Welcome to Retirement Scan, our daily roundup of retirement news your clients may be talking about.
Retirement planning can be complicated — client portfolios shouldn’t be
Although planning for retirement can be complicated, seniors are advised to keep their investment portfolios as simple as possible, writes Morningstar’s Christine Benz. For example, clients should combine multiple tax-deferred retirement accounts such as traditional IRAs and 401(k)s into a single account, she writes. “Employing a single provider for all of these accounts can also greatly simplify your oversight and record-keeping responsibilities,” according to Benz.
Why clients need a sustainable distribution strategy
While saving for retirement is necessary to secure retirement, creating a sustainable distribution strategy is just as important, a Forbes contributor writes. “The decisions you make as you enter retirement are key and can make or break your retirement success,” the expert writes, adding that one reason is clients “no longer will have earned income and the safety of getting a paycheck every couple of weeks” deposited into their accounts.
How will clients’ Social Security benefits be taxed in retirement?
Seniors can expect a portion of their Social Security benefits to be subject to federal income taxes if their combined income exceeds a certain threshold, according to an article from Motley Fool. The combined income is their annual earnings plus 50% of their retirement benefits. For example, half of the benefits will be taxed if the combined income is between $25,000 and $34,000 for individuals, or between $32,000 and $44,000 for joint filers.
Why annuities should be part of clients’ retirement pension
Holding annuities as part of the retirement income strategy can be a smart strategy for clients to secure their stability in retirement, writes an expert in MarketWatch. These products “often get a bad rap for high fees, surrender charges, and complexity, but certain kinds of annuities can give you steady, pension-like income or insure against your running out of money if you wind up living longer than you expect,” according to the expert.
