While it’s generally a good idea to defer as much income as possible into your available IRAs, 401(k)s and Roth accounts, as with everything else in life, too much of a good thing can be a problem as well. When you have the bulk of your financial assets in retirement plans, you might accidentally expose yourself to some risks that you haven’t thought about… since retirement plan assets are much more likely to be impacted by changes to legislation – as we have seen in the past. In these days when Congress is looking for money just about everywhere, it’s not a stretch to imagine new legislation coming down the pike to tax retirement plan assets (like the excess plan accumulation tax that has been proposed). Other possibilities include accelerating required minimum distributions to achieve a faster payout taxation of the plan and eliminating the “stretch” provisions (this has already […]
retirement savings
Beyond 401(k) and IRA
You’re contributing as much as you’re allowed to a 401(k) or other employer-sponsored retirement plan. If your income allows it, you’re also contributing the maximum annual amount to your Roth or traditional IRA. But you still want to set aside more money beyond 401(k) and IRA, to make sure your retirement is everything you hoped for. What options do you have? Here are some things to consider… Before moving beyond – are you really maxing our your 401(k) and IRA? IRAs and employer-sponsored retirement plans like 401(k)s have some real advantages when it comes to saving for your retirement. So, before you go any further, make sure you’re really contributing all you can. In 2020, most individuals can contribute up to $19,500 to a 401(k) plan, and up to $6,000 to a traditional or Roth IRA (subject to income limitations). If you’re age 50 or better, though, you can make […]
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Principles of Pollex – Saving 10% of Income
(In case you are confused by the headline: a principle is a rule, and pollex is an obscure term for thumb. Therefore, we’re talking about Rules of Thumb.) I like rules of thumb, as a rule of thumb… I think we all generally want difficult issues in our lives to be boiled down to a simple, easy-to-understand statement. These rules of thumb are everywhere, all around us. Heck, there’s even a whole website dedicated to rules of thumb, where you can find rules on all kinds of subjects, as diverse as how to outrun a crocodile to changing your answers on a test. Save 10% of Your Income Let’s start with one of the basics you might hear regularly: Save 10% of your income. Like most all rules of thumb, this one is very general in nature, but it provides a good starting point. This starting point is best for […]
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Don’t Dismiss That “Small” Pension
Frequently, I’ll meet with clients to go over a retirement plan. As is typical, we look at current investments, account balances, Social Security, etc. Often these conversations revolve around distributions from retirement plans and cash flow planning to reduce the probability of portfolio failure, and ensuring an income stream that is congruent with the clients’ retirement goals. Sometimes clients will also have small pensions from their current or former employer and they will tell me that they are small, trivial, or not worth considering. Whenever I hear those words or something similar, I try to explain to the clients that however small or trivial, it’s still a guaranteed income stream that will last the rest of their lives in many cases. For example, I have seen clients think that a $150 monthly pension wasn’t a big deal. But when I present to them that there’s an amount for a “date […]
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Tough Love on Saving for Retirement (for Millennials)
Periodically, I read articles that appear antithetical to the premise of paying yourself first and saving as much as you can, as early as you can to have enough saved for retirement. In the last few weeks, I’ve read two articles – one saying that traditional retirement savings for millennials is useless, and the other saying that it was ok that you’re not saving enough for retirement. Both articles mention their collective disdain for the recent tweet by Jean Chatzky saying that by the time you’re 30, you should aim to have 1x your salary saved, 3x at 40 and so on. I happen to agree with Ms. Chatzky. In fact, you should aim to have more if possible. In my opinion, both articles disagreeing with Ms. Chatzky (as well as the replies to her tweet) seemed befitting of excuses – which are easier to agree to, and may encourage […]
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The Retirement Answer
Although I will admit that the title of this post is a bit glamorous, I wanted to share the simplicity of the message. Typically, every morning we will sit down to eat breakfast. Meals at our house are generally jovial, with discussions ranging from which animal would win in a fight to how my kids will spend their day. A few mornings ago, however, my oldest asked me a rather interesting question. Knowing what I do for a living she asked, “Daddy, what do you have to do to retire?” My immediate response was, “That’s a great question!” At age 7, my heart swelled that she was already thinking about retirement. Before I could give an answer she quickly quipped, “Wait. I know. You have to save enough money so that one day you can retire.” I was speechless. Pretty profound for a 7-year-old. Finally, I replied, “That’s exactly what […]
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Rollover Risk
The idea of an IRA rollover, or a rollover IRA, isn’t necessarily a cosmic mystery – this happens all the time. You leave your job, and you rollover your 401(k) to an IRA. No problem, right? Unfortunately, there often are problems with the process of moving funds from one account to another – because there are a couple of very restrictive rules regarding how this process can and cannot be done. It’s not terribly complex, but you’d be surprised how easily these rules can trip you up. Rollover Risk Let’s start with a few definitions: A Rollover is when you take a distribution from one qualified plan or IRA custodian, in the form of a check made out to you, and then you re-deposit that check into another qualified plan or IRA account (at a different custodian). A Trustee-to-Trustee Transfer (TTT), even though it is often referred to as a […]
