Ask Liz Weston

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Liz Weston

Q&A: Social Security benefits for exes

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Dear Liz: I divorced after three decades of marriage, and my ex remarried before age 60. If I understand Social Security’s rules correctly, that remarriage disqualified my ex from claiming a survivor’s benefit based on my work history. Here’s my question: If my ex’s current spouse dies before he does, does that then make him eligible to claim a survivor benefit on MY work history? I am retired and collect my Social Security benefit; he too is retired and presumably collecting his.

Answer: Yes. If your ex is widowed, he typically would have the option of taking a survivor benefit based on his most recent spouse’s work history, or a divorced survivor benefit based on your work history, instead of his own benefit. His choice would not affect how much you receive.

Q&A: Their 529 college savings plans have a problem: The students graduated. Now what?

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Dear Liz: My adult children both have money left in 529 accounts that I control as well as uncashed savings bonds given by generous grandparents. We were able to get them through college without needing the funds, but neither has decided to continue with graduate education and the funds have been stranded because of the high tax rate on non-education use. With the recent rule change for 2024, we plan to start converting the 529s into Roth IRAs, but this will take several years as we understand the contribution limits. Can you please discuss the IRA conversion process and make suggestions for cashing or converting the mature savings bonds to minimize the tax burden?

Answer: As you may know, interest on savings bonds isn’t subject to state or local taxes. Federal tax can be paid annually on savings bond interest, but most savers defer paying tax until the bonds are cashed in or reach final maturity, which happens 30 years after their issue date. Savings bond interest can be tax free if used for qualified education expenses, but there are a number of restrictions. For example, bond buyers must be 24 or older; if the bonds were registered in the children’s names, the qualified education exemption wouldn’t be available. (See IRS Publication 970 for details.)

You have more options for preserving tax-free use of the 529 funds. Starting next year, you’ll be able to roll up to $7,000 from each child’s 529 into a Roth IRA for them. The child must have been a beneficiary on the 529 for at least 15 years and contributions made within 5 years, plus their earnings, aren’t eligible to be rolled over. Any amounts they contribute to their own IRA or Roth IRA would reduce the amount you could roll over.

You can continue annual rollovers up to the Roth IRA contribution limit until a total of $35,000 has been transferred. The rollover must be direct or “trustee-to-trustee” — don’t ask the 529 plan to send you a check.

If you have money left over in the accounts after these rollovers, you could consider changing the trustee to a relative of the beneficiary. Eligible relatives include the child’s spouse, children and other descendants, parents and ancestors, in-laws, cousins, aunts, uncles, nephews and nieces and spouses of those relatives.

Even if you decide to pull the money out and pay the penalty, the taxes may not be as exorbitant as you fear. You’ll typically pay income tax and a 10% penalty, but only on the earnings, not the original contributions.

Investing for retirement — Why you might want to reconsider that 403(b)

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Like many other educators, high school science teacher Robert Curtiss of Dearborn, Michigan, thought he was doing the right thing by investing in his school district’s 403(b) retirement plan. Then federal regulators charged the company handling Curtiss’ investments with fraud.

In July 2022, the Securities and Exchange Commission said Equitable Financial Life Insurance Co. had misled investors — mostly public school employees — about what their investments cost. Equitable often issued quarterly statements showing $0 in fees, when in reality the expenses were much higher, according to the SEC. Equitable agreed to pay a $50 million civil penalty to harmed investors.

After hearing about the fine, Curtiss learned that his retirement investments were costing him two to three times what a typical 401(k) investor would pay. Getting his money out would cost even more: the investments, known as variable annuities, had surrender charges of 5% to 6%.

“I felt so frustrated,” Curtiss says. “If I would have known sooner, I would have never put my money there in the first place.” In my latest for ABC News, learn why you might want to reconsider that 403(b).

This week’s money news

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This week’s top story: Smart Money podcast on using AI to budget and save and debit vs. credit card pros and cons. In other news: What the 2024 Social Security COLA could mean for your retirement, what parents of college students need to know about new FAFSA, and first-time home buyer affordability report.

Smart Money Podcast: Using AI to Budget and Save and Debit vs. Credit Card Pros and Cons
Learn how to use AI for help with budgeting and saving money, then learn whether credit cards or debit cards are safer.

What the 2024 Social Security COLA Could Mean for Your Retirement
Social Security benefit amounts adjust for inflation every year; here’s how to make the most of those changes for 2024.

New FAFSA: What Parents of College Students Need to Know
The new 2024-25 FAFSA will have a greater impact on divorced parents, undocumented parents and those with multiple kids in school.

First-Time Home Buyer Affordability Report — Q3 2023
High mortgage rates sidelined home buyers and sellers alike in the third quarter, making the already lofty financial goal of homeownership potentially unattainable for would-be first-timers.

Q&A: Here’s how a health savings account works. Spoiler: It can be a stealth retirement fund

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Dear Liz: For the first time, I signed up for a high-deductible insurance plan along with a health savings account. However, I don’t quite understand a couple of key concepts. When our medical bills roll in, will we pay using our personal credit card or the HSA card provided by my employer? We have no trouble using our personal card but is that the right way to use an HSA — by not using it, in effect? Also, I read that the unused HSA funds can be invested to grow tax-deferred. How does the money get invested? Does my employer have a relationship with a specific broker? Or can I invest unused HSA funds with any broker?

Answer: If you want your HSA balance to grow for retirement, then paying your medical bills out of pocket is the way to go. If you use your credit card to pay medical bills, however, make sure you can pay off the balances in full. The benefits of an HSA would be diluted if you were paying double-digit interest rates.

If you do need to access your HSA funds, you can use your employer-provided card to pay medical bills or submit receipts to the HSA administrator for reimbursement.

As you probably know, HSAs offer a rare triple tax break. Contributions are pre-tax, your account can grow tax-deferred and withdrawals for qualifying medical expenses are tax-free. Because the account can be invested and balances rolled over from year to year, many people treat their HSAs as an additional way to save for retirement.

Your employer has chosen an HSA provider that typically will offer some investment options, but usually you can transfer your balances to a different provider if you wish. Compare fees, minimum balance requirements and investment options. If you decide to move your account, ask your current provider to set up a “trustee-to-trustee” transfer.

Q&A: Transferring bonds after a spouse dies

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Dear Liz: In 2001 I bought $50,000 worth of I Bonds. Half of them were in my name with my wife as beneficiary; the other half were in her name with me as beneficiary. She died two years ago but I do not want to cash her bonds in. How do I get them in my name without selling and repurchasing?

Answer: You can have the bonds reissued in your name alone because you were named as the beneficiary. The reissued bonds will be in electronic form, so if you haven’t already, you’ll need to create an account with TreasuryDirect, which is operated by the U.S. Department of the Treasury. If you have questions, you can reach the site’s call center at (844) 284-2676 from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Eastern time Monday through Friday.