IRA & Retirement Planning Mistakes: Don't Fall Victim to Bad IRA and Retirement Plan Advice

By Bessie D. Burton


Most of us work tirelessly to earn a good profit and invest for our retirement planning. We all know that it is always an advantage to prepare for tomorrow. There are no limitations in how much we could invest for the security and pleasure of our non working days later on. Retirement is one of the most important moments in our lives that we are all destined to face. Nobody can tell us that we are too young to start planning since most people know that the earlier we begin, the more we can save. It is better to invest more than having just enough since we do not know what will happen in the future.

There are a few things to consider when you are planning for old age. You have to reach a decision with regard to the income you will need in order to live a comfortable life as a retiree. You should take into account the medical expenses and vacations that you will have while reducing costs such as your child's education and rental fees if you own a house at the same time. You should also determine the amount you need to regularly save at this very moment in order to reach your goal. In case you do not have enough yet, you can start small with what you have at the moment. It will also benefit you to select the plan that will help you achieve your requirements. Also, it is advisable for you to invest a certain amount of money on a monthly basis in order to enjoy a healthy life as a retiree. Lastly, start saving money now. This will be one of the best suggestions that you will ever get in your life.

It would be a waste someday during our non working days to live a life that we cannot enjoy because we don't have enough savings. We all know how hard and tedious it is to work tirelessly. We need to have a vision of ourselves harvesting the fruits of our labors. Having a pleasurable vision of our retired selves on how we will live our lives someday could help us pursue and endure our tasks. If we think of it thoroughly, it's not only us that would benefit from succeeding the plan, most especially our children. All we need are inspirations that would give reachable advantages to us.

Another time, a 55 year old retires from his company with a million dollars in a retirement plan. The advisor recommends using an IRC Code 72(t) election for the entire million dollars. Only a fraction of that money was needed for cash flow between ages 55 and 59. The result of the faulty advice was unnecessary massive acceleration of income taxes between ages 55 and 59. The appropriate response would have been to make an IRC 72(t) election for part of the IRA, not all of it.

Retirement Planning is a Family Affair.Even if one spouse normally takes care of the retirement investments both need to be in a position to take charge of them. This means both spouses need basic information that can let them take over the investments and funds at a moments' notice. This information includes:The names and contact information for all of the professionals used including retirement planners, financial advisors, insurance agents, brokers, accountants, tax preparers and attorneys.

If you are a client looking for an advisor and you have a significant IRA, I would suggest that you learn something about IRAs by reading a book by one of the authors mentioned above or conducting some other research. At a minimum, ask an advisor what expertise they have in IRAs and retirement plans. If the advisor's answer is, "What do you want to know?" I would repeat the question, "What expertise do you have in IRAs and retirement plans?" If they provide some vague information, ask them what books they have read, seminars they have attended, or can they show you any credentials that would certify their expertise in the IRA or retirement planning area.Lack of expertise in the IRA and retirement plan area could, in many cases, be of more consequence than an advisor's ability to pick the appropriate investments.Expert advice is particularly important during life's significant transitions such as retirement and planning for your estate. Incidentally, important transitions are also a great time to have money transferred to a new money manager, one who hopefully is competent with IRA and retirement plan issues.

You turn 50, what's the big deal? It's just a number right? Perhaps, but when you go to your mailbox and you find that retirement association envelope inviting you to join their club and enjoy discounts only reserved for, well, those in their declining years. It's a rude awakening; a kick the gut.If this sounds familiar, don't despair, you're in good company. Thousands are waking up to this reality every day. So what do you do now? Well, for starters, make darn sure that you have a good plan for getting to retirement with a decent nest egg to be able to enjoy your golden years. For those of you that need the professional help of a retirement planner, this article is for you. Everyone else, take a look at my other article titled "The "do it yourself" retirement planner".

Of course, the financial advisor can indeed advise against it, but there is no way they can stop the individual from making a stupid decision or investing in a bad financial vehicle. It happens all the time. Worse, often these folks get themselves into trouble, lose a huge amount of their money, and then they call a financial advisor to help them fix everything. Unfortunately, often it becomes too late, and they just don't have enough money in their nest egg to retire on schedule or live comfortably in that retirement.If they only have a little bit of money left over after a bad financial hit, often the financial consultant doesn't even want to deal with them because the cost of compliance in taking on a new client is just too great, and there's not enough commission or fees to make it worth their while. Be sure to be honest with your strategic retirement planning expert. Indeed I hope you will please consider all this and think on.




About the Author:



No comments:

Post a Comment