How Should the Government Fix Social Security: Retirement Scan

Our daily roundup of retirement news your clients may be thinking about.

How should the government change Social Security?
The government can fix Social Security by hiking the full retirement age to 70, increasing payroll tax, reducing benefits, and making a higher percentage of payments subject to income tax, an expert says. Policymakers can also implement major reforms, such as investing the Social Security Trust Fund in high-grade corporate bonds and common stocks, another expert says. Increasing the full retirement age to address the looming Social Security crisis is not a good idea, as this would benefit only wealthier and more educated people, who are likely to have longer life spans, a professor says.  -- The Wall Street Journal

 Why your awesome 401(k) match is worth less than cash
A majority of workers polled by Fidelity said they are more likely to accept a job offer from an employer that is willing to match 401(k) contributions, than to take a job with a higher pay without a 401(k) match. Forty-three percent of the respondents would be willing to take a lower salary if the employer will give a higher match. However, a higher 401(k) contribution from employers is not really better than a bigger salary, as clients can add the extra pay to their 401(k) contributions, the article says. -- BusinessWeek

Ignore this savings plan at your peril
More than 33% of workers with 401(k) plans have never increased the contributions, with 26% not making such changes in over 12 months, according to a study by asset manager TIAA-CREF. More than 50% of plan participants also have not revised their investment strategy in more than a year, while 25% have never made any changes to their investing approach, the study found. Moreover, 24% of workers in firms without automatic enrollment have not enrolled in their 401(k) plans for at least a year, while one-third of plan participants wait at least six months, the study also found. -- CNN Money

Social Security Q&A: Will my benefits continue to increase if I delay receipt past 70?
The increase in Social Security retirement benefits is not expected to continue beyond the age of 70, so clients should start receiving their benefits by then. In this article, an expert advises a 66-year-old client who is considering claiming his benefits at the age of 72 when his wife will turn 66. The client should file at 70, as the value of his benefits will have increased by 32%, while his wife can seek spousal benefit, the expert says. -- Forbes

How to reduce your RMD by up to 25%
Clients can reduce their annual required minimum distribution by as much as 25% if they own a qualified longevity annuity contract inside an IRA, 401(k), or other employer-sponsored, tax-deferred savings plans, according to MarketWatch. Such an annuity will not be included in calculating the RMD under new IRS rules. A longevity annuity can be considered a QLAC if it meets a number of requirements; for instance, if the amount of retirement money invested in it does not exceed 25% of all IRA account balances and 25% of each separate non-IRA account. -- MarketWatch

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