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The ACA health plan premiums may decrease, stay the same, or even increase when one spouse starts Medicare. Here's why. Learn the Nuts and Bolts I put everything I use to manage my money in a book. My...
It’s not too early to start planning your spending for 2026 even though you haven’t yet determined your January 1, 2026 Funded Status. You or your spouse may be considering spending in 202...
A single misunderstanding about Social Security spousal benefits can cost couples thousands over retirement. This episode unpacks the real math behind how Social Security treats spouses, ex-spouses, a...
My wife and I (both retired, not working jobs) are strongly considering San Diego CA as our final living destination. Austin TX is just getting too hot, and it will only get worse. 8 months of summer,...
My wife and I have always been savers. Now in retirement I'm struggling to spend any money beyond the required bills, food, and payments. With our pensions and social security, the basics are way more...
Me? I'm a hunter, but I never shoot anything. I'll go out in the woods in the afternoon and sit and observe. Then, when it gets dark, I walk back to the car and go home or to my camp. Mornings, I go o...
Today we answer a question from Ken, a recent retiree at 63, about how his Social Security claiming decision impacts his wife's future spousal benefit. We break down how spousal benefits are calculate...
Rosemary's husband is scaling back to 32 hours a week as part of his transition plan before switching careers. With Social Security in mind, she asks: Will this reduced income impact their future bene...
Financial planning often feels like a numbers game—follow the math, and you'll make the best decisions, right? But what happens when the spreadsheet says one thing, and your peace of mind says a...
When should you claim Social Security? For high-net-worth retirees, this is not a simple decision. In this episode, we explain why Social Security is not just a monthly check but a strategic part of a...
For many affluent retirees, the biggest financial fear isn't market volatility or rising taxes. It's this simple question: What happens if I'm not the one here to manage the plan? In this episode, we ...
We asked a psychologist and a mediation expert for advice....
For those of you who are married which spouse retired first and what was the reason for this? How are the dynamics post-retirement? I will retire before my husband. I've always made less and as I stop...
My wife and I plan to retire at the end of 2028. While we both have good paying jobs now, for most of our adult lives, we've been barely making it - raising children and living paycheck to paycheck. O...
Answering listener questions about the pros and cons of traditional vs. Roth contributions, merging finances when a spouse has no income but owns an IRA, and how to maximize annual contributions to a ...
I’m 61 and “retired” 4 months ago. Arthritis is taking its toll and I wanted time before I’m not able to do more than hang out in front of a tv. My wife plans to work for 5 mor...
A high percentage of plans fall short of meeting their owners’ goals because central players in executing the plan didn't know key facts....
You may remember the post I did about 3 weeks ago about death of a spouse early in retirement. I figured it would be good for me and those of you who have not been through this to give an update. Mode...
Between my wife and I we both have accounts at Fidelity and Charles Schwab. They are a mix of rolled over 401K's, IRA's and Roth. I have been using Empower as a way to view all the accounts and keep a...
If so, what were the objections, and how did things turn out? I'm 65 and want to retire now. I have had good paying jobs for many years and we live frugally, so we have a good amount of money saved, b...
M65 & F67. We have 88% of our retirement assets in always taxable accounts. 75% of that is in the M65 accounts. We have plenty of room for conversions this year through 2027 for sure. Possibly lon...
Earlier this year my wife asked, “Where is our money?”That question sent me down a path of simplifying everything — starting with our emergency fund....
Bit of a strange one — my wife and I both retired recently, and I didn’t expect this part to be the hard bit. We get on fine, but suddenly we’re in the same space all day, every day,...
Wondering how others approached this. I am 57, my wife is 46. I could retire at 62, 65 easily but how do I not work for the 10 years that my wife has to work? Just a moral dilemma I am trying to plan ...
As I finish lunch at the office, looking forward to another 10 years before I can retire, I often read the stories of the people in this community and daydream a little bit about what my wife and I wi...
