Category: Financial and taxes in retirement
October 14, 2018 -- If you receive Social Security or Supplemental Security Income (SSI) benefits, the biggest increase in years is about to come your way. More than 67 million Americans will see an increase of 2.8 percent in 2019. The COLA was 2% in 2018 and .3% in 2016. The 2.8 percent cost-of-living adjustment (COLA) will begin with benefits payable in January 2019 (which means you will see the increase in your Feb deposit). If your monthly payment is currently $2500, that means a $70/month increase.
Earnings limits also increased
The maximum amount of earnings subject to the Social Security tax (taxable maximum)
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Published on October 13, 2018
Comments 3
Category: Health and Wellness Issues
October 13, 2018 -- Medicare Open Enrollment runs from Oct. 15 - Dec. 7. If you are currently on Medicare, or didn't sign up when you were first eligible for it, now is the time to compare plans and make sure you have the coverage that's right for you in 2019.
Sure you are busy and have many things to think about. But spending a little time and effort every year to make sure you are in the right plan Medicare plan is important. For example, maybe you currently have Medicare Part B along with a supplemental plan. Flash forward to the present. Your health needs might have changed since then, maybe enough so that you aren’t in the right plan anymore. Maybe Medicare Advantage (Part C) makes more sense now because it probably covers additional benefits such as vision, dental,
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Published on October 12, 2018
Comments 7
Category: Best Retirement Towns and States
October 9, 2018 -- This is our 2018 list of the 20 most popular places to retire in the Northeast, the fourth in this year's "Best Places" series. In case you missed them, here are the links to the first three: "The Top 20 Places to Retire in the Southwest", 20 Most Popular Places to Retire in the West (California to Colorado and points north), and the Southeast's very popular top 20.
Resorts and college towns
We weren't too surprised Pittsburgh ended up #1 on this list, Since the Steel City is frequently named as a great place to retire because of its relatively low costs and livability. But we
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Published on October 8, 2018
Comments 17
Category: Downsizing
By Barbara Ross and Bill Carito
October , 2018 --
I recently calculated that my husband and I, either solo or with other family members, have emptied eight houses in the last ten years. Like many people our age, this has included helping elderly parents downsize from big old homes, emptying their second homes, and finally, emptying their downsized homes when they were gone.
The spring/summer of 2017 was the trifecta. We cleaned out my mother-in-law’s chock-a-block full apartment following her death, helped our son and his family move from Connecticut to Virginia, and moved ourselves from Somerville, Massachusetts to our dream retirement home in Portland, Maine.
One task remained
We bought my mother-in-law’s big, beautiful Victorian sea captain’s house on the harbor in Boothbay Harbor, Maine from her in 2004 in a transaction so complex, I took to calling it “Momitrage.” As a part of the whole deal, she moved into a lovely
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Published on October 6, 2018
Comments 2
Category: Family and Retirement
October 2, 2018 -- Your Editor's children gave him a very thoughtful gift for Fathers Day this year - DNA testing from Ancestry.com. This article will explore why genetic testing might be useful, its pros and cons, a list of the various providers of these services, and some comments from a Facebook post on the topic. We also hope that all of you with experience on the subject will chip in on the Comments section, so we can all learn from one another.
Like most every family, mine is interested in and proud of our ethnic heritage. We know from our parents that we are largely Scotch-Irish, have quite a bit of German/Sudetenland, along with a dash of Native American blood. Our relatives from that line were part of the infamous Trail of Tears into Oklahoma. We looked forward to confirmation of all of that heritage.
The test
Common DNA tests cost about $99, but there are many different levels of plans, along with occasional deals. To give the company your genetic makeup you usually put a tiny amount of your saliva into a small vial, or swab your cheek. Then you
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Published on October 1, 2018
Comments 5
Category: Best Retirement Towns and States
September 26, 2018 -- A few years ago we published an article about small town retirement that a lot of people seemed to really like: "Five Big Reasons to Choose a Small Town Retirement". Here is the counterpoint; some great reasons why that might not be the best idea.
Moving to a small town for retirement is a frequent dream for many baby boomers. Friendly neighbors, walking to downtown for coffee, and no traffic are just some of the attractions for people fed up with suburban sprawl and city hassles. Unfortunately, sometimes the dream does not work out that well. Or, people just realize that small town living isn't for them.
