...providing retirement news snippets from various sources for federal employees, postal employees, seniors, veterans, and people with disabilities who receive Social Security . Your resource for retirement living, investment, employment, health care, and retirement leisure. - Stay Informed!
Title: Paul Ryan's decision to wait until January to retire includes an under-the-radar benefit
Article Snip: "...Ryan, 48, would be able to draw his pension at age 50, since his time as a representative and as a staffer would combine to be roughly 24 years of federal service...Based on the FERS payments formula, Ryan could receive an annual pension payment of $84,930 if he remains on the job until January..."
Reference: www.businessinsider.comTitle: How Much is the Maximum Annuity Supplement?
Article Snip: "...the maximum annuity supplement for retirements in 2018 has been electronically computed for twelve levels of ages and years of service – see..."
Reference: www.fedsmith.comTitle: Are my Social Security benefits taxable?
Article Snip: "...Social Security is generally considered a tax-free benefit, but that is not always the case. Depending on the amount of alternate income that you have in retirement and your filing status, you could owe taxes on up to 85% of your Social Security benefits..."
Reference: www.nbc-2.comTitle: FERS hit list: The usual suspects plus a new twist…
Article Snip: "...If Congress approves, current and future employees under Federal Employees Retirement System (FERS) would get smaller starting annuities when they retire and those pensions would lose all the protection they now enjoy from inflation. Cost-of-living adjustments (COLAs) would be eliminated for FERS retirees and reduced for..."
Reference: federalnewsradio.comTitle: COLAS Now and Maybe Then
Article Snip: "...There’s one big difference between CSRS and FERS when it comes to the payment of COLAs. CSRS retirees receive COLAs regardless of the age at which they retire. With one exception, FERS retirees only begin receiving them when they reach age 62..."
Reference: www.fedweek.comTitle: What You Don't Know (But Should) About Your Thrift Savings Plan
Article Snip: "...You can have both a traditional and Roth TSP at the same time, and there’s an interesting caveat: the government’s matching contributions can only be made into a traditional TSP, so even if you only contribute to a Roth TSP, you will still have both types of accounts (and the added benefit of some tax diversification)..."
Reference: www.forbes.comTitle: January surprise of vanishing Social Security COLA
Article Snip: "...most Medicare beneficiaries will pay $134 per month for Part B, which pays for doctors' fees and outpatient services. That's a $25-per-month increase over the 2017, nearly wiping out the Social Security COLA for many retirees..."
Reference: www.investmentnews.comMore Reading: (From Medicare.gov) If you're in a Medicare Advantage Plan or other Medicare plan, you may have different rules, but your plan must give you at least the same coverage as Original Medicare. Some services may only be covered in certain settings or for patients with certain conditions.
Title: After Tax Cuts, GOP Leaders Turn Buzz Saw to Medicare, Social Security
Article Snip: "...Top officials in the Republican Party have suggested in recent days that they will pursue major entitlement reform following the likely passage of massive tax cuts in the near future. Those officials, House Speaker Paul Ryan (R-WI) and Sen. Marco Rubio (R-FL)..."
Reference: www.thedailybeast.comTitle: USPS Announces Voluntary Early Out Retirement (VERA)
Article Snip: "...This letter was received with no advance notification to the union or negotiations with the APWU over who the VERA applied to and under what conditions. The APWU immediately initiated information requests to USPS management regarding this VERA and demands for bargaining over its scope and impact..."
Reference: www.apwu.orgTitle: The Social Security cost-of-living increase is a cruel fraud
Article Snip: "...Today, it’s not so great. The tiny Social Security increase that will be bestowed on retirees and the elderly in January is a cruel fraud perpetrated by the government. That's because increases in Medicare Part B and Part D insurance premiums will negate all of the Social Security 2% cost of living increase for many recipients. Instead of staying even, we’ll fall behind..."
