Retirement & Taxes
Long-term financial planning, retirement accounts, government benefits, tax law, and IRS rules. Covers the intersection of policy and personal finance that affects how people save, invest, and plan ahead.
Latest in Retirement & Taxes
Medicare Savings Programs can cover your entire monthly Part B premium if your income qualifies
Millions of Americans on Medicare lose hundreds of dollars each month to Part B premiums even though a federal program exists to eliminate that cost...
A donor-advised fund lets you bunch several years of charitable giving into one bigger deduction
Taxpayers who give to charity every year but never clear the standard deduction threshold face a familiar frustration: their donations produce zero tax benefit. A...
About 19.2% of 401(k) savers now carry a loan against their own account
Nearly one in five workers with a 401(k) plan now owe money against their own retirement savings, a ratio that signals growing financial pressure on...
The typical retiree’s 2026 raise shrank to about $35 a month — the Medicare premium ate the rest
Most of the 66 million Americans who collect Social Security will see their January 2026 checks grow by about $57 a month, the result of...
The average tax refund climbed to $3,462 this year, up $346 from last spring
Tens of millions of American taxpayers are collecting bigger refund checks this spring, with the average payout climbing to $3,462 through early April 2026, an...
Anyone born in 1960 reaches Social Security’s full retirement age of 67 this November
Americans born in November 1960 will turn 67 this fall, completing a four-decade phase-in of a higher retirement threshold set by Congress in 1983. For...
Inherited IRAs must usually be fully emptied within 10 years under current law
Millions of Americans who inherited retirement accounts from family members who died after 2019 face a hard deadline: drain every dollar from the account within...
Extra Help can wipe out most Part D drug costs for lower-income seniors, yet many never apply
Millions of lower-income Medicare beneficiaries qualify for a federal program that can eliminate most of their prescription drug costs, yet they have never filed an...
The average 401(k) balance slid 4% to $141,000 after this year’s market swings
Millions of American workers opened their first-quarter 2026 retirement statements to find smaller numbers. The average 401(k) balance dropped roughly 4% to $141,000 after a...
A qualified longevity annuity lets you delay some required withdrawals and lock in income at 80
Retirees who turn 73 and face their first required minimum distributions now have a concrete way to shrink those forced withdrawals: move up to $200,000...
Keeping three to five years of spending in bonds lets retirees ride out a stock-market slump
Retirees who depend on portfolio withdrawals face a direct threat when stock prices fall sharply in the first years after they stop working. The risk,...
Workers who stay on the job past 73 can delay required withdrawals from that employer’s 401(k)
Americans who keep working past age 73 have a tax advantage hiding in plain sight: they can postpone required minimum distributions from their current employer’s...
$615 is Medicare’s new Part D drug deductible for 2026, up from $590
Medicare beneficiaries filling prescriptions in 2026 will face a higher upfront cost before their drug coverage kicks in. The standard Part D deductible rises to...
Social Security’s taxable wage cap rose to $184,500 for higher earners this year
Higher-earning workers in the United States will see a larger slice of their paychecks subject to Social Security payroll taxes starting this year. The taxable...
Rolling an old 401(k) into an IRA can cut fees and unlock far more investment choices
Workers who leave a former employer’s 401(k) plan untouched often pay higher fees and accept a narrower menu of investments than they would in an...
A free IRS Identity Protection PIN blocks crooks from filing a tax return under your Social Security number
Anyone with a Social Security number or Individual Taxpayer Identification Number can now request a free six-digit code from the IRS that stops fraudsters from...
High earners pay a bonus Medicare surcharge based on income two years back
Medicare beneficiaries with higher incomes are paying hundreds or even thousands of dollars more per year in Part B and Part D premiums, and the...
$2,000 in cash donations now cuts your tax bill even if you skip itemizing
Married couples who take the standard deduction can now trim their federal tax bill by up to $2,000 simply by giving cash to charity, a...
Social Security will now waive an overpayment of $2,000 or less without a drawn-out fight
Millions of Social Security beneficiaries who receive overpayment notices for small amounts will no longer need to file formal paperwork or prove financial hardship to...
Itemizers can now deduct charitable gifts only above 0.5% of their income, a new 2026 catch
Millions of taxpayers who itemize deductions on their federal returns will lose the ability to write off smaller charitable gifts starting with their 2026 filings....