Decorah, Iowa - a town many Member say is a great small town for retrirement
Some of the problems we have seen
Access to medical care. The #1 issue we hear about is people who are disappointed with the health available in the small town they move to. There might not be many doctors, few specialists, and only a tiny hospital offering limited care. This really becomes a problem if you develop a condition that requires a specialist or a big hospital. A two or three hour drive to regular appointments, or in an emergency, will be a big problem for you. Small towns also greatly reduce your choice of doctors. It is not so much of an issue with towns
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Published on September 25, 2018
Comments 24
Category: Retirement Planning
September 25, 2018 — We love your Comments to the Topretirements.com Blog! Our Members consistently say they are one of the most valuable features of this site. BUT….one of our regular contributors made yet a great suggestion that might make this feature even better. He is frustrated with some Comments…
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Published on September 24, 2018
Comments 0
Category: Financial and taxes in retirement
September 14, 2018 -- Thanks to one of our regular idea contributors, Jeff H, we have a not so hypothetical problem for you. If, as the Social Security Trustees warn, the retirement portion of Social Security exhausts its reserves in 2034 and is only able to fund 77% of promised benefits starting in that year, what will you do? A similar question could apply to Medicare, which is expected to run out of money even earlier, in just 8 years (2026). Medicare's case is harder to prepare for: if nothing is done, presumably benefits will be cut or reimbursements to doctors and hospitals reduced, driving even more health care providers out of Medicare.(Note: in our recent newsletter the headline said ‘cut 77%), which was an inadvertent error. The accurate statement is that benefits would be paid at 77%.)
In spite of a steady stream of warnings from Trustees and other experts, legislators have done nothing to address the coming problem. With soaring deficit projections expected
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Published on September 14, 2018
Comments 32
Category: Retirement Planning
By Bob Stacy
National Institute of Transition Planning
September 15, 2018 -- I am consistently amazed when conducting my NITP “Transition to Retirement” sessions when I ask participants a very simple question: "Do you know how much you spend each year?" The answer is almost universally "no"!
Retirement income should be easier to calculate
In preparing for retirement you should know approximately what your income will be. If you are a federal or state worker or you are employed by a larger company, you can visit your HR department and have them provide an estimate of your annuity or pension, which will probably be your main source of retirement income. Then you can add other possible sources of projected income such as 401Ks, Social Security, investment income, TSPs, part-time work and maybe even inheritance. If you don't have a pension, it will probably be slightly easier to estimate your income.
No matter how much income you may have forthcoming, no one should retire if you don’t know what you actually spend each month. Running out of money in retirement is one of the worst things that can happen to you. So I suggest that you not consider retirement until you know your
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Published on September 13, 2018
Comments 4
Category: Best Retirement Towns and States
September 10, 2018 - Based on multiple surveys we have conducted, the best places to retire in America are in its Southeast, a region made up of 12 states. In that research 48% of respondents said they would like to retire there, twice as many as in the Southwest, the next highest choice. This is our 2018 list of the 20 most popular places to retire in the Southeast, the third in this year's "Best Places" series. Here is a link to the first, "The Top 20 Places to Retire in the Southwest". The second installment has the 20 Most Popular Places to Retire in the West (California to Colorado and points north).
What States are in the Southeast?
The states included in this big region are: West Virginia, Virginia, Kentucky, Tennessee, North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia, Alabama, Mississippi, Arkansas, Louisiana, and Florida. In general the region has a humid subtropical climate with hot summers. Areas in the west and north tend to be cooler as they generally have more elevation or are further north. Hurricanes can reach landfall in the summer and fall months along the Atlantic and Gulf coasts. The region's major geographical features include: Appalachian Mountains, Atlantic Ocean, Gulf of Mexico, Mississippi River.
Surprises ahead
The 20 most popular towns in the Southeast contain mostly familiar names, although they include a few towns that earned surprisingly high ranks. Asheville (NC), which has been top dog on our Top 100 list for the entire U.S. many times, was no surprise to take the #1 spot here. Its review was read by over 9,100 visitors in the first 7 months of 2018, more than four times as many as called up the #20 selection, Naples, FL. As an example of a bit of an upset, the #2 most popular place to retire on our list, Pensacola (FL), edged out many more famous retirement towns and cities.
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Published on September 9, 2018
Comments 19
