Your Money, Your Wealth

Learn simple steps for building wealth in retirement with Joe Anderson, CFP® and Big Al Clopine, CPA, in YMYW podcast episode 39. Dive into the optimal retirement withdrawal strategies for keeping your finances steady regardless of market uncertainty. Later in the hour, find out if a reverse mortgage is right for you. Original publish date June 18, 2016 (hour 1). Note that content may be outdated as rules and regulations have changed. 00:00 - Intro 04:23 - "In 2013 the Reverse Mortgage Stabilization Act was passed and you've probably heard a lot of bad things about reverse mortgages but a lot of those bad things have been eliminated or curtailed substantially" 05:50 - "I think the 4% rule is a very, very good tool when you're trying to understand how much money you need to accumulate to retire" 09:23 - "What we're going to talk about today is really one of the most important pillars of retirement planning; it's withdrawing money from your retirement accounts" 14:2 - "Most people's assets are in retirement accounts" 16:55 - "You need to maximize the amount of money that you are receiving from Social Security because that is going to be a large fixed income source for you that is guaranteed by the Federal government" 22:08 - "A reverse mortgage can never be reduced, frozen or cancelled, and there are no monthly loan repayment requirements" 27:43 - "As you near retirement, tax planning becomes more important than ever, but you must use a forward-thinking tax strategy" 29:59 - "To continue on our discussion about if you retire and you're trying to pull money out of your accounts and the markets goes way down, a reverse mortgage is yet another potential solution to this" 34:44 - "Reverse mortgages are tax-free"

In episode 37 of the YMYW podcast, Joe Anderson, CFP® and Big Al Clopine, CPA answer questions on investing for retirement, and they share strategies for managing your portfolio during an election year. Original publish date June 11, 2016 (hour 2). Note that content may be outdated as rules and regulations have changed. 00:00 - Intro 06:32 - "When you inherit a retirement account, it blows up on the heirs because it's [taxed at] ordinary income for the heirs" 08:20 - "With this Bipartisan Policy Center, one of the things they want to do is get rid of the stretch IRA because it's really a pretty good deal" 12:20 - "Can an SEC licensed broker-dealer transfer your 401(k) account into an IRA without your permission?" 13:38 - "Your retirement accounts are separate properties…there's no such thing as a joint retirement account" 18:54 - "I am 47 years old. I have around $100K in a Traditional IRA. I haven't contributed anything in that account for a long time now. My current job offers a 457 and 401a plan, which I try to contribute to every paycheck. Should I transfer my Traditional IRA funds to my job's 401a or 457 account? What are the tax consequences of that transfer? Should I just keep my Traditional IRA and use it until I retire? If I transfer that money to the 457 or 401a account, should I do it in a one time transfer or installment transfers (in 5 or so years for less of a tax penalty)? 19:57 - "There's no reason to roll the IRA in the plan. I will give you an advantage.. but let's say you decide to keep it separate – there are advantages to that but probably the main one is you have more investment choices when it's in an IRA" 21:44 - "One benefit of the 457 plan is that you can take that money out at any age" 23:47 - "I have read about the presidential election cycle and am curious as to what actions I should be taking in terms of my asset allocation. When should I take those actions? How conservative would you recommend I become prior to the election? What are the most effective portfolio management strategies you would recommend in order to maintain or at least mitigate risk? I am a small time investor. I work with a small amount in an online brokerage account as well as accounts with companies such as Acorns and Betterment. I do have the ease and benefit of diversifying risk away (referring to the Modern Portfolio Theory)" 25:22 - "Here's my answer: there's no evidence that there's any sort of market swing one way or another with a presidential election. It can happen and it may happen but there's no reason to make any drastic changes in your portfolio just because of that" 29:42 - "My wife and I are 83 years old. We will sell our home for about $400,000. Will we pay capital gains tax when moving to an apartment for $2,500/month?" 31:56 - "It's June and I have not taken my RMD (required minimum distribution). Should I let the funds grow until end of the year or take average withdrawals until end of the year?" 33:34 - "I am 69 years old. My husband is 71 years old. We cannot afford the note on our home with our retirement income. We have two annuities. One for $300,000 and one for $600,000. Both are about 3-6 years old. I want to know if I cash in the $300,000 annuity, what kind of penalties and taxes will I have to pay?" 34:00 - "The first question you should ask yourself is: is the annuity in a retirement account or not? If not, every dollar you pull out is fully taxable"

