Don't Delay: The Potential Benefits of Starting to Save Now For long-term investment goals such as retirement, time can be one of your biggest advantages. That's because time allows your investment dollars to do some of the hard work for you through a mathematical principle known as compounding. The snowball effect The premise behind compounding [...]
You've probably heard the news that the Federal Reserve has been raising its benchmark federal funds rate. The Fed doesn't directly control consumer interest rates, but changes to the federal funds rate (which is the rate banks use to lend funds to each other overnight within the Federal Reserve system) often affect consumer borrowing costs. [...]
I'm Changing Jobs. What Should I Do With the Money in My Plan? Changing jobs is an important decision -- one that many of us are making more often. Once you've decided to switch jobs, your next move is to determine what to do with the money in your former employer's retirement plan. Generally, you [...]
Tips for Retooling Your Portfolio Like a closet that isn't reorganized from time to time, a portfolio that isn't reviewed regularly can leave you feeling like the pieces no longer fit. Last year, for example, stocks, as measured by the S&P 500 had annualized returns of 13.69%.1 U.S. investment grade bonds gained 5.97%, while international [...]
How — and When — Do I Sign Up for Medicare? In most instances, you become eligible for Medicare on the first day of the month you turn age 65. Whether you need to sign up, and how to go about doing so, depends on the type of coverage you select and whether you collect [...]
Five Things to Know About Inherited IRAs When an IRA owner dies, the IRA proceeds are payable to the named beneficiary--or to the owner's estate if no beneficiary is named. If you've been designated as the beneficiary of a traditional or Roth IRA, it's important that you understand the special rules that apply to "inherited [...]
Retirement Account Distributions After Age 70½ If you have assets in a qualified retirement plan, such as a company-sponsored 401(k) plan or a traditional individual retirement account (IRA), you'll want to be aware of several rules that may apply to you when you take a distribution. Required Minimum Distributions During Your Lifetime Many people begin [...]
Give Your Retirement Plan a Tune-Up Conducting an annual review of your retirement goals and strategy is an ideal way to check that your plans for your financial future remain realistic and on track. With that in mind, taking the three easy steps outlined below will help you conduct your retirement tune-up. Step 1: Review [...]
Choices for Your 401(k) at a Former Employer One of the common threads of a mobile workforce is that many individuals who leave their job are faced with a decision about what to do with their 401(k) account.¹ Individuals have three basic choices with the 401(k) account they accrued at a previous employer. Choice 1: [...]
Common Financial Wisdom: Theory vs. Practice In the financial world, there are a lot of rules about what you should be doing. In theory, they sound reasonable. But in practice, it may not be easy, or even possible, to follow them. Let's look at some common financial maxims and why it can be hard to [...]
