From Neale Godfrey; Forbes ~ Dec 13, 2015
If you watch TV, it’s hard to miss the commercials regaling the benefits of Reverse Mortgages. What is a Reverse Mortgage? How do they work? When should they be used? Why should we think about getting one? What are the advantages and disadvantages? Do we qualify? How do we repay the loan?
Wait! Did you say that our kids could help us out? Keep reading and find out.
From David John Marotta; Forbes ~ Dec 13, 2015
When you die, anything that you own which has titling is either given to your beneficiaries via your will or via a will substitute. Any titled asset which does not have a will substitute goes into probate, the legal court proceedings by which your will is read and your assets are retitled in the name of the beneficiaries declared in your will.
If you die without a will (also known as intestate) and without will substitutes, then the court decides who your beneficiaries are. Most commonly, the Virginia court will select your spouse, children, parent(s), or sibling(s) in that order to be your beneficiary(ies), but it varies based on state and circumstances.
By Dan Caplinger; The Motley Fool ~ Dec 13, 2015
Changes to the Medicare program happen each year, and they affect tens of millions of Medicare participants. Because Medicare is a crucial part of how Americans 65 and older manage their healthcare expenses, it’s important to know what new Medicare provisions will take effect in 2016 and what impact they’ll have on your benefits and what you pay for them. Here you’ll learn more about three key Medicare changes for 2016.
By Jerry Geisel; Business Insurance ~ Dec 10, 2015
Sponsors of nearly 15% of large pension plans have de-risked those plans during the past five years, removing more than 1.1 million participants, the Pension Benefit Guaranty Corp. said Thursday.
The PBGC analysis is the first of its kind. It has found that of 3,590 plans with at least 1,000 participants, 534 implemented a de-risking program. About 75% of the 534 plans offered to convert participants’ annuity to a cash lump-sum benefit; the rest shifted participants’ benefits to insurers through purchasing group annuities.
By Brian Vnak; MarketWatch ~ Dec 09, 2015
As the end of the year approaches and tax planning becomes a priority (you’re missing out if it isn’t), one common strategy is to realize capital losses to offset realized gains for the year. But for many retirees, one particularly juicy strategy is to do the opposite: realize capital gains to take advantage of their preferential tax rates. The IRS states that long-term capital gains rates are generally 0%, 15%, and 20%. Unfortunately, this is only the sticker price for what you pay.
By Laura Lorenzetti ; Fortune ~ Dec 09, 2015
The Senate begins its investigation into generic drug pricing.
Drug prices for some older, off-patent medications have skyrocketed this year.
Valeant Pharmaceuticals’ VRX 0.58% heart drugs Isuprel and Nitropress saw their prices increase by 525% and 212%, respectively. The price for Turing Pharmaceutical’s Daraprim jumped over 5,000%, and Rodelis briefly raised the price of a newly acquired off-patent tuberculosis drug by more than 2,000% before returning the drug to its original non-profit owner.
Doctors say these free screenings are key to preventing costly medical problems.
By Maryalene LaPonsie; US News & World Report ~ Dec 8, 2015
When it comes to keeping health care costs in check, Benjamin Franklin may have been on to something. He is said to have originated the axiom “an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure” – a truth helpful for anyone hoping to keep their out-of-pocket Medicare costs to a minimum.
Take, for instance, a patient with high blood pressure. Annual costs to treat hypertension in adults was $733 per person in 2010, according to a 2013 Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality report.
By Lucia Mutikani; Reuters ~ Dec 08, 2015
WASHINGTON – U.S. labor force growth is set to slow further over the next decade as more Americans retire, which will confine the economy to a moderate growth path, according to government report on Tuesday.
In its biennial employment projections for 2014-2024, the Labor Department forecast the work-age population increasing at an annual rate of 0.5 percent, reaching 163.8 million in 2024.
From Kimberly Foss; Forbes ~ Dec 07, 2015
On average, women outlive men by about five years, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. And the Social Security Administration reports that women who reach age 65 can expect to live, on average, 21 more years. Overlay on that the Association for Financial Counseling and Planning Education’s prediction that seven out of 10 boomer women will outlive their husbands, which means that many of these women will be living as widows for 15 to 20 years.
By Katy Votava; InvestmentNews ~ Dec 07, 2015
If you’ve been following the recent news about Medicare you are well aware that folks with retirement incomes above a certain level pay surcharges for their Medicare Part B and D.
But did you know that those surcharges, officially known as the Income Related Monthly Adjustment Amounts (IRMAA), create higher Medicare payments without any additional health coverage benefits?