My Retirement Blog
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Finding Lost Pension Benefits
Just like finding lost money owed to you (say, from a security deposit on an apartment), lots of folks have pension benefits that they don’t know about or have lost track of! Personally, I know I don’t have pension benefits because I wasn’t at my first job long enough and my current one doesn’t offer…
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Top 5 Places To Retire
Yep, it’s another Top X list about retirement! This time, it’s the best places to retire. ? Walla Walla, Wash. The typical 3-bedroom home will run you a mere $275k plus $3,500 to $4,100 in property taxes but it’s the ambiance that appears to have put this one on the list. “This southeastern Washington town…
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Making Your Nest Egg Last
Lump sum illusion, a term used by Olivia Mitchell, University of Pennsylvania insurance professor and executive director of the Pension Research Council; is when someone on the cusp of retirement gets when they look at their 401(k) or pension fund and sees all those zeroes. While it’s nice to have a large nest egg, one…
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Understanding Fixed Income & Variable Income Annuities
A lifetime income annuity, also called a payout or immediate annuity, is an income annuity that pays you out a dollar amount each month for as long as you live. The lifetime income annuity comes in two flavors – fixed and variable. With fixed income annuity, you get a set income each month that does…
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Avoid Equity Index, IRA Rollover, and Swapping Annuities
Annuities are very very complicated creatures in the investment world but break down into three major categories. A fixed annuity is like a CD, paying out a fixed rate that is guaranteed. Variable annuities are like mutual funds that can get you a higher rate of return if you can stomach the higher mutual-fund like…
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Contribute To Your 401(K)
If you’re employed and your company offers a 401(k), take advantage of it! Your funds will be deposited tax deferred (meaning you don’t pay now, you pay when you retire and start withdrawing from it) so you will have a bigger pot to invest with initially. Plus, if your employer offers a company match, you…
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