A 146-page report from the Bipartisan Policy Center was released last week and a lot of high earners aren't going to like it. One of the proposals is to shore up Social Security by raising the tax base. In YMYW podcast episode 37, Joe Anderson, CFP® and Big Al Clopine, CPA discuss what this report puts on the line for retirement. Original publish date June 11, 2016 (hour 1). Note that content may be outdated as rules and regulations have changed. 00:00 - Intro 02:39 - "This is not the first time we've seen some of these proposals; I've got to believe that some of these are going to come true at some point" 05:25 - "Probably not a lot of people realize it but at certain income limits they stop withholding Social Security" 09:13 - "If you don't have a retirement plan today, here are three reasons why you should…" 14:07 - "More and more employees are suing their employer because they don't have good choices in the 401(k) plans" 18:40 - "You have more control over paying taxes than you think, actually more so than any other time in your life" 22:37 - "As long as a marriage has lasted at least ten years, a married or divorced person can draw on his or her own benefits or the spousal benefits, whichever is higher. The recommendation is to cap the spousal benefit at a level equal to the spousal benefit received by someone married to a worker in the 75th percentile of the earning distribution" 30:37 - "The report's authors are concerned about Americans' debt, including the increasing level of mortgage debt among older people" 32:32 - "[According to the report], they're going to raise Social Security tax, they're going to raise the amount of money they're paying on Social Security…they're going to limit the deductions on mortgage" 35:00 - "If you do a little bit of tax planning, there are significant things that you can do with your money from a tax perspective to save more money for you and less for Uncle Sam"

The inventor of the 401(k) says he created a 'monster.' Could we see the end of the 401(k) as we know it? What about pensions? More and more employers have been quietly replacing pensions with other alternatives. In YMYW podcast episode 36, Joe Anderson, CFP® and Big Al Clopine, CPA discuss the future of retirement planning while sharing insight on what you should be doing now for your retirement. Original publish date June 4, 2016 (hour 2). Note that content may be outdated as rules and regulations have changed. 00:00 - Intro 3:53 - "You can put $18,000 into a 401(k) [each year] and once you hit 50 you can put $24,000 [each year] and then the employer's usually have some sort of match" 7:18 - "The good news is that 401(k) plans, especially the larger ones have significantly lowered their fees" 9:38 - "I would much rather pay a bunch of fees and costs to have the 401(k) to get the deduction or potentially the Roth 401(k) to have my money grow tax-free…versus not having the plan at all" 12:53 - "There's a lot more convoluted legalities to this (self-directed IRA); we'll just talk high-level pros and cons" 17:40 - "As a CPA for over 40 years, it does amaze me how many people fail to get the message about tax planning until they make a mistake" 22:38 - "If you are divorced, can you collect a benefit based upon your ex-spouse's earning history?" 33:17 - "We're giving you a workaround (for making a budget), which is pay yourself first and spend the difference. If you don't pay yourself first…you'll find a way to spend it" 33:56 - "You do need to do a little bit of planning to figure out how much you can spend each month, and then have that come out as an automatic withdrawal from your spending account so you don't spend any more than that" 35:27 - "Taxes don't stop when your paycheck does"

