In case you missed it: “cliff” retirements and how to tell if Mom is losing it

Cliff diverHow can you make up for lost time if you’re approaching retirement age and haven’t saved enough? Adjusting your expectations is the first big step. Read about the others in “Facing the ‘cliff’ of retirement.

The early signs of dementia may not be what you expect. In “How to tell if Mom is losing it,” you can learn the red flags and why it’s so important to get an early diagnosis to save what your parents have left.

Finally, my friend Donna Freedman writes about an intriguing idea Oregon’s lawmakers are considering–waiving tuition for students who promise to pay back 3% of their salaries over 24 years. Read more in “A college degree with no money down.”

Monday’s need-to-know money news

Morning at homeBaby Boomers are facing a different kind of retirement, how canceling credit cards impacts your credit score, how the new home office deduction may reduce your taxes and what happens to joint accounts when a parent declares bankruptcy.

Why Boomers May Not Retire like Their Parents

Is the baby boom generation about to fizzle?

Prepaid Cards that Take a Bite Out of Your Paycheck
Transaction fees could be eating away at your paycheck.

How Canceled Credit Cards Impact Credit Scores
Could cutting up your card affect your credit score?

Here’s What the New Home Office Tax Deduction Method Means
Important information for those who work from home.

Will Filing Bankruptcy Hurt My Children’s Credit?
When sharing credit card accounts becomes a problem.

Friday’s need-to-know money news

Cooling fanHow to tweak your retirement, save on summer utility bills, and enjoying having to show an ID.

10-Minute Tweaks to Save Your Retirement
Simple steps that could go a long way towards saving your retirement.

How to Control Your Utility Bills This Summer
Don’t let your air conditioner melt your wallet.

What sounds like a good idea could have long term implications.

How to Ferret Out Senior Discounts
With ages comes wisdom and freebies!

Do You Have to Pay Taxes on Credit Card Rewards?
Do those sweet rewards come with a hidden cost?

Three ways to retire poor

Will Work for FoodI hear from a lot of people who think they’re doing the right things with their money—little realizing that they’re impoverishing their future selves. Three behaviors you’re most likely to regret later:

Putting off saving for retirement. Some people spend every dime they make, while others delay saving while they pursue other goals that seem more worthy, like saving for a home or paying off debt. The reality is that retirement savings opportunities are “use it or lose it”—you can’t get back the company matches, tax breaks or (most important) the power of compounding if you don’t get those contributions into your account. Compounding is so powerful, in fact, that it gets harder and harder to catch up the older you get…until it gets impossible. The smarter solution: Start saving for retirement from your first job, and don’t stop.

Cashing out your retirement when you leave a job. The next most widespread and destructive behavior is tapping into what you do manage to save. About 42% of those who lost their jobs in 2010 cashed out their retirement plans, which is about the same percentage as before the recession, according to an Aon report. More than half of those in their 20s cashed out. Not only do you incur taxes and penalties that eat up 25% or more of your withdrawal, but you lose all the future tax-deferred compounding on that money—which means those in their 20s are hurt even more by cash-outs than those who do it later. (Figure every $1,000 you withdraw in your 20s will cost you $20,000 or more in lost future retirement income.) The smarter solution: Leave your retirement money for retirement. If you can’t or don’t want to leave your balance when you leave your job, roll it into your new employer’s plan or into an IRA.

Grabbing your Social Security benefit early. Social Security will be a big part of most people’s retirements, but too few people understand how much they’re hurting themselves—or their loved ones—when they apply early and lock in a permanently reduced check. It’s not just that you’re likely to live past the “breakeven point” when, mathematically, waiting until full retirement age pays off in terms of total benefits. More importantly, you may be cutting yourself off from strategies that would maximize your lifetime benefits and leaving your surviving spouse with a bigger check. Take a minute to read AARP’s excellent primer on the subject, “How to Maximize Your Social Security Benefits,” and use the free calculator at T. Rowe Price to help you understand the impact of different strategies. (If you want more freedom to customize a tool, www.maximizemysocialsecurity.com gives you that for $40.) The smarter solution: View Social Security as a kind of longevity insurance that helps protect you against the possibility of outliving your savings.

