SDI Productions Expecting an enhanced write-off for charitable gifts in 2021? The deduction won’t look the same as it did in 2020, according to tax experts. As the pandemic ravaged American lives, Congress added a provision to the CARES Act to spark more charitable giving: an improved tax deduction for cash gifts up to $300
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Prostock-Studio | iStock | Getty Images If you get your health insurance through the public marketplace and are nearing age 65, don’t forget about Medicare. The general rule is that you must enroll when you reach that age unless you have qualifying coverage elsewhere — and plans through the exchanges (whether federal or state) do
Cecilie_Arcurs | E+ | Getty Images With fewer employer pensions these days, some retirees are hesitant to draw down their nest eggs. However, older Americans may spend more freely with a guaranteed source of income, such as Social Security or a private annuity. That’s according to a research paper that examines spending in retirement. The
PeopleImages | E+ | Getty Images In his poem “If,” British author Rudyard Kipling famously wrote that learning to “keep your head when all about you are losing theirs” is part of growing up. That very statement is also part of growing wealth. I wish I could go back to March 2020, when some investors
Peter Cade | Getty Images Most retirees — including those with less wealth — aren’t tapping their nest eggs before their required withdrawals, according to research from J.P. Morgan Asset Management and the Employee Benefit Research Institute. Some 80% of the retirees studied didn’t withdraw money from accounts before their required minimum distributions, known as
Klaus Vedfelt | Getty Images The Social Security cost-of-living adjustment for 2022 potentially will be the biggest in 40 years. Estimates indicate the annual boost could be 6.2%, prompted by rising inflation. But rising prices on grocery store shelves and at gasoline pumps aren’t the only reasons why those bigger monthly benefit checks will likely
krisanapong detraphiphat | Moment | Getty Images About 1 in 3 of the lowest-income families have a savings account, according to research published Monday by the Consumer Federation of America, a consumer advocacy group. Thirty percent of households in the bottom fifth — those who earn less than about $26,000 a year — owned a
Getty Images The enhanced child tax credit captured America’s attention this summer as millions of families began receiving payments. But Congress also boosted a lesser-known write-off this year for working families: the child and dependent care tax credit. Often conflated with the child tax credit, the child and dependent care tax credit offers working parents
Although many Americans continue to face financial uncertainty due to the pandemic, the outlook for retirement savers is only improving. Retirement account balances, which took a sharp nosedive in 2020 when the coronavirus outbreak caused economic shock waves, are now at new highs, according to the latest data from Fidelity Investments, the nation’s largest provider
Image Source | Getty Images Many Americans have trouble covering their costs of living with income solely from Social Security. Now, a bill has been reintroduced in Congress aimed at reducing the risk that older Americans, women and people of color will live in poverty despite receiving their monthly checks. The proposal, called the Social
@Sabi32 | Twenty20 One in 3 American families couldn’t handle a mid-sized financial emergency before the pandemic, according to a report from the Stanford Center on Longevity and the Global Financial Literacy Excellence Center. Roughly 27% of American families couldn’t cover an unexpected $2,000 expense within a month, and 33% were struggling to make ends
JEFF KOWALSKY | AFP | Getty Images Federal unemployment benefits officially expire on Labor Day — but state administrative rules require that aid to end a few days earlier than some workers may anticipate. All states pay weekly benefits according to a schedule that ends on a Saturday or Sunday. However, the American Rescue Plan
In this article ROST GCShutter | E+ | Getty Images The entire cryptocurrency market climbed to more than $2 trillion over the weekend for the first time since mid-May. Bitcoin, one of the more popular digital offerings, also surged to more than $48,000, though it has already lost some of those gains. If you’re like
EmirMemedovski Workers may soon get a better sense of how much income their retirement savings really will deliver later in life. As mandated in the 2019 Secure Act, 401(k) plan sponsors are preparing to provide illustrations on quarterly or annual statements showing an estimate of how much guaranteed lifetime income — via an annuity —
katleho Seisa With inflation fears high and interest rates at rock-bottom lows, retirees may wrestle with how much cash they need during their golden years. The consumer price index, a key measure of inflation, increased by 5.4% in July from the previous year, and the average savings interest rates are still 0.06%, making cash reserves