Nicole Newman, Attorney at Law joins Joe Anderson, CFP® and Big Al Clopine, CPA on YMYW podcast episode 35 to discuss the most important estate planning mistakes people need to avoid. Later in the hour, they dive into Social Security, investments and taxes. Does your Social Security strategy line up with your retirement plan? Original publish date June 4, 2016 (hour 1). Note that content may be outdated as rules and regulations have changed. Download the Estate Plan Organizer Learn more from Nicole Newman: 10 Gruesome Estate Planning Mistakes to Avoid 00:00 - Intro 02:47 - "We have seen Social Security benefits reach a million dollars [before]" 06:35 - "When you get really good rates of return, there are risks involved no matter what the investment vehicle is" 08:40 - "Cash flow is king when it comes to retirement. Do you have a strategy and plan in place to make sure that you can provide the income that you need?" 10:00 - Start of interview with Nicole Newman 11:52 - "What happens if you fail to plan for your death is that each state has their own back-up plan for you.." 12:59 - "They tend to interchange the terms will and trust all the time…actually that's mistake number two in my seminar" 13:39 - "A will does NOT avoid probate…that's a very common misconception" 14:18 - "Here in California probate is very lengthy, so it usually takes about 12 to 18 months as long as there are no problems…if there are problems then it can turn into years very quickly; whereas other states' probate can be very simple and very quick" 17:47 - "We see this quite often, where we'll see children from a prior marriage cut out simply because of the lack of planning…when you have a blended family you definitely want to have a living trust" 19:22 - End of interview with Nicole Newman 24:41 - "Each year that you wait after your full retirement age, Social Security will guarantee an 8% delayed credit to the benefit, plus you also get the cost of living benefit" 28:48 - "In retirement you have more control [over your taxes] than any other time in your life" 36:29 - "There are a lot of other things that you can do; you could push out your retirement a couple years or you could look at some tax planning strategies that will carry out your dollar a little longer…making sure you have the right portfolio set up to give you the income that you need"

Is the well-known trading adage, "sell in May and go away" actually good advice? Joe Anderson, CFP® and Big Al Clopine, CPA discuss this in YMYW podcast episode 34 before diving into retirement planning, sharing common IRA and Roth misconceptions and beneficiary blunders that could cost your family thousands. Original publish date May 28, 2016 (hour 2). Note that content may be outdated as rules and regulations have changed. 00:00 - Intro 02:26 - "You can contribute up to $5,500 (to an IRA); if you're over 50 you get a $1,000 catch-up so $6,500" 04:01 - "If you're in a low tax bracket you might not get that much benefit. You might as well do a Roth contribution so you forgo the tax benefit today but all future income, growth and principal are tax-free later. Here's the caveat – you need earned income" 04:29 - "Earned income has to be salary or positive profits from your self-employment business" 09:01 - "If you don't have an IRA already established and you try to do a direct rollover, you're going to find yourself with some problems" 14:59 - "Did you know that you can use your spouse's earned income if you're not working to do a Roth or IRA contribution?" 16:03 - "A couple of other basics when it comes to the Roth: there is no required minimum distribution (RMD)" 23:08 - "These are retirement accounts. They're for retirement; they shouldn't really be used for other things" 28:52 - "We're talking about IRAs, some mistakes you might be making with the overall retirement accounts; we talked about the basics – how much you can contribute, AGI limitations, penalties, RMDS. But one that people forget about is the beneficiary designation" 33:10 - "We encourage our clients and I'll encourage you guys as well to be looking at your beneficiary statements on all IRAs, 401(k)s, 403(b)s every few years; make sure they're up to date" 36:16 - "There is such thing as an IRA trust"

The 2016 election race has already offered plenty of surprises, but what could it mean for the economy? Joe Anderson, CFP® and Big Al Clopine, CPA share what they think, then move on to discuss Americans' top regrets in retirement. Are you saving enough money for emergencies? Is your credit card debt hindering your finances? Are you taking enough risk in your financial portfolio? Find out what you can do to improve your finances. Original publish date May 28, 2016 (hour 1). Note that content may be outdated as rules and regulations have changed. 00:00 - Intro 05:15 - "We tend to sell our positions when they go down because we are fearful…and then we buy back in when the market does well" 10:40 - "Here's an interesting statistic I got from Market Watch: since 1950, a 60/40 bond portfolio…hasn't had a loss in a five-year period…any five-year period" 17:54 - "Presidential election year or not, it doesn't really matter. You need to get the right investments for you and stay invested. Rebalance when you need to" 22:53 - "According to this article on U.S. News, they're saying that people over age 50 spend an average of 40-45% of their household budget on housing and housing items" 27:25 - "We talk about being diversified with investments but you also have to be diversified with your taxes"

