Retirement planning

Almost one-third of adults who would like to retire do not know if they could and further do not believe they would ever be able to retire, with women more unsure than men.

56% said that it is “challenging” to “very challenging” to discuss such information.

Among investors aged 21 to 50, 72% report that saving for retirement is their top financial goal, a priority applauded by T. Rowe Price’s resident retirement guru, senior financial planner Christine Fahlund, but most investors are unwilling to take on the necessary risk to improve their retirement savings.

Defined contribution plan participants for the most part seem largely unaffected by updated fee disclosure requirements.

Retirement accounts and contributions are growing bigger, according to Fidelity Investments.

The average 401(k) balance reached its highest-ever at $75,900 at the end of the third quarter, Fidelity Investments, one of the nation’s largest 401(k) providers, reported Thursday.

When the concept of retirement was first mainstreamed in America in the 1930’s, it was largely viewed as having “one foot already in the grave.” For many baby boomers today, it might well mean the same thing.

The election results virtually guarantee that key portions of health care legislation passed in 2010 will go into effect next year, as scheduled. Thus, many clients will face a 3.8% surtax on investment income.

Total estimated outflows from long-term mutual funds were $488 million for the week ended Wednesday, October 31, according to data from the Investment Company Institute.

Peng Chen, current chief executive officer of Dimensional Fund Advisors’ Asia (ex-Japan) subsidiaries and Chairman of Dimensional SmartNest (Dimensional Retirement), is adding another title to his resume.

Jeffrey Carney may be looking for new digs and a new gig.

More than 40% of states have poor pension funding ratios, Morningstar municipal credit researcher Rachel Barkley said.

In addition to the launch of its latest SRI fund, Bethesda, Md.-based Calvert Investments has also announced today the hiring of Amy Mathis as its new director of relationship management.

Charles Schwab has launched the Schwab Advisor Center app for the iPad available for download. Advisors will now be able to access key client data such as balances, positions, and transactions from their iPads.

Look for more flexible offerings from MFS Investment Management thanks to new funds in its target date suite.

Financial Planning talked with ING Financial Partners president, Karl Lindberg, about why a solid understanding of retirement income planning is so important for advisors and their practices.

ING Financial Partners, the broker dealer of ING U.S., has developed a new practice management program designed to help financial advisors address lifetime income planning needs of their near-retirement clients.

The vast majority of boomers are not prepared for retirement and have put saving on hold until the economy turns around.

Relationships help fund firms retain assets, says Cogent Research.

More than eight in 10 (85%) are saving less than 10% of their income for retirement.