(Casper, WY) -- It was a lively discussion about financial
planning this week, during the Senior-Wise program presented at the Casper
Senior Center by Bob Thunselle of Thrivent Financial Services. Those attending
had questions about a variety of topics during the presentation, including
social security, taxes, key stages along the retirement timeline, and juggling
life changes during retirement.
"First
of all," Thunselle began, "the folks at Social Security cannot offer
advice. They can answer any questions you have but they can't offer advice. So,
the best plan is to know what questions to ask." He noted that Social
Security income is one income source that's guaranteed so it's a good idea to be
familiar with important ages. For instance, you can begin taking Social
Security income at age 62 but your lifetime benefit will be less than if you
waited until full retirement age.
There
are other key ages to be aware of in retirement. Age 59 1/2 is the first age at
which you can start taking qualified assets without paying the 10% tax penalty.
By age 65 you have to get signed up for
Medicare Part A. And by age 70 1/2 you're required to take distributions from
your qualified assets in retirement. "Uncle Sam says you have to start
paying taxes on it by then," he said.
Thunselle
also stressed the importance of preparing for what life throws at you after you
retire. "There are countless life changes that can hurt your retirement
plans," he warned. "Long term care for a spouse or the death of a
spouse and loss of that income are common. You also need to prepare for market volatility like what happened in 2002
and 2008. If you pull out your assets while the market drops you can find out
that your assets are 30% to 60% less."
Inflation
is another factor to consider; he pointed out that inflation has risen about
2.7% since 1988. Finally, he said that tax regulations will likely change and
it's almost impossible to predict what changes will occur in health care costs.
"And it's easy to see that longevity can almost be like an enemy," he
noted, "if you outlive your income."
Basic
retirement planning includes needs, wants and wishes, he concluded. Needs are
the basic life expenses. Wants are items like where you want to go on vacation.
Wishes are the one time, special, bucket list things. "Good financial
planning can help you accomplish these basic financial retirement goals, he
concluded."
Senior-Wise
is held Tuesdays at 12:30 at the Casper Senior Center.
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