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Your Retirement Savings and Change in Employment

Whether you leave an employer for a wonderful new opportunity or lose a position because of the pandemic, it’s easy to forget about the money you have saved in your retirement plan.

When the ups and downs of stock markets leave you stressed and wondering whether stocks really will help you pursue your long-term financial goals, there are two things to remember:

1.  Historically, over long periods, stocks have tended to move higher.

Americans are choosing to retire early.

Economists Olivier Coibion, Yuriy Gorodnichenko, and Michael Weber associated with the National Bureau of Economic Research (NBER) have been comparing data gathered in January and April 2020 to learn how labor markets were affected by the crisis.¹

There was a little something for everyone in the ‘Setting Every Community Up for Retirement Enhancement’ (SECURE) Act, a piece of bipartisan legislation that was attached to the United States federal spending bill and signed into law toward the end of 2019. Here are some of its provisions:¹

If your income is pie, then the federal government takes a hefty slice each year. A 2020 report from the Tax Foundation found a single average wage earner in the United States pays about 29.8 percent of their income in federal taxes. That’s about $18,368 in federal taxes and does not include state and local taxes. The calculations include:¹

The words ‘bear market’ have been bandied about a lot lately. When you read or hear them, remember to respond the same way you would if you saw an actual bear in the woods – by staying calm and keeping your wits about you. A changing bond market environment creates challenges for investors and financial advisors, but it also creates opportunities.

How long will you live?

It’s not a question anyone can answer with any certainty, and that creates a significant risk when planning for retirement. Your retirement may last for a long time, and you will need to have enough income to live comfortably without running out of money.

There is a simple and unsettling reality in the United States. Most Americans are not financially prepared for retirement.

A Conversation You Need with Aging Parents

As of December 2018, more than 43.7 million retired Americans collected Social Security, with more than 8 million disabled workers collecting benefits as well. But Social Security is much more than retirement income. Along with providing a small income to millions of seniors, Social Security also provides life insurance as well as survivor benefits.