Retirement Savers Seeking Protection Amid Market Volatility: Allianz
Risk Free Retirement Planners
by Kenny
4y ago
Nearly three in four affluent respondents to an Allianz Life survey said they’d be willing to give up some gains for protection. Second-quarter market volatility is making Americans increasingly worried about their finances and retirement savings, with only 31% in a new survey saying they were comfortable with market conditions and ready to invest, down two percentage points from the previous quarter and four points from last year’s first quarter. The latest market perceptions study from Allianz Life also found that more Americans feared the approach of a major recession in the second quarter ..read more
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THE SKINNY ON DC PLANS
Risk Free Retirement Planners
by Kenny
5y ago
By Ian Berger, JD IRA Analyst You may know that you participate in a DC retirement plan. But what exactly does that mean? (Hint: It doesn’t mean that your plan is sponsored by the District of Columbia.) “DC” actually stands for “defined contribution” plan. Defined contribution plans are a type of company retirement plan and are distinguished from DB (“defined benefit”) plans/ Types of DC plans. The most popular types of DC plans are 401(k) plans, 403(b) plans and 457(b) plans. Each of these types allows employees to make salary deferrals and may also allow employer contributions. 401(k) plans ..read more
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EXCESS CONTRIBUTIONS AND THE STRETCH IRA: TODAY’S SLOTT REPORT MAILBAG
Risk Free Retirement Planners
by Kenny
5y ago
By Andy Ives, CFP®, AIF® IRA Analyst Question: Hello, I have heard Ed speak at several different Wells Fargo events and he spoke one time about clients who over contribute to their 401(k). I believe there was a strategy where they can move the excess to an IRA. Can you tell me where to find more info on this strategy? Answer: There is no strategy to move an excess 401(k) contribution to an IRA. To avoid being taxed twice, excess plus earnings attributable must be removed by April 15th of the year after the year the excess was contributed. There is no way to “fix” it with a rollover or some ot ..read more
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BANKRUPTCY: FAIL TO PLAN? PLAN TO FAIL
Risk Free Retirement Planners
by Kenny
5y ago
By Andy Ives, CFP®, AIF® IRA Analyst Just as IRA and 401(k) plans have different levels of bankruptcy protection, so too do other possessions. Whether these assets are qualified or not, there are ways to shield oneself from creditors. Case in point – in order to shelter certain monies, a couple in Wisconsin sold their 1974 Plymouth and some real estate. They subsequently purchased a non-qualified annuity with the proceeds. Their creditors did everything in their power to disqualify the annuity to gain access to the funds, but were unsuccessful. The Court ruled that the couple had successfully ..read more
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Back to School: Five Surefire Ways to Boost Your Financial Education
Risk Free Retirement Planners
by Kenny
5y ago
August is an exciting time of year. As the start of a new semester approaches, families across the country begin to pull themselves out of vacation mode and think more critically about the future. A spirit of learning is in the air, which makes things just a little brighter in anticipation. Of course, if your household doesn’t include school-age children, you can still take August as a time to reevaluate your personal development and consider areas for growth in the future. For instance, a financial health checkup is a good way to discover ways to improve your financial education. Although man ..read more
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7 COMMON QUESTIONS ON THE SECURE ACT
Risk Free Retirement Planners
by Kenny
5y ago
By Sarah Brenner, JD IRA Analyst The Setting Every Community Up For Retirement Enhancement (SECURE) Act recently passed the House of Representatives by a large margin. It is currently stalled in the Senate. This bill includes a multitude of provisions that would reshape retirement savings if passed. Buried deep within the proposed legislation is a provision that would do away with the stretch IRA for most beneficiaries. We have received many questions on this provision. Here are a few of the most common: 1. Question: Would the provisions in the SECURE Act eliminating the stretch apply to Roth ..read more
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IRA CHARITABLE DISTRIBUTIONS AND ROLLOVERS: TODAY’S SLOTT REPORT MAILBAG
Risk Free Retirement Planners
by Kenny
5y ago
By Ian Berger, JD IRA Analyst Question: As I understand it, a contribution would be income tax free when sent directly from an IRA to a 501(c)(3) organization.  It is not clear to me if the distributions still will affect my MAGI that in turn will affect Medicare Part B IRMAA premiums. Jennifer Answer: Hi Jennifer, If your IRA distribution satisfies the conditions for a qualified charitable distribution (“QCD”), the distribution will not be taxable to you. That, by itself, won’t lower your modified adjusted gross income (“MAGI”). However, if the QCD is used to satisfy the required minimum dis ..read more
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LESSENING THE HARDSHIP
Risk Free Retirement Planners
by Kenny
5y ago
By Ian Berger, JD IRA Analyst Participating in a company plan, like a 401(k) or 403(b) plan, is a great way to save for retirement. But to make sure that employees don’t use those plans as checking accounts, Congress has imposed limits on when you can withdraw your funds. Generally, you can’t receive a distribution until severance from employment, disability or death. Most plans also allow payouts after age 59 ½ – even if you’re still working – and allow you to borrow against part of your account while still employed. Beyond that, your plan may (but isn’t required to) let you pull out your fu ..read more
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USING NUA FOR AN RMD – 3 STEPS
Risk Free Retirement Planners
by Kenny
5y ago
By Andy Ives, CFP®, AIF® IRA Analyst Many company retirement plans – like a 401(k) – offer company stock as an investment option. Under special tax rules, a plan participant can withdraw the stock and pay regular (ordinary) income tax on it, but only on the original cost and not on the market value, i.e., what the shares are worth on the date of the distribution. The difference (the appreciation) is called the net unrealized appreciation (NUA). NUA is the increase in the value of the employer stock from the time it was acquired to the date of the distribution to the plan participant. The plan ..read more
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Why healthy clients need to save more for retirement
Risk Free Retirement Planners
by Kenny
5y ago
Tax-free health savings accounts, Roth IRAs, insurance and annuities can help cover retirees’ future health-care costs Here’s a counterintuitive thought: Healthy clients are likely to have higher medical costs in retirement than their less-healthy counterparts. Why? Because they are likely to live longer than average, and health-care costs tend to increase at the end of life. A newly released white paper from HealthView Services, Why Health Needs to Be Part of Retirement Planning, provides new data detailing the projected cost of health care, the impact of health conditions and strategies to p ..read more
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