Raiding your retirement accounts can be expensive. Withdrawing money before age 59½ typically triggers income taxes, a 10% federal penalty and — worst of all — the loss of future tax-deferred compounded returns. A 30-year-old who withdraws $1,000 from an individual retirement account or 401(k) could lose more than $11,000 in future retirement money, assuming […]
Recent Blog Posts
Q&A: Taxes on home sales
Dear Liz: I thought that if you occupied a home as your principal residence for two of the last five years that you could exclude capital gains of up to $250,000 if single or $500,000 if married. Someone recently told me that this has been changed to a pro-rata calculation. Answer: That someone was wrong. The pro-rata […]
Q&A: Roth IRA withdrawal rules
Dear Liz: In a recent column you mentioned that you can take money out of a Roth IRA at age 59½ without a penalty. I believe a Roth IRA must be in force for at least five years before you can take money out, regardless of age. Is this correct? Answer: At any time and at any age, you […]
Q&A: The thought of ending up old and alone can be terrifying. It doesn’t have to be that way
Dear Liz: My wife and I have no children to take care of us in our old age, and I am scared to death regarding what will happen to the surviving spouse when one of us dies or we become incapacitated. We are 69 and 67 respectively and I think a lot of “boomers” are facing […]
Shopping on social media the smart way
When Ziwei Cong bought some sweatpants that caught her eye during a livestream shopping event on social media, she was disappointed when they arrived and didn’t fit well. “It’s very easy for me to become irrational during these kinds of shopping events,” says the assistant professor of marketing at Georgetown University’s McDonough School of Business. […]
This week’s money news
This week’s top story: Smart Money podcast on travel tips and budgeting for a non-traditional life. In other news: Getting more EVs will require recycling more old batteries, June Fed meeting and a pause on rate hikes, and 7 ways for couples to earn travel points and miles together. Smart Money Podcast: Nerdy Travel Tips, and […]