Our daily roundup of retirement news your clients may be thinking about.
A smart way to make your retirement money last
Delaying Social Security benefits and investing in qualifying longevity annuity contracts form a smart strategy that clients can use to ensure they will not outlive their retirement funds, according to CBS Moneywatch. See how a 65-year-old client making about $75,000 a year will enjoy "practice retirement" when she retires completely after delaying her Social Security benefits. The article also determines how much the client will generate in retirement income from a QLAC if she hits full-time retirement age of 70. --CBS Moneywatch
6 ways a new tax law benefits a sustainable retirement
As federal rules now allow workers to use their retirement plans to obtain longevity insurance, clients can avoid outliving their nest eggs by investing up to 25% of their retirement funds in qualifying longevity annuity contracts. This will require them to take required minimum distributions when they hit the age of 85. Under the new rules, clients can also extend the life of their non-retirement assets, and their retirement plan assets will be protected with a sustainable lifetime income, according to MarketWatch. Clients can also insure a portion of retirement plan assets when they die, and protect themselves from a market downturn by allocating their retirement plan assets to fixed-income annuities. --MarketWatch
Who's got the best retirement plan?
Many energy firms are among the U.S. companies with the best 401(k) retirement plans, according to Businessweek. These energy companies, such as ConocoPhillips and DuPont, offer very generous plans to their employees because they enjoy robust cash flows and high profits per worker. Also high on the list are some biotechnology and medical firms, which offer substantial retirement plans to lure highly educated employees. --Businessweek
Avoid rollovers of IRA CDs
Older investors are advised to avoid rolling over their matured IRA certificates of deposit all in the same year because of a recent ruling by a U.S. Tax Court, according to Kiplinger. The rule limiting only one IRA CD rollover within a one-year period is not meant for the individual IRA, but for the investors. The IRS is expected to implement the court ruling beginning 2015. --Kiplinger
This simple move can boost your savings by thousands of dollars
IRA investors who have the habit of making last-minute contributions miss a full years worth of tax-advantaged compounded growth, so they can expect lower returns than those who contribute early in the tax year, according to this article. Contributions from last-minute savers are expected to go into money market funds and may stay stagnant for four months after. IRA investors are advised to have automatic monthly contributions and create a target date fund or any default investment with some initial equity exposure, an expert says.--CNN Money
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