Planning
These are hard times for retirees and for those preparing for retirement. When looking for retirement help, start with an understanding of the basics in retirement planning and investments.
Investing for Retirement
Read up on the latest news and start planning your dream retirement now:
Life After Retirement
Already retired? Here's what you need to know to make the most of your golden years.
Retirement Mistakes to Avoid
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More on Retirement Planning
- Rent instead of buy. For most people at or near retirement that advice comes too late. Many of us have owned our own home for years. But if you're still paying on a mortgage, plan to pay it off as quickly as possible.
- Consider a Roth. Before you leap into a conversion, consider what Bankrate.com says about conversions. The first $20,000 of income that you take from a tax-deferred account, such as a regular 401(k) plan or traditional IRA, will be free of tax. So why pay tax upfront with a Roth if you have less than $400,000 in savings?
- Focus on stocks with dividends. This isn't a game for amateurs. Even Kiplinger warns that picking stocks that pay high dividends is more complicated than it sounds. Get knowledgeable assistance before you dump a lot of money in a stock that ultimately is going to be a loser.
- Keep cash for emergencies close by. When the stock market tanked in 2008, retirees who survived best were those who didn't have to sell stocks because they had a year or two worth of living expenses in cash. That gave their investments time to recover.
- Disability and life insurance -- if you have no one depending on you for support, then you don't need life insurance. And if you aren't working, disability won't pay, even if you need it.
- High investment fees -- If you're putting your money in safe CDs -- the choice of many retirees -- don't pay investment fees at all. Just march yourself to the bank and buy them. No expertise needed.
- Your house. Getting rid of a property that comes with high utility and maintenance costs as well as a big tax bill can result in significant savings.
- Landlines. Not many people these days need both a landline and a cell phone.
- Interest payments. People living on tight budgets can't afford debt.
- Inefficient appliances. Spend money to save money by getting rid of expensive-to-operate refrigerators, dryers, air conditioners, heaters and replacing them with new, energy efficient models.
- More than 20 million people have more than one number associated with their name.
- More than 40 million numbers are associated with more than one person.
- More than 100,000 Americans have 5 or more numbers associated with their name.
- More than 27,000 Social Security numbers are associated with 10 or more people.
- Good health: Be healthy enough to enjoy yourself.
- A significant other: It doesn't matter whether you're married or just living with a partner and enjoying life, so long as you have someone to share the good times.
- A social network: Socialize not just with your children and grandchildren, but with plenty of friends and acquaintances as well.
- Avoid TV: At least two studies confirmed that unhappy people watch the most TV.
- Intellectual curiosity: Do things that keep your brain chugging along.
- Don't be overly ambitious: If it's important to you to be the top dog, you probably won't like retirement.
- Enough money: You don't have to be rich, but you need to be able to pay the bills. You won't be happy if you spend all your time worrying about where your next buck is coming from.
Crafty great grandmother mends broken hearts - with glue gun
"So many people need someone to talk to," says Reva Hoewing of Poolesville, Md. "I just listen."The 76-year-old owner of Crafts-a-Plenty does a lot more than that. The mother of five, the grandmother of 12 and the great-grandmother of eight, she still works five days a week in the crafts shop she opened over 30 years ago.
Back then, Hoewing worked as a teacher in a program for underprivileged children. Her crafts lessons proved so popular that locals in her small town of 5,000 began asking her for classes.
12 rules for making retirement savings last
Kiplinger, one of my favorite personal advice sites, today offered 12 rules for making money, especially retirement savings, last. Nothing wrong with their advice, but it neglects what I think is one of the most important considerations -- how to keep Uncle Sam out of your pocket. Here's what Kiplinger advises, plus some tax and other advice worth considering:
How to spend less when you retire
What expenses can you ditch in retirement to save a little cash? SmartMoney.com identifies this list of six items:
Retiree re-invents himself as professional blackjack gambler
In Rudyard Kipling's The Man Who Would be King, a British soldier named Daniel Dravot schemes to become king of a remote area of Afghanistan. Today, a 63-year-old retired real estate developer calling himself Daniel Dravot also schemes to become king -- of the blackjack table.In what is surely the most unlikely of "encore careers," Dravot works as a professional gambler.
