Our daily roundup of retirement news your clients may be thinking about.
The median retirement savings of people aged 60 and above amount to just $50,000, lower compared to those in the 55-59 age bracket, who have three times the amount, according to a survey by Wells Fargo. Respondents who are in their 60s said they started saving at age 37, while those aged 55 to 59 claimed they were began building their nest egg at age 31, the survey found. "It's a small difference in when they started, but it's created a big gap in savings for two age groups right on the doorstep of retirement," said Joe Ready of Wells Fargo. On track to do even better was the youngest group surveyed, those ages 40 to 49. They started saving at an average age of 27 and reported having an average of $80,000 put away for retirement. –CNBC
Bond laddering can be an effective investing strategy for retirement investors who want to use income from individual bonds of staggered maturities to fund their fixed expenses, says Kathy Jones of Schwab Center for Financial Research. Clients who consider using bond laddering are advised to have an emergency fund that can cover at least six months of living expenses and at least $100,000 to start out an individual bond ladder. Retirement investors also need to know that they can build a bond ladderlike investment using low-cost exchange-traded funds. –MarketWatch
A survey by investment firm BlackRock finds that there is a wide gap between the size of nest egg that pre-retirees think they need and their actual retirement savings, according to this article on CBS Moneywatch. Seventy-four percent of respondents claimed they struggled paying their bills while saving for retirement, the survey finds. "There is more optimism than years past, but the gap between what people need and what they have is greater than about $36,000 per year. That's a huge gap," said BlackRock President Robert Kapito. –CBS Moneywatch
Many retirees realize that retirement doesn't necessarily mean ending a career, so they look for part-time and seasonal jobs that provide extra income and opportunity to pursue the things they love doing, according to this article in U.S. News & World Report. Retirees who want to get part-time job may offer their expertise to a former employer, check vacancy with companies that offer temporary employment and look for openings in job bulletin boards. They may also reconnect to former colleagues, join the sharing economy, launch a consulting business or a small service firm, or engage in a buy-and-sell business. –Yahoo Finance
Retirees are allowed to suspend their Social Security retirement benefits even if it's not their first time to seek such benefits, according to this article on Forbes. A rule from the Social Security Administration's Program Operating Manual System states that "[a]ny primary retirement insurance benefit (RIB) applicant or beneficiary, whether reduced or unreduced, who has reached full retirement age (FRA) may voluntarily ask that we suspend his or her benefits to earn voluntary delayed retirement credits (VOLDRC)." Also, the rule states that the "request may be either written or oral, and we do not need a signature. A representative payee can make the request on behalf of the beneficiary." –Forbes
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