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Multiple Income Streams
This post is primarily geared toward younger individuals just starting out after college or from graduate school. However, the information can be used by anyone looking to boost income in order to increase retirement savings, pay off debt earlier or simply to put them in a better position financially. In financial planning we often talk about risk management as one of the bricks to the foundation of any solid financial plan. Generally, when we say risk management we think of auto, home, life, disability and other insurance coverage in addition to an emergency fund. Another area of “insurance” would be creating additional or multiple income streams as a hedge against losing an income source due to downsizing, termination, etc. If none of the aforementioned negative events occurs, then the extra income can be used to bolster retirement savings, reduce debt, or save extra for college. The point is that if […]
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The Third Most Important Factor to Investing Success
Previously I wrote about the Most Important Factor and the Second Most Important Factor to Investing Success. Continuing this streak I’ll give you the third most important factor to investing success: Leave it alone. To recap: The most important factor is to continuously save and add to your nest egg over your career; the second factor is allocation – make sure you’re investing in a diversified allocation that will grow over time. The third most important factor to investing success: Once you’ve started investing, leave it alone. Resist the temptation to sell off the component of your allocation plan that’s lagging; the reason you have a diversified allocation is so that some pieces will lag while others flourish, and vice-versa. Reallocate your funds from time to time (once a year at most) to match your allocation plan, but that’s all the fussing you should do with your investments. Leave it […]
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How to Pay Off Students Loans and Save for Retirement
Very often in my classes I get asked the question “What should I do first, pay off student loans or save for retirement?” My goal is to give some perspective on approaching these two very important issues. Generally, holding student loans and making the minimum payments can lead to an unnecessary amount of interest being paid. For example, if an individual has a student loan at 6%, then that loan is earning 6% but for the lender not for the student. Many individuals find themselves wanting to pay off their student loans as quickly as possible. On the other hand, recent college graduates are also faced with the decision to save for retirement. Many of them have heard that it is wise to start saving when they are young in order to let compounding work its magic. However, many individuals are confused as to which situation they should take care […]
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5 Secrets About Your 401k Plan
Many folks have a 401k plan – it’s the most common sort of retirement savings vehicle that employers offer these days. But there are things about your 401k plan that you probably don’t know – and these secrets can be important to know! The 401k plan is, for many, the only retirement savings you’ll have when you reach your golden years. Used properly, with steady contributions over time, a 401k plan can generate a much-needed addition to your Social Security benefits. But you have to make contributions to the 401k plan for it to work, and invest those contributions wisely. So how much do you know about your 401k plan? Below are 5 secrets that you probably don’t know about your 401k plan. Check with your 401k plan administrator to see if these provisions are available – some plans are more restrictive than others. Secrets You Don’t Know About Your […]
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Maintaining Confidence in an Uncertain World
All around us, every day, we see signs of an unstable financial world. The stock market has been all over the place, instability continues in the Middle East (like it will ever change?); at home we’re confronted by a presidential election that offers little choice other than to hold your nose and vote for the one that you believe is likely to do the least damage. Add to this the rising cost of “getting by” and there’s little wonder many folks are very concerned and have little confidence about the future. What Can You Do? I don’t suggest hiding under your bed – this has never worked for me, and sometimes you find things there that you would rather not! On the other hand, there are few things that you can do to help get through this uncertainty, and maybe you’ll decide that it’s not so scary after all. For […]
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Retirement Income Requirement
You know how important it is to plan for your retirement, but how do you get started? One of the first steps should be to come up with an estimate of how much income you’ll need in order to fund your retirement. Easy to say, not so easy to do! Retirement planning is not an exact science. Your specific needs will depend on your goals, lifestyle, age, and many other factors. However, by doing a little homework, you’ll be well on your way to planning for a comfortable retirement. Start With Your Current Income A rule of thumb suggests that you’ll need about 70 percent of your current annual income in retirement. This can be a good starting point, but will that figure work for you? It really all depends on how close you are to retiring, as well as what you’re planning to do while retired. If you’re young […]
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Am I Saving Too Much?
