Welcome to Retirement Scan, our daily roundup of retirement news your clients may be talking about.
Clients who are 70 and older are compelled to take RMDs from their tax-deferred retirement accounts, and the withdrawals could boost their tax bill, a CFP writes in the Idaho Business Journal. Retirees who have no need for the RMD have the option of giving some of the money to their adult children or using the funds to pay for their grandchildren's college costs and get a tax deduction, he writes. Retirees can also donate the RMD directly to charity and avoid taxes on the withdrawals.
Clients are advised to diversify their retirement portfolio to avoid depending on the performance of one or few investment types and to improve their return potential, writes an expert in Morningstar. One strategy to invest in a fund, which "is a collection of stocks, bonds, and other assets that have been chosen to some pre-identified investment strategy," she says. "Funds are diversification made easy, and with lower transaction costs."
Median retirement savings stand at about $50,000, according to a study by Transamerica in this article from Motley Fool. This amount is very low, as seniors would need from $1.5 million to $2 million to cover a 30-year retirement horizon. Clients who want to secure their retirement are advised to gain more money to add to their savings by reducing their expenses and taking a side hustle, as well as maximize all sources of income in retirement.
Despite their high fees and double-digit returns, nearly all have even outperformed themselves so far this year.
Workers are advised to open an IRA before they decide to change jobs, retirement expert Mitch Tuchman writes in MarketWatch. An IRA will allow them to continue saving for retirement and get the tax break, especially if their employer offers no 401(k) plan, the expert adds. Clients can also roll over their old 401(k) assets into a traditional IRA, consolidate their retirement savings and minimize costs.
