News You Should Know: Study shows half of nation’s future retirees “at risk”

The National Retirement Risk Index: An Update From the 2019 SCF | Center for Retirement Research at Boston College

Researchers at the Center for Retirement Research at Boston College released a 2021 update to their National Retirement Risk Index. This index, which is updated every three years, compares the replacement income future retirees are building compared to their projected needs. The study paints a grim picture: half of all those in the study are at risk “of being unable to maintain their pre-retirement standard of living in retirement.”

The study states: “The bottom line is that half of today’s households will not have enough retirement income to maintain their pre-retirement standard of living, even if they work to age 65 and annuitize all their financial assets, including the receipts from a reverse mortgage on their homes.”

How Do I Settle a Parent or Other Loved One’s Estate? | Bloomberg

“Make an estate plan” is good advice for almost every adult (yes, even if you’re decades away from retirement). But what about the other side of estate planning: the person who settles the estate of someone else, like a parent or spouse? That’s what this article is all about. Understanding the steps you should take in executing an estate – or how to manage the estate of someone without a will or plan – might bring clarity to your own plan, too.

President Biden’s Proposed Changes to 401(k) Plans | US News

One of President Biden’s most-talked-about retirement-related legislative ideas is to change the way tax savings work in 401(k) plans. Currently, you reduce your taxable income by an amount equal to your annual 401(k) contributions. However, the benefits of this method are distributed unequally, according to Biden’s rationale. In short, people with higher income stand to benefit more than others. If you are in the highest tax bracket, your deductions are “worth” more compared to those in lower tax brackets who contribute the same amount. Biden’s proposal would replace the deduction with a tax credit.

Women are living longer than ever before. Some fear they’ll run out of money | CNN Money

The average woman lives about five years longer than the average man. This, despite retiring about two years sooner. Pile on top of that the effects of the wage gap, which accumulate over a lifetime, and women face a particular set of challenges when thinking about retirement. This article includes some ways to approach planning. (Not included: the fact that a PERA retiree has a source of income that can’t be outlived.)

News You Should Know is a digest of news from publications around the nation about finance, investing, and retirement.