For 33 years Dravot often gambled in real estate development to keep his 250 employees at work. "There were times I had to remortgage my house on a Thursday to make payroll," he says. But he only set foot in a casino a handful of times.
Your Social Security number may not be unique to you
How many times do companies use your Social Security number as the unique identifier for you? Your doctor, bank, employer, all depend on the number for billing and recording transactions. A troubling new study by ID Analytics found that, according to the wide-ranging company and government records it has access to, millions of Americans have more than one Social Security number, and millions of Social Security numbers are shared by more than one person. Just how many? Out of the 280 million Social Security numbers the firm studied across its network of databases,
3 Ways to Ruin a Perfectly Good Retirement
U.S. News & World Report, recently listed the 10 ways to ruin a retirement. Among them, thinking you're not going to live as long as you actually do, not factoring in inflation, retiring too young and failing to save enough (duh). I won't bore you with all 10, because the truth of the matter is that many of us -- 26%, according to Bankrate.com -- will be solely relying on Social Security when we hit our golden years. So if the check arrives on time, we'll manage to muddle through. If Social Security goes belly up, not being able to collect a monthly check from the government will be the least of our problems.
Most unusual retirement communities: There's something for everyone
Golf and playing cards aren't the only things to do in retirement. At least not at many retirement communities, which specialize in unusual activities or cater to retirees with the same interests."Just because someone is old doesn't mean they want to sit around and play Bingo and watch TV all day," said Don Shulman, general manager of Fox Hill Senior Condominiums in Bethesda, Maryland, in a telephone interview with WalletPop.
Baby Boomers and their children have moved more often and are spread across the country more, leaving retirees searching for a new sense of community and housing where they can be around people who share the same interests. From senior housing for hippies to people who want to live in high luxury, there are retirement communities for all tastes.
Insider secrets to enjoying a long and happy retirement
Money is only a small part of what makes you happy after you retire, says blogger Sydney Lagier, a former certified public accountant who left the working world two years ago at the young age of 44 and now writes about the experience of escaping the grind for U.S. News & World Report.Here are what she says are the seven secrets to retirement happiness.
Gallup Poll: Only 6 in 10 expect Social Security, but it's political hot potato
Six out of 10 Americans who aren't yet receiving Social Security believe they never will, according to a Gallup Poll conducted earlier this month. A similar number -- 56% -- of retired Americans now collecting Social Security believe their benefits will be cut.Yet getting rid of Social Security or even reducing payments to current or soon-to-be recipients would be an incredibly hard sell. About 26 percent of retirees depend solely on Social Security. The National Center for Policy Analysis also calculates that Social Security provides one-third of the retirement income of the highest-earning households -- couples with pre-retirement incomes of $500,000 and singles who earned at least $250,000.
This year, according to the U.S. Census Bureau, about 16% of the population is 62 or older -- and most are eligible for Social Security. By 2020, 20% of the population will be 62 or older and by 2030 that number will peak at 30%. Running for office without the support of that chunk of the population is almost unthinkable.For some options to reform Social Security, take a look at the American Academy of Actuaries' "The Social Security Game," where you can try your hand at coming up with alternatives. Personally, I'm in favor of pushing the retirement age a little higher and making everybody pay Social Security taxes on every dollar they earn, instead of capping payments. This year's cap is $106,800, which means a lot of high earners don't pay on a large portion of their income.
But if you think my ideas are bad ones (or even harbor some better ones), the actuaries offer lots of other alternatives that work and preserve this important safety net. Plus, you can always comment below.
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Retirement Basics
When looking for retirement help, start with an understanding of the fundamentals. Retirement help begins with the basics of maximizing benefits.
- Retirement Jobs
- How Much to Save for Retirement
- Best Places to Live After Retirement
- Disability Retirement
- Retirement Estate Planning and Taxes
- Pension Plans, Funds and Benefits
- Roth IRA Contributions
- Variable Annuities
- When Do You Reach Retirement Age?
- Military Retirement
- Life Insurance in Retirement
- Health Insurance in Retirement
- Long-Term Care Insurance
- Retirement Advice From WalletPop
