Category: Retirement

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More, Personal Finance, Retirement

Social Security and COLA: How Much Will Your Check Be in 2023?

Update October 13, 2022: Social Security COLA will be 8.7% for 2023.

If you’re retired or just about to retire, next year’s Social Security and COLA (cost of living adjustment) checks are likely to be one of the biggest increases on record for it, ever! The reason is no secret. It is a direct result of surging inflation which is now the highest in over 40 years.

Older woman’s hands around coffee representing Social Security and COLA

While we don’t know yet exactly, the average beneficiary could be looking at an increase in the benefit monthly check amount of as much as $180 (or even more) starting next January. That would be another $2,260 a year and that number is based on the current inflation rate we’ve all experienced over the past year.

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More, Personal Finance, Retirement

Will the Social Security 2023 COLA Increase Be an All-Time Record?

Retirees and disabled people could see a record jump in the Social Security 2023 COLA increase (cost of living adjustment). That’s great news, right? However, benefits aren’t keeping up with rampant inflation and that, my friend, is a big problem.

Couple with binoculars looking forward to represent the 2023 COLA increase

It’s like I’ll give you a $20 bill from here in my left hand and then, I’ll take it back from you with my right. Oh, and then by the way, I’ll also take another one from your wallet, your bank account, and perhaps even charge you for that privilege too while I do it!

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Retirement, Saving & Investing

In This Turbulent Market, Is It Too Late to Start Investing Now?

After sitting on the sidelines for even just a little while—say the past few years because you were just starting out in life, the pandemic had you sitting at home worried, your income was down or non-existent, or you just were afraid of the stock market in general, whatever the reason—you missed the boat. That great “boom” investment market has left the shore and maybe it is going to be sailing away for quite a long time, who really knows. Many in the financial world think it may have left for a good long time and if it has, does that mean that it’s too late to start investing now?

Dollar bills and pocket watch representing whether it is too late to start investing now

Investing Is a “Loooooooong” Game

Unlike an actual game, investing has no real timeline whereas a game has a beginning, a middle, and an end. The only meaningful timeline investing can have is for someone who needs their money in their hand right now for some real purpose like an emergency that requires all cash on deck. Hopefully that will never happen to you, but sometimes it does. If you are in a situation like that, investing money isn’t available to you right now.

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Home, Retirement

Believe Me, You Should Never Have a Mortgage When You Retire

You know how I often say you can learn from life and sometimes you learn from the mistakes you make? Guilty here! One of my biggest bungles was and is the fact that in my 70s, I still have a mortgage on my home. Now in my defense (and of course I will defend myself), there are a few good reasons why this has happened. But my advice is to try as damned hard as you can to never let it happen to you the way it happened to me. No mortgage when you retire!

Condos representing not having a mortgage when you retire

Let’s Start at the End First?

I am going to assume you grew up and lived either in a house that your parents owned or wishing and hoping you had one. After all, it’s the American Dream to be a homeowner and has been since the days of the covered wagon and the westward expansion. In other words, people wanted to own something, a little piece of land that was all theirs. That tradition became the American Dream and despite all of the complications and costly price tags it still does exist today.

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Retirement

What You Need to Know When You Plan to Retire Early

It seems I hear and read so much about how to retire early these days, and that isn’t just thinking about getting there at 62 or 55. It’s aiming for it at ages I could never ever have thought about like age 45 or even age 30. I retired at age 62 and that was because of my health more than a well-planned retirement scheme. Other senior workers start an unplanned retirement when they are laid off. But for many younger people, a real early retirement plan is a goal and not a condition of senior age or health.

Younger couple on boat because they decided to retire early

The FIRE movement (Financial Independence, Retire Early) is more popular than ever these days. Having said that, I have come to a few mind-altering facts about early retirement and wonder exactly how much thought goes into them before anyone actually takes that giant step off the cliff into retirement. There’s a lot to consider when you plan to retire early, and here are just a few of those factors.

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Retirement, Saving & Investing

Social Security Benefits: What You Don’t Know Can Hurt You

We all know about Social Security benefits and some of the problems the administration faces with an increasing drain on its funds. In fact, it is starting to run out of money to continue to pay 100% of the expected benefit amounts. The date when that will happen is around 2032 and that is just a decade away!

Signing of Social Security Act to establish Social Security benefits

You likely know that bad news because it’s always being discussed in the press. In reality, it’s existed for years but so far no fixes have been made to it. However, knowing those facts isn’t enough to fully understand Social Security benefits and how they work and what you don’t know about Social Security can hurt you!

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Health, Insurance, More, Retirement

Could Your Medicare Premium Actually Cost Less Later This Year?

Those of us who get Medicare (and if it’s not already, one day that will be you too!) have just had to bear the largest single premium increase in dollars in any year for 2022, an increase of $23.00 a month. While it is true that we all also saw an increase in our total benefits (due to the high inflation adjustments of 5.9%), this Medicare premium increase puts a huge dent in that amount we get. But there just might be some good news coming down the pike when it comes to the Medicare increased costs.

Hand with intravenous line for treatment representing medical treatment covered under Medicare premium

Seniors and other recipients could see a cut in their monthly Medicare Part B premiums for 2022 after a controversial new drug’s price was just slashed. That good news makes Medicare of particular interest here at Super Saving Tips!

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Health, More, Retirement

2 Good Reasons Why the New 2022 Social Security Increase May Be a Bad Problem

You may not be concerned about the Social Security increase and Medicare right now, but there will come a day when you will. So when I say that there are only two reasons to be concerned, well, it’s because I don’t want to scare you out of your socks right here at the beginning of the year.

Senior woman being examined by doctor covered by Medicare and the Social Security increase

After all, if you are on Social Security or Disability right now, you are probably celebrating the largest increase in benefits in decades: a 5.9% increase is a substantial amount (the highest since 8.2% in 1982). On average, it will mean about a hundred bucks a month per person more than in 2021 will be arriving beginning this week to recipients. With inflation running rampant, it’s a welcome sigh of relief to help fight against it. But is it all high fives and smiles with Social Security or is it really just a bad problem?

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