There is tremendous frustration being voiced by baby boomers who thought they should be able to make an easy transition into retirement. Unfortunately, for many, things have not worked out exactly as they had planned. The landscape of retirement has changed so dramatically in the past ten years that it's time to address the mistakes being made. There are powerful new retirement strategies that can help put you back on track, but only of you know the proper questions to ask. This book was written to help those concerned about how to create a comfortable retirement for themselves and their families.
We've been trained, advised and educated that the key to enjoying a long and prosperous life in retirement depends upon our ability to maximize the growth of our assets so that we have as much retirement income as possible. But as we know, retirement is not the same as it was years ago. Investment challenges, the complexity of investment vehicles, and government intervention have changed the retirement landscape for all of us looking towards a long and thriving retirement. Yet what hasn't changed is the fact that we continue to do the same things that we've done for years when it comes to retirement. So, if you were doing something wrong, when would you like to know about it? Early enough to be able to do something, or do you want to wait until the last possible moment? Currently there are millions of people planning for their retirement and unfortunately what they are doing is wrong. There are many factors for this, including 3 obscure rules from the Federal Government, changes to the cost of healthcare and other items that most Americans are unaware of, that will force people to change their thinking about saving and funding their retirement in the future. In order to help people to save their Social Security benefits, lower their tax obligations, maximize their retirement income and control their health costs in retirement, we've gathered seven of the leading retirement experts writing today to point out the realities of the new rules of retirement and what you can do to take back control of your future. Seven of the leading retirement experts provide the facts, realities and solutions around these topics: oDan McGrath: The New Rules of Retirement oMichael Gerali: The REAL Truth about Medicare and Social Security oRobert Ryerson: Financial Planning for the New Retirement oRobert Klein: The Truth about Annuities oJustin Belair: The New Approach to Estate Planning oJohn Marroni: What to Know about Reverse Mortgages Mike Padawer, author of What's the Deal with Long-Term Care?: The Economic Realities of Long-Term Care With an Afterword by Jack Tatar, author of Safe 4 Retirement: The Four Keys to a Safe Retirement and Having The Talk: The Four Keys to Your Parents' Safe Retirement
A successful, healthy retirement is about coordinating all aspects of your life while continuing to pursue your passions and your family life. Financially you need to know “when” you can retire. And, knowing your retirement number, which social security option to take or setting up a tax efficient cash flow are all-important components. But, beyond the financial are the emotional and physical elements, such as eating healthy and exercising regularly, dealing with your newly found free time, downsizing into a new life, finding a place to live, dealing with your partner in this new chapter of life and so much more.
Follow the advice in The Smartest Retirement Book You'll Ever Read and you will: Find simple strategies to maximize your retirement nest egg Steer clear of scams that rob you of your hard-earned savings Ensure that your money lasts longer than you do Avoid the common mistakes that can leave your spouse impoverished Discover financial lifelines no matter how desperate the economy "If you want a handy guide that provides information in small chunks, Solin's book is it." -Newark Star-Ledger
How 401(k)s have gutted retirement security, from charging exorbitant hidden fees to failing to replace the income of traditional pensions Named one of PW's Top 10 for Business & Economics A retirement crisis is looming. In 2008, as the 401(k) fallout rippled across the country, horrified holders watched 25 percent of their funds evaporate overnight. Average 401(k) balances for those approaching retirement are too small to generate more than $4,000 in annual retirement income, and experts predict that nearly half of middle-class workers will be poor or near poor in retirement. But long before the recession, signs were mounting that few people would ever be able to accumulate enough wealth on their own to ensure financial security later in life. This hasn’t always been the case. Each generation of workers since the nineteenth century has had more retirement security than the previous generation. That is, until 1981, when shaky 401(k) plans began replacing traditional pensions. For the last thirty years, we’ve been advised that the best way to build one’s nest egg is to heavily invest in 401(k)-type programs, even though such plans were originally designed to be a supplement to rather than the basis for retirement. This financial experiment, promoted by neoliberals and aggressively peddled by Wall Street, has now come full circle, with tens of millions of Americans discovering that they would have been better off under traditional pension plans long since replaced. As James W. Russell explains, this do-it-yourself retirement system—in which individuals with modest incomes are expected to invest large sums of capital in order to reap the same rewards as high-end money managers—isn’t working. Social Insecurity tells the story of a massive and international retirement robbery—a substantial transfer of wealth from everyday workers to Wall Street financiers via tremendously costly hidden fees. Russell traces what amounts to a perfect swindle, from its ideological origins at Milton Friedman’s infamous Chicago School to its implementation in Chile under Pinochet’s dictatorship and its adoption in America through Reaganomics. Enraging yet hopeful, Russell offers concrete ideas on how individuals and society can arrest this downward spiral.