 

Is a Roth worth losing a tax deduction?

Dear Liz: Everyone talks about Roth IRAs and how beneficial they are. But I am self-employed, my husband contributes 16% toward his 401(k), our house is paid off, and we no longer have dependents to deduct on our 1040 tax return. My contribution to my traditional IRA is the only tax deduction we have left. Should I consider a Roth anyway? If so, why?

Answer: A Roth would give you a tax-free bucket of money to spend in retirement. That would give you more flexibility to manage your tax bill than if all your money were in 401(k)s and traditional IRAs, where your withdrawals typically are taxable. Also, there are no minimum distribution requirements for a Roth. If you don’t need the money, you can pass it on to your heirs. Other retirement funds require you to start taking money out after you turn 701/2. If you need to crack into your nest egg early, on the other hand, you’ll face no penalties or taxes when you withdraw amounts equal to your original contributions.

So is it worth giving up your IRA tax deduction now to get those benefits? If you have a ton of money saved, you want to leave a legacy for your kids and you’re likely to be in the same or a higher tax bracket in retirement, the answer may be yes. If you’re like most people, though, your tax bracket will drop once you retire. That means you’d be giving up a valuable tax break now for a tax benefit that may be worth less in the future.

You may not have to make a choice, however, between tax breaks now and tax breaks later if you have more than $5,500 (the current annual IRA limit) to contribute. Since you’re self-employed, you may be able to put up to $51,000 in a tax-deductible Simplified Employee Pension or SEP-IRA. At the same time, you could contribute up to $5,500 to a Roth (assuming your income as a married couple is within or below the phase-out range for 2013 of $178,000 to $188,000).

This would be a great issue to discuss with a tax pro.

Friday’s need-to-know money news

Old windmill in the town of Gorinchem. NetherlandsHow to save big bucks when traveling, preparing for back to school shopping, and what mistakes to avoid when managing your 401(k).

5 Coolest Travel Share Websites
Why pay for an overpriced hotel room when you can have the literal run of the house?

9 Money Management Tips for Newly Employed Millennials
Finally making real money is exciting. But finding ways to save it is vital.

Help with Managing Finances for People with Disabilities
Things to take into consideration when taking care of a disabled person’s finances.

2013 Sales Tax Holidays for Back-to-School Shopping
Find out when your state’s holiday is and what purchases will be tax-free.

The Experts: The Biggest 401(k) Mistakes to Avoid
Important tips on how to properly manage your 401(k).

Tuesday’s need-to-know money news

My first carHow to speed up your mortgage closing, saving more money with a maxed out 401(K), and preparing for your teenager’s time behind the wheel.

Four Steps to a Speedier Mortgage Closing
Speeding up the last, agonizing step before home ownership.
How Rising Interest Rates Affect Retirement
Rising interest rates could leave you altering your retirement plans.
Maxed Out on Your 401(K)? How to Save More
Maxing out your 401(K) doesn’t mean you should stop saving.
The Impact of Adding a Teenager to Your Auto Policy
Prepare to open your wallet when Junior’s ready to get behind the wheel.

How to Budget as a Live-In Couple
Creating a budget can make a stressful time much easier.

Your financial independence day

Colorful and vibrant fireworksWorking just to pay the bills isn’t enough. We should be reaching for something more: financial independence.

Financial independence is when your investments and other sources of income provide you with a comfortable-enough living that paid work becomes optional. As we mark the anniversary of our nation’s independence, I like to review our progress toward this goal. The good news: we’re pretty close to financial independence now, if we were willing to live frugally.

Some people who use the principles of voluntary simplicity achieve financial independence remarkably early. I’ve talked to people who “retired” in their 40s or even 30s, trading the 9-to-5 for a more relaxed lifestyle where they worked fewer hours, or worked for pay only when they wanted to. (If you want to know more about voluntary simplicity, the book “Your Money or Your Life” is a great place to start.)

But my husband and I have decided on a different path—a lifestyle that involves more spending now with the understanding we’ll work a little longer. That’s the best fit for us, because we both love what we do and we like the idea of doing it for a long time.