This post is in response to a question an individual had for me when I was meeting with her a few months ago. The question she had for me and the title of the post was if she was saving too much money. The reason she asked is that after a conversation with friends of hers, they had collectively told her that she was saving too much money for retirement. Currently, this 25 year old was saving 26% of her income for retirement! My verbal response was a firm, “Well done!” My internal response was, “Get some new friends.” Her friends were trying to convince her that 10% was more than enough to save for retirement at such a young age. While 10% is a decent amount to put away, 26% is even better. In addition, this young lady was already used to saving 26% of her income. It wasn’t […]
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401(k) Mistakes (also applies to other Retirement Plans!)
These days you’re pretty much on your own when it comes to planning for your retirement. Granted, many state and local governments have a pension plan, but beyond that, precious few employers provide a pension these days. Typically retirement benefits only include a 401(k) or other deferred retirement plan, which means it’s up to you! For the purpose of brevity, I’ll refer to 401(k) plans throughout this article; please understand that most of the information applies to 403(b) plans, 401(a) plans, and 457 plans as well as Keogh, SIMPLE, and SEP IRA plans. For most of us, the 401(k) is the default account that must take on the role that the pension plan did for previous generations. Paying attention to and avoiding the following mistakes can help you to ensure that you have a financially-secure future. #1 – Choosing Not to Participate It’s amazing how many folks, young or old, don’t participate in their […]
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IRAs: Roth or Traditional?
The question comes up pretty often: when contributing to an IRA, should you choose the Roth or Traditional? I often approach this question in general with my recommended “Order of Contributions”: Contribute enough to your employer-provided retirement plan to get the company matching funds. So if your employer matches, for example, 50% of your first 5% of contributions to the plan, you should at least contribute 5% of your income to the plan in order to receive the matching funds. Maximize your contribution to a Roth IRA. For 2015 that is $5,500, or $6,500 if you are age 50 or older. Continue increasing your contribution to your employer-provided plan up to the annual maximum. So if you have more capacity to save after you’ve put 5% into your employer plan to get the matching dollars, and you’ve also contributed $5,500 (or $6,500) to your Roth IRA, you should increase the amount going into […]
Sterling Raskie, MSFS, CFP®, ChFC®
The latest in our Owner’s Manual series, A 401(k) Owner’s Manual, was published in January 2020 and is available on 
A Medicare Owner’s Manual, is updated with 2020 facts and figures. This manual is available on 
Social Security for the Suddenly Single can be found on Amazon at 
Sterling’s first book, Lose Weight Save Money, can be 
An IRA Owner’s Manual, 2nd Edition is available for purchase on Amazon. Click the link to choose the 
Jim’s book – A Social Security Owner’s Manual, is now available on Amazon. Click this link for the 
And if you’ve come here to learn about queuing waterfowl, I apologize for the confusion. You may want to discuss your question with Lester, my loyal watchduck and self-proclaimed “advisor’s advisor”.