When To Apply For Benefits

By Elaine Floyd, CFP Clients now recognize that their retirement is endangered if they don’t make changes immediately. Work with them to reduce expenses, save more money, adjust their retirement plan, and change the way they invest. You can’t do it for them, but an intervention now could save their golden years and cement their loyalty to you. Only 13% ...

By Joanna Ossinger The government won’t just send you the checks. These five steps will ease your benefit collection process. Guess what? Social Security payments aren’t automatic. If you’re nearing retirement age, you probably have not thought about signing up for Social Security, but you should know the process isn’t automatic. The Social Security Administration won’t start paying out your benefits until ...

By Michael Katz Benefits start to kick in at certain ages as you reach your golden years. When we’re young there’s always a birthday to look forward to, whether it’s for getting a driver’s license at 16 or being able to buy a drink at 21. But there comes a point where most people stop looking forward to the ...

By Elaine Floyd, CFP Economic and market pressures have forced many baby boomers to rethink their retirement schedule. A recent study can help you step near-term retirees through the recalculation process by quantifying their possible Social Security benefits, asset allocation, and income needs to arrive at a Plan B retirement date. “How much longer do I have ...

  By now almost everyone has heard of the strategy to delay the claiming of one’s Social Security benefits.  Why delay?  Because you will receive a higher monthly benefit if you wait.  In fact, delayed claiming of Social Security benefits until age 70 could mean a payout that is 32% more than you would have received had you started ...

By Elaine Floyd, CFP Couples may not realize that each spouse has a different vision for retirement. He may want to golf, while she wants to travel. Not to mention the added damage the latest market meltdown may have inflicted on their savings. Help couples prepare both financially and psychologically for their golden years with these ...

By Peter McDougall Here are the factors you should consider when thinking about your monthly government check. Social Security is in trouble. As the baby-boom generation nears retirement age, Social Security is getting ever closer to negative cash flow, meaning there will be more people taking payouts from the system than there are workers paying in. The turning point will probably ...

By Elaine Floyd, CFP Circumstances may compel grandparents to take custody of minor children, thrusting them into a planning situation they hadn’t foreseen. The situation has become more common in recent years, and you should be prepared to guide your clients through all of their financial options. After the unexpected death of Michael Jackson on June 25, his mother, Katherine, immediately ...

By Rick Miners and Maura Carley Improper financial planning for health care can ruin clients’ retirement dreams. If your clients haven’t considered their health care coverage, you must ask the right questions to get them thinking seriously about it. Life is full of surprises. One of the biggest surprises we have had as advisors is learning that many pre- ...

By Elaine Floyd, CFP The deadlines for signing up for Medicare are numerous and bewildering. What’s worse, the penalties for a missed date can be irrevocable. Guide your clients through the bureaucratic maze with this overview of the six enrollment periods and who qualifies for each. Now that the Medicare eligibility age of 65 has been decoupled from the Social Security ...