Retiring Today

Do you have more questions about retirement? Schedule your 15 Minute Retirement Check-Up Call to talk with a retirement planner at ⁠MerkleRetire.com⁠ We are answering your most frequently asked Medicare questions with our Medicare Director AnnaMarie Morrow. From question to question - you asked – we answered. AnnaMarie Morrow, Director of Medicare Molly Nelson, Host of Retiring Today Jack Henry, Producer of Retiring Today

Do you have more questions about retirement? Schedule your 15 Minute Retirement Check-Up Call to talk with a retirement planner at ⁠MerkleRetire.com⁠ You have to rethink the way you look at mutual funds as you get closer to retirement. What’s worked during the working years – may not cut it anymore. Find out the pros, cons, and alternatives to mutual funds. Haley Gutschenritter, CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER™ Molly Nelson, Host of Retiring Today Richelle Smith, Producer of Retiring Today

Do you find yourself spending more time daydreaming about hanging out with grandkids, relaxing by the beach or doing your favorite hobbies and less time on getting up each day to go to work? If you've got the itch to trade your career in for fishing, volunteering or other fun then it may be time to retire. In this episode of Retiring Today, we talk you step-by-step through the move after you decide it's time to retire. 

We're often taught to use benchmarks to measure the success of our investment performance but as an industry we don't provide a lot of education around index construction. In this episode of Retiring Today, we talk about benchmark performance vs retirement performance. 

Contrary to what we're often told, our product is not the plan. A retirement plan does include investments but the comprehensive customized plan incorporates a lot of other moving parts. In this never heard before podcast, Loren and Molly will be discussing the junk drawer of investments and the best way to organize them. 

Retirement can be scary for some. With so many unknowns and unpredictable aspects, it's understandable you can feel scared at times. In this episode of Retiring Today, we breakdown some of the most common scares that may haunt people and how you can fight back with a retirement plan to help you achieve the retirement of your dreams.

Market hate uncertainty. Election years always bring some uncertainty to the table as candidates from different viewpoints campaign and discuss potential policy changes. There's even MORE uncertainty with 2020 - elections, COVID and the consequent economic fallout, employment and education unknowns and whatever else 2020 wants to throw at us. In this episode of Retiring Today, Retirement Income Certified Professional®, Abby Huntrods, joins us in the podcast booth to talk how politics can play a big role in your retirement.  Show Notes: We Looked At How The Stock Market Performed Under Every U.S. President Since Truman - And The Results Will Surprise You

Health care is a HUGE part of the overall retirement planning equation. From electing the Medicare options that are right for you to when is the best time to elect Medicare, there are a lot of questions that can come up. In this episode of Retiring Today, we uncover some of the mysteries, misconceptions and common questions about Medicare and supplemental plans with the Director of Medicare at Merkle Retirement Planning, AnnaMarie Morrow. 

Most people think of tax season as January through April but as the end of the year draws near the window of opportunity for tax planning in 2020 is closing. When it comes to retirement, taxes are one of the biggest wealth eroding factors but if you implement a proactive tax plan you can control some of that future tax risk. During your working years there's much less you can do to control/limit your tax liability from year to year. When we talk about implementing a tax plan, we're focused on how to be most tax-efficient over your lifetime rather than saving the most tax today which historically has been the most common school of thought. In this episode of Retiring Today, we're going to be talking about some strategies to consider and information to gather prior to the December 31st deadline.

What would you do if you won the lottery tomorrow? How would your life change? It may seem glamorous to win the lottery or dream of a giant lump sum of money but the reality is, people who win the lottery are typically not accustomed to handling large sums of money given to them immediately and a whole host of problems can arise. The same logic can apply to those people who inherit large sums of money from friends or family members. In this episode of Retiring Today, we will cover how to keep your loved ones from Sudden Wealth Syndrome.  Show Notes: 20 Lottery Winners that Lost Every Penny

The old rule of thumb used to be that you needed $1 million to retire. Now, there are many in the industry who think you need $3 million to retire. If you didn't start planning for your retirement in your 20's or 30's, you are looking at $3,720 to $8,493 a month that you need to aside for retirement. In this episode of Retiring Today, Abby Huntrods and Chawn Honkomp explore the idea of how much you need to save for retirement and if $3 million is really the new $1 million.  Show Notes: Retirement dreams: $3 million is the new $1 million

We often say retirement has changed over the years - today's retirees don't experience retirement the same way that Americans in retirement did in 1950. WWII had ended, the economy was booming and the baby boomer generation was born. Now, many of those people born during the 1950s are getting ready to retire or have already retired. In this episode of Retiring Today, we discuss how much retirement has changed between then and now. 

Next up in our Superhero series is the topic of Life Insurance. It is a topic that top of mind for a lot of people due to the Coronavirus pandemic landscape we are currently in. In this episode of Retiring Today, we will cover how life insurance can be sued in your retirement plan to create tax-free wealth for your loved ones, cover long-term care and also could be an income source.  Show Notes: FAQs About Insurance Claims Amid Coronavirus Pandemic

Social Security is the backbone of your retirement. It can lay a great foundation for your income but should not be used as your only source of retirement income. In today's episode of Retiring Today, we are breaking down some of the top Social Security myths we hear from families and individuals as they prepare for retirement. 

The Required Minimum Distribution (RMD) age has changed! In December of 2019, a major piece of legislation was passed and lots of changes came with it. How does the RMD age change from 70.5 to 72 in the SECURE Act going to affect your retirement? Tune into this week's episode of Retiring Today. 

Next up in our Retirement Superhero Series is the Non-Qualified Account - an option that can supercharge your retirement and diversify your portfolio. In this episode of Retiring Today, Chawn Honkomp and Abby Huntrods take over the podcast booth discussing the ways this superhero can help you meet your retirement vision. 

Retirement has changed over time and the changes come in all forms. From corporate trends focusing pensions to go away to legislative changes, it can be hard to navigate what you should focus on in your retirement. In today's episode of Retiring Today with Loren Merkle, we will be discuss retirement law changes, new investing options, and strategies to protect your legacy. Articles Referenced in the Show: Life in Retirement: The 1950s vs. Today How retirement has changed in the last 30 years

Worried about having enough money for your retirement? Income is the foundation of any retirement. It impacts almost all the decisions you make before retirement and in retirement. It also is the number one concern for pre-retirees. In today's episode of Retiring Today, we will explore the creation of retirement income and how to make it creatively customized for you and your retirement needs. 

We've talked a lot about the Roth IRA and how powerful it can be in your retirement plan. Over the past few months, we've been working with our families to initiate Roth Conversions as we've experience unprecedented marketing volatility. In this episode of Retiring Today, Director of Medicare, AnnaMarie Morrow, join the team to talk about how Roth Conversions can affect your overall retirement plan.

A powerful savings vehicle is the superhero of this episode of Retiring Today. The HSA is a superhero due to its health care benefits and tax savings. Director of Health Care, AnnaMarie Morrow, joins Loren Merkle, Molly Nelson, and Richelle Smith in the Retiring Today Podcast booth to discuss this powerful superhero.