M64 wife is 57, no kids. We have just north of 4 mil in liquid assets split between 3 in after tax and 1+ in 401k. How much should we have in real estate vs bonds,equities and annuities? I’m ant...
My wife died last week. We spent 15 years planning our ideal retirement, started to implement 3 years ago by snowbirding/winding down work to a part time schedule. And we fully committed to retirement...
This is a small pension that my wife has from a previous job. Papera came in last week...take a lump sum rollover of $21,500 or wait until she is 65 (2033) and take the $274 per month until she has pa...
Spouse and I are retiring soon and have both greatly reduced our work schedules. We are fortunate to have kids and grand kids living nearby and we also have a 6 month-old Lab puppy. We did not want to...
So, my story is a little different. I stopped working when I was 59 due to medical reasons. I was lucky enough to have had an insurance guy who insisted I take out a private disability when my wife wa...
I'm in the final stage of deciding "the date" I drop the mike and head out to the next chapter. I think the spouse and I have most things we need to consider in place (she's going to slug it out one m...
We recently added a pressure-treated lumber ramp at the front door for my wife's wheelchair. We live in the snow belt along Lake Erie, so I am concerned about how to keep this free of snow and ice. I ...
It's important you get involved in financial planning now so you're prepared and confident to make decisions when you potentially become your own financial manager....
I (61F in a couple weeks) retired in March. My spouse retired 4 years ago. We live in an area with world class medical reasearch and a lot of universities. There are quite a number of local studies th...
My spouse and I are retiring soon and are in that mode of “our house is too big”, “our kids aren’t moving back home”, and “we don’t want to retire here”...
I reflected on the expensive possessions I own, while my wife and children seem indifferent to them. Additionally, I’ve developed new interests, leading me to start selling and buying various it...
We asked expert wealth planners for advice....
My husband and I are thinking of moving from our home in Devon, UK. We have been there for 22 years and in Devon for 40. I'm retiring from teaching next year at 59 and he has just reduced to part time...
Once my wife retires (I am already), we are planning on doing the opposite of snowbirding--spending summers in Maine, spending roughly 3 1/2 months away from our permanent home. What is the best way t...
Episode 487 Whether you’re looking for a spouse with excellent lifetime career earning potential or for a stock market growth opportunity that’s not limited to the narrow Mag7, consider th...
I have a 403(b). My wife has a 401(k). Let's figure out who has the better retirement account and if it matters for our portfolio. The post Wife vs. Husband: A Retirement Account Showdown appeared fir...
I am currently 72.My FRA was 66. I'm receiving SS benefits. I retired at 67 and 5 months. My wife is currently 61. She is a legal permanent resident and has never worked in the US. She is not disabled...
Money conversations fall short when only one spouse is at the table. It’s easy to treat financial planning like another household task to divide and conquer, but unlike errands, your financial p...
My spouse and I have recently retired, and want to move eventually south. I have looked at A LOT of 55+ communities in NC, SC, GA, and FL. When we visited the Bluffton SC area (Hilton Head) I loved it...
We are in our 60s and live in a large, 150+-year-old house that needs a lot of maintenance. My husband is retired. I can retire whenever I want to. We need to downsize sooner or later, and we're tryin...
Out of curiosity, just before or when you retired did you sit with a CFP or CFA to go over investing and tax strategies? I retired 6 weeks ago at 59-1/2 and my wife(56) will still work for a few more ...
Women are poised to inherit significant wealth from their husbands. Here's how they can prepare for it....
Like the title says I went back to working last year due to my husband getting a surprise layoff 3 years ago. He couldn’t find any work and is 7 years older than me. I hadn’t worked the 12...
So I have some questions. What does everyone do with their time? I have some goals that I would like to accomplish, which includes 15+ hours a week of training and several annual trips including overs...
I knew we were probably ready financially to retire, but planned on three more years - I turned 60 last month. However, recent corporate chaos led my wife and me to plan out a "what if," which rapidly...