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Experts across the United States are increasingly worried that people’s savings and investments won’t be enough to last through retirement. Financial wellness holds the keys to a long and prosperous retirement, but you must know how to achieve it. But what is financial wellness? How easily can you attain it, and how might best practices differ depending on your age? Understanding the Potential Retirement Crisis Americans are facing a multi-faceted retirement and savings crisis that has many experts worried. Those on the verge of retirement may not have enough between their savings and Social...

Tapping Your Retirement Account for Other Financial Needs Can Have Costly Consequences According to a December 13, 2022, article in The New York Times, hardship withdrawals from workplace retirement accounts are rising — “another sign, along with rising credit card debt, that many Americans have been feeling financial pain from inflation.” At some point, most people find themselves in a situation where they need access to cash quickly. If that happens to you, you may think about taking money out of your retirement plan account through either a loan or distribution. While those are both...

Tips and resources that everyone can use Knowledge is Retirement Power Although everyone has experienced a few tough years of higher inflation, it’s important to keep things in perspective. According to the Bureau of Labor, inflation has averaged just 2.41% from 2000 to 2023. Conventional wisdom says you should consider keeping an appropriate amount of your retirement savings allocated to stock and bond mutual funds to help offset inflation risk. Although past performance is no guarantee of future results, historical average stock and bond returns have stayed ahead of inflation over the long...

Keep your money safe with these online shopping security tips The 2022 holiday gift season is now in the rear-view mirror. If you’re like many other people, chances are you did a good amount of shopping online. After all, online shopping can be easy and fun. But unfortunately, there are many scammers who want to steal your identity and money. According to a January 2022 Federal Trade Commission report, more than 95,000 people reported about $770 million in losses to fraud initiated on social media platforms in 2021 (the most recent data available). Reports were up for every age group, but...

Looking To Teach a Child Some Important Money Lessons? Consider a Roth custodial IRA. You started early and have saved hard in your 401(k). You’ve also paid close attention to your investing strategy over the years. And you definitely understand the benefits of tax-deferred compounding over the long term and the potential for growth. Heck, you’ve even remembered to change your account password every 90 days. Maybe now it’s time to pay it forward and pass along some of your retirement savings wisdom! How a Roth Custodial IRA Works A Roth individual retirement account (IRA) may be a great way to...