Jerry Golden on Retirement

What to pay retirees who delay Social Security

October 12, 2016 By Jerry Golden in Annuity, Social Security Tags: Annuities, Guaranteed Income, retirement income, Social Security

Especially during the political silly season, I suppose I should be accustomed to statements that are ridiculous or plainly wrong. But I find they drive me crazy, and compel me to respond to at least some of them.

A recent example was a September opinion piece in the Wall Street Journal. It argued that retirees who wait until 70 (instead of 66) to collect Social Security should not benefit from that delay with a premium that amounts to a 32% increase in monthly payments.

$Retirees who delay Social Security$ I decided to write a blog rather than respond with a letter to the editor, since I doubted the Journal would admit its vetting process was flawed, as pointed out below. More

Build your retirement plan with the Three L’s

October 5, 2016 By Jerry Golden in Annuity, Social Security 4 Comments Tags: Annuities, Guaranteed Income, retirement income, Social Security, Three L's

You know about the Three R’s of schooling — reading, ’riting and ’rithmetic – that continue to form the foundation of education even as it becomes much more complex and sophisticated.

There are also “Three L’s” that are just as foundational as you plan for retirement: Lifetime Income, Liquidity and Legacy.

These Three L’s address your objectives, and will drive your investment strategies and tactics. Just like a business plan, if you prepare and decide first on the objectives of the Three L’s¸ you will significantly improve your chances for a successful retirement. More

At Go2Income you educate yourself on retirement

September 28, 2016 By Jerry Golden in Annuity, Two-stage retirement 1 Comment Tags: Annuities, Baby Boomers, Guaranteed Income, retirement income

One of our Golden Retirement websites, Go2Income.com, was launched as a place for consumers to gather information about income annuities and how they make retirement better. I recently decided to personally speak with visitors there to learn more about the challenges they were facing in planning for their retirement income.

I learned a few things from those conversations.

First, the visitors had done their homework. They had studied their options and needed just a little more information to make a decision about an important financial purchase.

Second, I confirmed something I already suspected: income annuities are not a turn-off to these individuals and they understand their unique benefits.

Third, they appreciated speaking with someone knowledgeable in this space. One caller told me his advisor explained that the advisor wasn’t licensed to sell annuities and so couldn’t discuss them. Another brought up the topic with an insurance agent — who is able to sell income annuities – but the agent admitted he didn’t know anything about the new IRS-approved QLAC. More

How to be like Sully as you plan your retirement landing

September 20, 2016 By Jerry Golden in Annuity, Two-stage retirement Tags: Annuities, Calculators, retirement income

The movie, “Sully,” demonstrates how knowledge and experience may be better than computer simulations when it comes to making the best decisions about where to safely land your jetliner in an emergency.

I think you can say the same thing about planning for retirement.

Many people default to the use of financial calculators because they don’t know how else to get the unbiased information they need. These calculators are designed to show how much money you need to save in order to have a certain income after you stop working – along with what the likelihood is that the savings will last longer than you do. More

Ask Jerry: Can QLAC Guarantee that My Investment Goes to My Heirs?

September 15, 2016 By Jerry Golden in Annuity, FAQs Tags: Ask Jerry, Estate planning

One of my readers wrote to ask:

Question: Can insurance be taken to ensure at least your investment (original amount) will be sent to your heirs if you do not live to be 85 years old? More