Retirement, Taxes

Will You Need to Pay Any Taxes in Retirement?

When you think about your retirement, what usually comes into your brain are all the times when you will sleep late, dress comfortably, and spend most of your time doing just about anything you want to do. The everyday grind of fighting traffic and the routine at work—and even worse the pressures of it—will be far behind you when you retire and you cannot help but think about the good things that retirement will bring. But is that all a reality?

It's important to plan ahead to minimize your taxes in retirement. Here is a list of income that is taxed as well as breaks you can use.

When you’re younger, you may spend some of your time trying to avoid paying taxes and stay up on all of the tax law changes to do it. Here are some of the ones everyone under 50 should know right now.

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Debt

Credit Card Debt, Stimulus Checks, and Spending

Do you often wonder how other people seem to make ends meet and you struggle with them? I have to reluctantly admit that over the years, I would look around and ask myself questions like, “How the hell can they afford that car?“ or “Where did they get the money for those three weeks in Europe?”

The U.S. is mired in credit card debt, and government stimulus checks aren't going to save us. We need to control our spending.

I seemed to work my rear end off and yet somehow I was never quite there—where they were. I realize now what a waste of time beating myself up about that was, but I did it and I’m sure I wasn’t alone. In my older, wiser years, I now know that big debt often is the way it was accomplished.

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Retirement, Saving & Investing

What Do You Have in Common with a Squirrel?

Does the title here sound a bit odd to you? I mean, what do we have in common with squirrels? You see them all the time around here in spring and summer but almost never at this time of the year. They’re off keeping warm and relaxing, getting ready for spring I guess. And that’s my point here.

The squirrel has to prepare long in advance of winter to survive. Heed this lesson about preparing for retirement, and start right away!

There isn’t much squirrel activity now that winter has truly set in. Over the last several months, like just about every squirrel, the ones in my neighborhood got ready for the long winter ahead. This past week we just had a 20+ inch snowstorm and a well prepared squirrel can pretty much feel good if he did what we was supposed to do.

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More, Personal Finance

Why Take Money Advice From a 71-Year-Old Blogger?

I’m not quite sure when it happened. It definitely has a way of sneaking up on you. I’m talking about aging. The whole thing about getting older and having seen so many things over your lifetime that in some cases you don’t feel that “surprise” or even “shock” that so many inexperienced younger people feel all the time. Even though I can’t quite remember exactly when, it has happened.

Is the money advice from a 71-year-old blogger relevant to your experience? Here's why you should give it a read.

And here’s the other amazing thing that happens when you age. You find that younger people just don’t listen to you or any warnings you extend to help them handle and soften the blows they may be about to take. That’s the hardest part for me to accept. I guess that’s the reason I have asked myself the question here: Why should anyone take money advice from a 71-year-old?

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Health, Retirement

An Overview of Medicare 2021

For today’s guest post on Medicare, please welcome Danielle Kunkle Roberts from Boomer Benefits.

As you are looking at the future and trying to plan, there may be a few fundamental necessities you know you need to budget for. Health insurance is most likely one of them. Every situation is different, whether you are retired and starting Medicare at age 65 or working and will start Medicare after. Previous income can affect your Medicare premiums, and the supplemental coverage you may choose can determine what you will spend on health coverage in a year.

Medicare costs and coverage can be confusing depending on the options you choose. Here's an overview of those costs and your options.

Medicare Costs

For most Medicare beneficiaries, Part A has a $0 monthly premium. However, if you have not worked at least 40 quarters in the United States, you will have to buy Part A. If you fall between 30-39 quarters, your premium will be $259 per month, and if you are lower than 30 quarters, it will be $471. Each time you are admitted into the hospital as an inpatient, there will be a $1,484 deductible per benefit period. Additional costs and coinsurance can occur while you are in the hospital.

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Personal Finance

Warning: Don’t Make Any of These Money Mistakes!

I’d really love to say that I am some sort of financial wizard and even to tell you that my “extreme” knowledge about this subject has zoomed me off into great wealth and fame. Well, it’s not that easy and it’s certainly not true, but I have managed to avoid a number of money mistakes in my time.

While it's important to know what to do with your money, it's just as important to know what money mistakes to avoid.

I have done well enough to make it to age 71 without going down any rabbit holes when it comes to money. And I have a modicum of fame (does this blog count because I am counting it!). But I’m nowhere near the Dave Ramseys or the Suze Ormans of the world (nor do I really want to be). But the point here isn’t about me or them. It’s about you.

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More, Taxes

Are You Missing Your 2020 Stimulus Check?

Now that we are into the year 2021, we have a new clean slate and that means we can start our financial recovery right now. So if you are entitled to government help via a stimulus check, then make sure you get every cent of it! If you haven’t as of yet, there is a remedy.

Are you missing your 2020 stimulus check? Here's why you might have missed it, and how to get it now with your 2020 tax return!
iStock.com / cabania

To help fight the economic losses from the coronavirus impact, the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) issued about 160 million stimulus checks (many of them $1,200 checks) for eligible Americans in the first round of economic impact payments (EIP) that began in April of 2020. Millions more payments, dubbed EIP 2 ($600 checks), started going out last December as a second round of stimulus.

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Retirement

Take a Good Hard Look at Your Retirement Nest Egg

Most people refer to their retirement savings as their “retirement nest egg”. In theory that’s the money that is made up from the many sources of retirement income, the many eggs you should be socking away so that when the time comes, you have those eggs to “cook up” a great retirement. I say “should” because reality is that an awful lot of people are leaving their cupboard bare and for a million reasons are not preparing for retirement at all. In fact, I am ashamed to say I have friends and relatives who are in their prime earning years and still have not saved a single penny for retirement!

So much for having a very sage financial blogger in your inner circle!

Social Security was never meant to replace your retirement nest egg. Are you doing all you can to plan for a secure retirement?

You may have ignored retirement when in your 20’s or 30’s, but when you are still saying “la, la, la, la, la” about it in your 40’s and 50’s, you are in a boat that is sinking fast. So right now is a good time to take a good hard look at your retirement nest egg and start bailing!

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