We’re planning a “phased” retirement, cranking back on our work commitments gradually over time. We like T. Rowe Price’s concept of a “practice retirement,” which suggests that those who have saved substantially for retirement can start putting some of that money toward travel and other spending once they hit their 60s, as long as they continue to work and put off tapping Social Security, pensions and their retirement accounts.

We’re also working on a Plan B, in case we aren’t able to work as long as we’d like. About half of retirees leave the workforce earlier than they’d planned, usually for health reasons although also because of layoffs or the need to care for a loved one. Finding ways to have a smaller “nut” in retirement—a lower level of fixed costs—can really help if you have to leave work early. That’s one of the reasons we’re paying down our mortgage, so that we won’t have that bill later. One of my readers installed solar panels for the express purpose of reducing his utility bills in retirement.

If you got a late start saving for retirement or have suffered some big financial setbacks, your financial independence day may seem impossibly distant. But you may be able to move that date into sight if you’re willing to plan, make some sacrifices and stick to your guns. Start with “Your Money or Your Life” and build from there.

How are you doing on your path to financial independence?

Tuesday’s need-to-know money news

Champagne glassesFinancial survival tips for before the wedding and after the marriage ends, freedom from credit card debt, and beating the retirement clock.

Engaged? You Might Need Money Therapy
Things you should know before you walk down the aisle.

How Does Divorce Affect Bankruptcy and Mortgage
Things you should know for when the walk down the aisle fails.

Declare Your Independence From Credit Card Debt
Life, liberty and the pursuit of zero debt.

How to Get Help From a Student Loan Mediator
Student loan battles don’t have to be fought alone.
What to Do When You Haven’t Saved Enough for Retirement
How to get by when time isn’t on your side.

Save or pay debt? Do both

Dear Liz: I am a 67-year-old college instructor who plans to teach full time for at least eight more years. Last year I began collecting spousal benefits based on my ex-husband’s Social Security earnings record. Those benefits give me an extra $1,250 each month above my regular income. I have been using the money to pay down a home equity line of credit that I have on my condo. The credit line now has a balance of $29,000. I have about $200,000 in mutual funds and should have a small pension when I retire. (I went into teaching only a few years ago.) Would it be better for me to split the extra monthly $1,250 into investments as well as paying off my line of credit? The idea of having no loan on my condo appeals to me, but I wonder if I should try to invest in stocks and bonds instead.

Answer: Paying down debt is important, but opportunities to save in tax-advantaged retirement plans are typically more important. Fortunately, you probably have enough money to do both.

First investigate whether your college offers a 403(b) or other retirement program that offers a match. If it does, you should be contributing at least enough to that plan to get the full match.

Your next step is to explore an IRA. Since you’re covered by at least one retirement plan at work (your pension), you would be able to deduct a full IRA contribution only if your modified adjusted gross income as a single taxpayer is $59,000 or less in 2013. The ability to deduct a contribution phases out completely at $69,000.

If you can’t deduct your contribution, consider putting the money into a Roth IRA instead. Roth contributions aren’t deductible, but withdrawals in retirement are tax free. Having a bucket of tax-free money to draw upon in retirement can help you better manage your tax bill, which is why some investors opt to contribute to Roths even when they could get a deduction elsewhere.

People 50 and older can contribute up to $6,500 this year directly to a Roth if their income is under certain limits. (For singles, the limit for a full contribution is a modified adjusted gross income of $112,000 or less.) If your income is over the limit, you can contribute to a traditional IRA and then immediately convert the money into a Roth IRA, since there’s no income limit on conversions. (This is known as a “back door” Roth contribution.)

Since you’re so close to retirement, you don’t want to overdose on stocks, but you still need a significant amount of stock market exposure so that your money has a chance to offset future inflation. You might consider a balanced fund that invests 60% in stocks, 40% in bonds.

Once you’ve taken advantage of your retirement savings options, you can direct the rest of your Social Security benefit to paying off your home equity line. These credit lines typically have low but variable rates. Higher interest rates are likely in our future, so paying this line down over time is a prudent move.