A digest of timely information and insight about finance, investing, and retirement.
6 ways to make you feel richer in retirement | Marketwatch
Retirement can be a polarizing thought for millions of Americans. On one hand, it represents the freedom to sleep late, travel, enjoy time with family, and basically choose how to spend your time. On the other, it poses the ever-so-important question, “How will I pay for it?” According to a 2015 analysis by the Government Accountability Office, 29 percent of households age 55 and older had no retirement savings or Defined Benefit (DB) plan. Given that for most of us, every retirement dollar counts, a few cost-cutting measures can help as you plan.
Easy retirement for Americans? It’s only for a privileged few | The Denver Post
The American dream of a blissful retirement, free of financial worries, is dying. Most U.S. households are heading for a worse lifestyle in retirement than they had while they were working, because they simply aren’t saving enough, experts say. Thirty-five percent of households in their prime earning years or later have nothing saved in a retirement account and no access to a traditional pension, according to an AP analysis of savings data from the Federal Reserve.
Is it simpler than Obamacare? California’s retirement mandate | Bloomberg
When millions of Americans were signed up for a new government-mandated benefit program, the rollout of the Affordable Care Act, or Obamacare, didn’t go so well. Broken websites, angry employers, and lots of confused consumers were the results. Now California, Oregon, Illinois, Maryland, and Connecticut – states where one in five Americans live – are trying to give nearly every worker the chance to save for retirement at work. With 36 percent of U.S. private sector workers lacking access to a pension or 401(k)-style plan on the job, and 55 percent not saving for retirement through work, states are beginning to require employers to offer a plan for workers or connect them to a portable, state-run option.
What couples nearing retirement need to do now | Time-Money
If you and your spouse are in your fifties or beyond, you are getting close to the point at which you can claim the rewards of a lifetime of saving and investing. But there are still crucial decisions to make that can affect your happiness in the next few years and your financial security later in life.
College towns can be attractive later in life | The New York Times
University communities have a lot of advantages for older Americans who are seeking intellectual stimulation, cultural amenities, and sports offerings without high urban price tags, not to mention a generally healthy economic base. Some who migrate to college towns later in life return to the town of their alma mater. Others research to find a place they see in their mind’s eye. Four hundred lifelong learning institutes for older adults affiliated with colleges such as the Christopher Wren Association can offer additional resources, such as courses on retirement planning or access to borrowing privileges at campus libraries.
For businesses that still have pensions, they’re a golden lure | The Boston Globe
To lure and keep top talent, companies roll out attractive new benefits every year, from subsidies for cellphones to repayment of employee student loans. But a small group of Massachusetts firms is sticking with an old and now extremely rare worker incentive: the pension.
Defined benefitAlso known as a pension, this is a type of pooled retirement plan in which the plan promises to pay a lifetime benefit to the employee at retirement. The plan manages investments on behalf of members, and the retirement benefit is based on factors such as age at retirement, years of employment and salary history.