Hector Pertuz | iStock | Getty Images If you’re handling the financial affairs for an older person who has died, you may wonder how the government knows to stop sending Social Security payments. Or maybe there’s a surviving spouse or dependent who is hoping those benefits can continue. Although Social Security rules can be complicated,
Money in a special needs trust can cover supplemental needs not covered by Medicaid and SSI. Uwe Umstaetter | Getty Images Democratic leaders in Washington, D.C., have touted a $3.5 trillion spending package aimed at helping to fight poverty. Yet initial drafts have not included proposed reforms to enhance Supplemental Security Income — also known
In this article MS BLK skynesher | Getty Images Direct indexing, which allows investors to buy the stocks of an index, instead of purchasing a mutual or exchange-traded fund, may soon be available to more investors. While ultra-high-net-worth people have historically used the strategy, those with fewer assets may soon have access as more financial
PamelaJoeMcFarlane | E+ | Getty Images The first half of 2021 was very different than the volatile first six months of 2020. To that point, the Standard & Poor’s 500 Index returned 15% in the first half of this year — healthy growth in just about any full year. Yet, with the potential for inflation
Kieferpix | iStock | Getty Images When it comes to retirement savings, how much is enough in order to feel financially secure? The median answer across workers of all ages is $500,000, according to research from the Transamerica Center for Retirement Studies. But that figure varied somewhat across generations. While the median number for Gen
Peter Cade | Getty Images It looks like some older workers might get a boost in how much extra money they can put in their retirement accounts. So-called catch-up contributions — amounts permitted above the usual contribution limits — would be expanded for workers in their 60s, under legislation pending in Congress. While the details
Pent-up demand is bringing shoppers back to malls like the Mall of America in Minneapolis. Owen Franken | Corbis Documentary | Getty Images After being hobbled by the pandemic recession, real estate investment trusts are rebounding rapidly, and the economic recovery isn’t the only thing driving growth this year. Share prices are rising from demand
Getty Images As inflation pushes prices on everything from food to gasoline higher, your emergency cash could be in danger of losing value. Persistently low interest rates likely will not keep pace with surging costs. Rapid inflation may continue for several months, Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen said in a recent interview, while other experts see
David Paul Morris | Bloomberg | Getty Images Most individual investors — 67% — think they have a responsibility to put money toward companies that have a positive impact on the world, new research shows. That doesn’t mean they are necessarily acting on the sentiment. While more than half (51%) of retail investors avoid investing
Cavan Images | Cavan | Getty Images Covid-19 prompted many women to leave the workforce. That’s because many women were forced to choose between working and taking care of their children and families amid a pandemic often opted for the latter. The difference in earnings and career prospects can be seen immediately. And it could
Image source: Eric Audras | ONOKY | Getty Images There appears to be a lack of understanding among investors about some of the fees they pay. Nearly half (47%) of investors mistakenly think the cost of investments like mutual funds and exchange traded funds generally are included in the fee they pay to their advisor
MoMo Productions | DigitalVision | Getty Images For some retirees, getting a large pension payment can become a big problem. Let’s say a pension plan mistakenly has been paying a participant too much and requires the person to pay back the money, typically through reduced future payments. That can cause many a retiree a lot
In this article COIN Dado Ruvic | Reuters As older Americans worry about the size of their nest eggs, some may eye riskier assets, such as cryptocurrency, to cover their shortfall with the possibility of higher returns. “It’s a tough predicament, and I think a lot of people will find themselves in that space,” said
In this article MORN A_Carina | iStock | Getty Images Bonds are typically thought of as the safer part of an investors’ portfolio — a form of protection when the stock market gets unruly. Yet as inflation becomes a growing concern, that form of security is looking a little wobbly. “One of the single greatest
Getty Images As the market soars and more older workers retire, those sitting on appreciated employer stock in their 401(k) plans may have an opportunity to pay lower taxes on part of that growth. The strategy, known as net unrealized appreciation, or NUA, allows someone to lock in lower capital gains rates rather than paying
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