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 negotiated prices on 10 of its costliest drugs for the first time — seniors on some will pay less than half, and insulin is capped at $35
A Medicare enrollee filling a monthly prescription for Eliquis, one of the most commonly prescribed blood thinners in the country, has been paying a price...
The tax break on home-sale profits hasn’t risen since 1997 — and now a growing share of ordinary sellers owe capital gains tax just for selling their own house
A couple in Denver who bought their house for $180,000 in 1998 could sell it for north of $650,000 today, based on Colorado’s FHFA House...
A family can now shield $8,750 a year from taxes in a health savings account — and after age 65 it works like a second 401(k) most workers never open
The 2026 health savings account limits are now in effect, and for the first time, a family on a high-deductible health plan can contribute up...
Student loan forgiveness is taxable again in 2026 — borrowers who finally get their debt erased could owe the IRS thousands on “income” they never actually received
Imagine making student loan payments for 20 years, watching your balance barely budge, and finally reaching the finish line where the federal government promises to...
Insurers are about to drop nearly 3 million seniors from Medicare Advantage plans — the first enrollment decline since 2010, even as average premiums fall to $14
For 15 consecutive years, Medicare Advantage enrollment moved in only one direction: up. Every year since 2010, more seniors chose the privately run alternative to...
High earners will pay up to $649 a month for Medicare Part B this year — more than triple the standard $202.90, thanks to income surcharges most retirees never expect
Picture a retired corporate vice president opening her first Medicare billing notice. She expected to pay $202.90 a month for Part B, the same figure...
High earners lost a 401(k) tax break this year — anyone making over $145,000 must now put their catch-up contributions in a Roth, paying the tax upfront instead of later
A 55-year-old project manager earning $160,000 just saw her paycheck shrink, and she did not get a pay cut. Starting in 2025, a provision of...
Social Security’s retirement trust fund now runs dry in 2032, a year sooner than expected — and without a fix, every check gets cut about 24% automatically
If nothing changes, a retiree collecting the average Social Security check of roughly $1,976 a month will see that payment drop to about $1,502 before...
A Senate bill would make every dollar earned above $400,000 pay into Social Security — enough to close most of the shortfall without cutting a single retiree’s check
A worker earning $176,100 this year pays Social Security tax on every cent of that income. A CEO earning $5 million pays the same flat...
A new Social Security rule just boosted benefits for some widows and divorced spouses — many now qualify for hundreds more a month they don’t know to claim
A retired teacher in Texas who spent 30 years in a state pension system logged into her Social Security account last spring and saw something...
Full retirement age officially hit 67 this year — and anyone born in 1960 who claims at 62 will lose 30% of their Social Security check for life
If you were born in 1960, you are part of a group that holds a distinction no previous generation of American retirees can claim: your...
401(k) millionaires just hit a record 665,000 as the market climbs — yet half of American workers have less than $45,000 saved for retirement
Somewhere in America, 665,000 people have crossed the million-dollar mark in their 401(k) accounts. That is the highest number Fidelity Investments has ever recorded, based...
Waiting until 70 to claim Social Security now pays up to $5,181 a month — about $1,000 more than the $4,152 that same worker gets at full retirement age
The Social Security Administration’s 2026 benefit tables spell out a gap that is hard to ignore: a maximum-earning worker who files at 70 collects $5,181...
Starting in 2027, the government will deposit up to $1,000 a year straight into the retirement accounts of low- and middle-income savers — free money most don’t know is coming
Imagine putting $2,000 into your Roth IRA this year and finding an extra $1,000 from the federal government sitting in the same account a few...
401(k) catch-up contributions jump to $11,250 for workers aged 60 to 63 this year — a new “super catch-up” most eligible savers don’t even know exists
Turn 60, 61, 62, or 63 at any point this year and the IRS lets you contribute up to $11,250 in catch-up money to your...
The standard deduction climbed to $32,200 for married couples this year — but the new senior bonus deduction is the break most retirees are leaving on the table
Married couples filing jointly for tax year 2026 will claim a record standard deduction of $32,200, thanks to the latest round of inflation adjustments the...
Social Security’s 2027 raise is now projected at 3.9% — about $81 more a month for the average retiree, the biggest cost-of-living bump since 2023
For millions of retirees who have watched their Social Security raises shrink for three straight years, the first inflation reading of the 2027 adjustment cycle...
53 million Americans claimed Trump’s new no-tax-on-tips and overtime breaks this spring — pushing the average refund up $340 to $3,462
When the IRS began processing returns for the spring 2026 filing season, something unusual showed up in the numbers almost immediately: refunds were running significantly...
Medicare starts covering Wegovy and Zepbound for $50 a month on July 1 — the same drugs that cost up to $699 at the pharmacy today
A month’s supply of Wegovy costs roughly $1,350 at list price. A month’s supply of Zepbound runs about $1,060. Even with insurance negotiations and manufacturer...
The IRS’s new crypto tax form leaves out one number — and it could make the agency think you owe thousands more than you actually do
Say you bought $14,000 worth of Bitcoin, sold it for $15,000, and owed tax on the $1,000 profit. Simple enough. Now imagine the IRS received...