Joe Anderson CFP® and Big Al Clopine, CPA answer real life investment questions for retirees and pre-retirees. Plus, 10 retirement statistics that might scare you. Joe and Al close the hour with a quiz on taxes - how will you fare? Original publish date May 21, 2016 (hour 2). Note that content may be outdated as rules and regulations have changed. 00:00 - Intro 01:56 - "GoBankingRates.com finds that more than half of Americans have less than $10,000 saved for retirement" 04:55 - "Can I roll over an old 401(k) to fund my child's 529 plan?" 09:05 - "Can I use tax money owed from my IRA to pay credit card debt?" 12:47 - "We want to sell my parents' house and my sister just wants to take over my payments. Do we get any of the money we've already put into the house back?" 18:17 - "If you know a few simple [tax] strategies you can save a lot of taxes in retirement" 19:39 - "Could I convert my IRA to a Roth and use the interest tax credit to reduce my tax liability on a transfer?" 25:28 - "What can we do if my ex-husband is trying to get his 401(k) to cash out from his previous employer but they are refusing to give it to him?" 30:57 - "If you ever get a call from the IRS, hang up and if you think it's valid, then call them yourself to make sure you're actually talking to the IRS" 36:14 - "I hear this all the time – the rich don't pay any taxes – I can tell you, I've been preparing returns for 30 years, that is not true. The rich pay a lot of taxes"

Joe and Big Al cover 15 mistakes even the smartest people make in retirement, courtesy of Go Banking Rates, in YMYW podcast episode 31. These mistakes include: claiming Social Security too early, being too conservative or aggressive with investments and failing to take your required minimum distributions (RMDs). Find out how to make your golden years the most successful they can be. Original publish date May 21, 2016 (hour 1). Note that content may be outdated as rules and regulations have changed. 05:17 - "When you look at the taxation of your retirement income… there are some significant things you can do" 09:40 - "We're talking about mistakes people are making and one of them is not necessarily taking a look at their home when they sell it and understanding the tax law" 11:34 - "If all of your money is in a retirement account, IRA, 401(k), 403(b)s and the like, all of that is going to be taxed at ordinary income rates – the highest of rates. You want to prioritize where you're going to be pulling your money from in retirement" 13:57 - "Another big mistake that people make is that a lot of you are taking Social Security maybe a little too early" 21:14 - "Unfortunately we don't take enough time to do upfront planning" 25:49 - "The truth is, taxes don't stop when your paycheck does; when you start tapping your retirement nest egg it comes with all sorts of new rules and opportunities"

Retirement isn't what it was when your parents left the workforce. In fact, it may not be what it was even a decade ago. In YMYW podcast episode 30, Joe Anderson & Al Clopine, dive into the realities of retirement as they shed light on 10 mistakes to avoid when achieving your retirement goals. They close the hour providing 11 fast facts about Roth IRAs. Original publish date May 14, 2016 (hour 2). Note that content may be outdated as rules and regulations have changed. 00:00 - Intro 05:59 - "You want to have an advisor that can really understand cash flow needs throughout retirement, taxes and how the investments all fit together" 10:14 - "We are living longer, and here are the stats – they're changing rapidly" 17:58 - "Don't fall for these three retirement myths" 19:44 - "Here's probably the biggest myth: you won't have to pay taxes [in retirement]" 21:25 - "Social Security income is tax-free in the state of California" 25:58 - "There are lots of ways to create tax-free income to keep less of your Social Security taxable, but you have to understand what those strategies are" 30:21 - "A spousal IRA works like this: let's say your spouse is working and you're not working or vice versa; as long as there's earned income, the non-working spouse can still contribute to a retirement account"