Ask the Boston Money Coach Question: Will working longer and deferring retirement allow me to have more money for when I finally retire? I'm 54 now and was originally planning on retiring at 65. My 401K took quite a hit a few years ago and now I'm wondering if I should be postponing my retirement. Financial Planning Response from Boston Money Coach Steve Stanganelli: Time heals all wounds ... Read More
Retirement Planing
How Many Choices Does A Retirement Investor Need
KISS - Keep It Simple, Stupid. That advice can apply to most things in life. It may be true for investing as well. As financial advisors we have access to tons of academic research, white papers and other sources of navel gazing. But the reality is that most investors prefer to KISS. And maybe they're onto something. Yes, we try to demonstrate our added value through complex algorithms ... Read More
Calculating Social Security Benefits
Ask the Boston Money Coach Question.) I retired at age 55 and am returning to work. How will this affect my Social Security Benefits at age 67? Betty in Florida Response from Boston Money Coach Steve Stanganelli: Your benefits from Social Security are based on your lifetime earnings. Your income taxes on Social Security benefits will depend on your age and your current earnings. That's a ... Read More
Ask the Money Coach: How to Save for Retirement when Self-Employed
If you're a small business owner running a business by yourself or with your spouse, you are eligible for a "solo" 401(k) plan that can cover you and your spouse (if you have one). These types of plans are usually offered through any number of platform providers using a simple "prototype." By using this type of template, the costs for setting up a plan are significantly reduced. Most mutual fund ... Read More
Ask the Adviser: What are the biggest issues new retirees tend to underestimate?
It's easy to get tripped up in retirement. I'm reminded of the expression by the octogenarian to the recent newlywed fretting about life but rejecting out of hand the advice of his experienced senior: A long time ago I was where you are now. And later you'll be where I am now. But just as you haven't been your age before, I've never been old before. So for new retirees who "not been there or ... Read More
Ask the Adviser: What’s a Market Linked CD and Are There Risks?
It's natural for investors who are still skittish after a decade-long roller coaster ride with the stock market and plummeting real estate values to be risk averse and seek out investment alternatives for protecting their nest eggs for retirement, college funding or simply their emergency cash. And where there is demand, there will be supply. So naturally, financial firms will design products ... Read More
Retirement Income Planning – The Impact of Emergency Withdrawals
Recent academic research by Gordon Pye on the impact of emergency withdrawals on retirement planning may put into question the rule of thumb used by many advisers to determine a safe, sustainable withdrawal rate. For many investors and their financial advisers, the accepted rule of thumb has been to withdraw no more than 4% of an investment portfolio in any given year to provide a sustainable ... Read More
Ask the Adviser: Paying for College by Shifting Assets – Worth the Trouble?
As noted in previous articles and posts, whether or not your student qualifies for federal financial aid for college will depend on the Expected Family Contribution (EFC) calculation. Typically, almost all assets and income are included in this calculation by financial aid officers. There are exceptions to all rules and in this case, federal aid formulas (under the "Federal Methodology") exclude ... Read More
Secrets for a Richer Retirement – Controlling Your Emotions
"The safest way to double your money is to fold it over once and put it in your pocket." Kin Hubbard Investing takes time. As humans our brains are more wired toward the flight-or-flight survival responses that got us to the top of the food chain. So we are more prone to panic moves in one direction or another and this is not always in our best long-term interests. So to retire richer ... Read More
Most Common Investor Mistakes and How to Avoid Them: Mistake #1
Investing Mistake #1: Treating Investments Like a Part-Time Job and Not a Business. "When a man tells you that he got rich through hard work, ask him: Whose?" Don Marquis While you may be investing for a child's education, a vacation home or retirement, the common ingredient for success really is the process, approach and mindset you bring to making investing a success. Take it seriously and you ... Read More