Reference: www.latimes.comTitle: The 4 Least Tax-Friendly States for Social Security Recipients
Article Snip: "...A second tier was added in 1993 under the Clinton administration that exposed 85% of Social Security benefits to federal taxation for individual earnings above $34,000, and couples filing jointly in excess of $44,000. When first introduced, this tax affected around one out of 10 households. As of 2015, it affected 56%, according to The Senior Citizens League..."
Reference: www.fool.comTitle: Tammy Flanagan: Navigating federal retirement paperwork
Article Snip: "...In the federal government, nothing happens until you fill out a form. That's certainly true of retirement, a topic on quite a few federal minds these days. With a rundown on the paperwork you need to keep in mind, federal retirement expert Tammy Flanagan..."
Reference: www.podcastone.comTitle: 50-something feds dodge TSP tax bullet
Article Snip: "...Federal workers who are 50 and older (and those who aspire to someday reach that it’s-not-as-bad-as-it-sounds age bracket), dodged a big bullet last week in the pending tax bill worked up by the Senate. Sen. Orrin Hatch (R-Utah) proposed, then withdrew language that would have eliminated the..."
Reference: federalnewsradio.comTitle: 2018 Medicare changes will erase Social Security COLAs for many
Article Snip: "...Average Social Security benefits for retired workers will increase $27 per month to $1,404 per month in 2018, up from $1,377 this year. As a result, higher Medicare premiums will virtually wipe out any increase in Social Security benefits for many retirees next year..."
Reference: www.investmentnews.comTitle: Open Season Changes and the Five Year Rule
Article Snip: "...If you have not been covered under FEHB for most of your career, but want to be able to carry it into retirement, you might be planning on enrolling in FEHB five years before the year in which you plan to retire. The coverage must be for a full five years, so you need to be aware of when your FEHB enrollment becomes effective. Many people choose to retire on December 31st, but FEHB coverage is rarely effective on that date..."
Reference: www.fedsmith.comTitle: Get A Bigger Monthly Social Security Check
Article Snip: "...Should you take benefits early at 62? At normal retirement age? Or delay until 70? Here’s how to decide..."
Reference: www.forbes.comTitle: The Advantages of Advance Funeral Planning
Article Snip: "...What you can do to help your heirs? Specify what final arrangements you’d like and make sure your family knows your wishes. Pre-paying for a burial plot may save money in the long run, as you’ll avoid future price increases..."
Reference: www.fedweek.comTitle: 2% COLA for Federal Retirees in 2018
Article Snip: "...COLA for federal annuities is determined in reference to the Consumer Price Index for Urban Wage Earners and Clerical Workers (CPI-W), which is calculated by economists and statisticians with the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS). The CPI-W is the current index used for measuring increases in the prices of consumer goods such as food and beverages, housing, clothing, and gasoline..."
Reference: www.fedsmith.comTitle: Worried about possible retirement changes? 3 pieces of advice from a federal financial planner
Article Snip: "...Yet with roughly 45 percent of current TSP investments in the low-return, low-risk G fund, many federal employees are missing an opportunity to invest more heavily in higher-risk funds that may offer a higher return, Klingler said. “In most cases, investing 100 percent of your money in the G fund is not the best choice,” he said. “When you hear the word ‘risk,’ a lot of people think zero risk is the best. That’s not the case. In most cases, you want to have risk, because with risk, comes reward. You want to have the appropriate level of risk that matches your risk tolerance and your investment time horizon..."
Reference: federalnewsradio.comTitle: 80 Percent Rule for Retirement
Article Snip: "...The “80% Rule” is a good guideline for those a long way from retiring who want to, at a minimum, retain the standard of living they had before retirement. Many financial planners suggest that 80% of your pre-retirement income will give you a retirement standard of living that is substantially similar to your pre-retirement standard of living. This is based on three assumptions: First, you will not be paying payroll taxes (Social Security and Medicare) or making pension contributions (CSRS or FERS). For most federal employees, these mandatory taxes and contributions take 8.45% ..."
Reference: www.fedweek.comeverify Social Security Lock | Protect Yourself From The Foreign Invasion Snippet of Article: "...Self Lock is the unique feature...