Category: Taxes and Retirement

As the year winds down, a few hours reviewing your tax situation can save you real money. Not every move here will apply to you — some are for itemizers, some are for retirees, some are specific to your income level. But there's almost always something worth acting on before…

Things are different now. Decades ago when you took a job, you stayed with that company for a long time, often for life. Today, studies show that the average American holds over eight jobs between the ages of 18 and 45. Because of that, many are asking the question during job…

To tackle America’s growing national debt problem, President Obama put together a task force earlier this year to look at options on how to cut government spending, implement tax reform and improve the effectiveness of federal entitlement programs. The deficit reduction commission co-chairs (Erskine Bowles and Alan Simpson) put forward…

[Update] You can now see the most up-to-date 401K/403b, IRA and Roth IRA limits here The IRS has released the latest 401k, 403b, IRA and other retirement/thrift plan contribution and income limits. With COLA remaining unchanged again this year, 2011 plan limits have also remained largely unchanged for the third year in a row.…

It’s hard to believe that Social Security has been in existence for over 75 years. During that time, however, it has become an income staple for many Americans, with nine out of ten people over 65 receiving benefits. Although Social Security provides benefits for other than just retirement income, those…

Updates - See here for the latest COLA increases by year____________ The Social Security Administration has officially released the Social Security and SSI information against the background announcement that there will be no cost-of-living adjustment (COLA) increase next year. The zero COLA adjustment means the monthly Social Security and Supplemental…

One of the most important tax forms you will receive during tax season is a W2. This is the official form that employers use to report employee wages/income, bonuses and other benefits received during the year; along with taxes (federal, state, medicare and social) that were withheld during the tax year.…

Saw an interesting graphic in the Economist depicting the approximate amount of taxes (net of offsets) governments around the world collect on $100,000; about the middle class average income level in developed countries. This is compared to the amount of social security (or safety net) the government provides to its…

The article below shows what options you have if you mistakenly over contributed to your employer 401k plan or IRA. Over Contributed to Employer Sponsored 401(k) Plan Firstly, congratulations on having reached your annual maximum contribution. But over contributing to your 401k (or IRA plan as discussed below) subjects you to the…

In a recent town hall the President pretty much confirmed that the Trump tax cuts will not be extended for higher income earners, but will be for those earning less than $250,000. While most people won't be affected by these tax changes, there will be adjustments across all tax brackets…

With longer life expectancies, a roller coaster stock market, and lessons learned from a post-pandemic world it’s more important than ever to find ways to boost your retirement savings now. Although there may be many obstacles to doing so, even just a few of the simple tactics outlined here can…

In the current economic environment, many people are finding it hard to make ends meet or pay for unexpected events requiring large sums of money. In some cases this is forcing people to turn to their retirement accounts to find the necessary funds. All good personal finance advice says not to…

Nothing is more significant over the long term from a financial planning aspect than ensuring you are setting aside and investing a sufficient amount of money to take care of your monetary needs in retirement. This can be easy to put off, especially if retirement is far away and taking…