Learn the secrets to maximizing your Social Security benefits and earn up to thousands of dollars more each year with expert advice that you can't get anywhere else. Want to know how to navigate the forbidding maze of Social Security and emerge with the highest possible benefits? You could try reading all 2,728 rules of the Social Security system (and the thousands of explanations of these rules), but Kotlikoff, Moeller, and Solman explain Social Security benefits in an easy to understand and user-friendly style. What you don't know can seriously hurt you: wrong decisions about which Social Security benefits to apply for cost some individual retirees tens of thousands of dollars in lost income every year. How many retirees or those nearing retirement know about such Social Security options as file and suspend (apply for benefits and then don't take them)? Or start stop start (start benefits, stop them, then re-start them)? Or-just as important-when and how to use these techniques? Get What's Yours covers the most frequent benefit scenarios faced by married retired couples, by divorced retirees, by widows and widowers, among others. It explains what to do if you're a retired parent of dependent children, disabled, or an eligible beneficiary who continues to work, and how to plan wisely before retirement. It addresses the tax consequences of your choices, as well as the financial implications for other investments. Many personal finance books briefly address Social Security, but none offers the thorough, authoritative, yet conversational analysis found here. You've paid all your working life for these benefits. Now, get what's yours.
A practical action guide for financial independence and early retirement from the popular Our Next Life blogger. In today's work culture, we're expected to hustle around the clock. But what if you could escape the traditional path and get on one that doesn't require working full-time until age 65? What if you could wake up every day without an alarm clock and do the things you love most? Tanja Hester and her husband Mark left their crazed careerist lifestyle to live their dream life in Lake Tahoe, retiring early from high-stress careers. Now Tanja will help you map out a customized plan for freedom and make it easy to succeed, whether you're good at math and budgeting -- or not! Work Optional is more than just a financial plan: it's a plan for your whole life -- designed by you, not by an employer or clients. Tanja walks you through envisioning your dream life, accounting for variables such as health care and children, protecting yourself from recessions and future unknowns, and achieving a purpose-filled early retirement, semi-retirement, or career intermission with completely doable, non-penny-pinching steps. You can live a happier, more meaningful life, free from the daily grind. Regardless of where you are in your career, Work Optionalwill get you there.
"How to retire in your 20s and 30s (without winning the lottery). This book provides a robust strategy that makes it possible to stop working for money in less than a decade."--Page 4 of cover.
Retirement and good living Are you getting ready to simplify life and move from the world of work to a life of retirement and good living ─ to enter a happy retirement? Retirement and good living: The author of Purposeful Retirement, Hyrum W. Smith, is one of the original creators of the popular Franklin Day Planner, the former Chairman and CEO of Franklin Covey Co., and the recognized “Father of Time Management”. In this book, Hyram shows you how you can move from your world of work, simplify life and enter what can be the most satisfying phase of your life ─ a new world of purposeful retirement and good living. Aging well and a happy retirement: You have had a successful career by almost all measures and now you are concerned about aging well and looking toward a happy retirement. You are definitely not a couch potato. • How are you going to create a retirement that is meaningful and inspiring for your second act? • Can you simplify life? • Is there a way to make intelligent and anxiety free retirement planning choices? • Can you learn from the lives and experiences of people who have found their pathway to happy retirement? • What are their secrets to aging well and a happy retirement? Retirement guide: For four decades, Hyrum W. Smith has been empowering people to effectively govern their personal and professional lives. An award winning author, distinguished speaker, and successful businessman, Hyrum offers a tested and actionable retirement guide to finding that perfect retirement niche. In his book, Hyrum enables you to map the step-by-step route to a retirement that is not just enjoyable but is also deeply fulfilling on a personal level. Welcome to your new life of retirement and good living: This distinguished author, speaker, and businessman combines wit and enthusiasm with a gift for communicating compelling principles that inspire lasting personal change. Hyrum shares a lifetime of wisdom in this powerful retirement guide to discovering your true passion, re-imagining your life, and trying new possibilities. Welcome to a new life of retirement and good living ─ to a purposeful retirement.