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
The IRS will phase out paper refund checks for tax year 2026 — anyone filing without direct deposit on file will wait six extra weeks for their money
The average federal tax refund last filing season topped $3,100. Starting with tax year 2026 returns, filed during the 2027 season, anyone who doesn’t have...
The average 401(k) balance hit a record $168,000 last year — and a record 6% of workers also pulled hardship cash from their accounts, mostly to stop foreclosure
The average 401(k) balance climbed to an all-time high of $168,000 in 2024, according to Fidelity Investments’ quarterly retirement analysis. In the same year, a...
If you sold crypto in 2025, your broker will send a Form 1099-DA in January — the IRS gets a copy, and 125 AI models match every entry automatically
Sometime in February, a tax form you had never seen before likely showed up in your Coinbase, Kraken, or Gemini account. Form 1099-DA, the IRS’s...
The 2027 Social Security COLA forecast jumped a full point in 30 days — at this pace, retirees could see their biggest raise since 1981 next October
A retired postal clerk in Tampa collecting $1,927 a month from Social Security could open her January 2027 check and find an extra $150 or...
Medicare Part B premiums are set to rise again in 2027 — and the same hike pattern that ate $17.90 from 2026’s COLA is locked in for another year
A retired worker collecting the average Social Security benefit will see roughly $55 more per month on paper in 2026. In practice, $17.90 of that...
401(k) plans can now hold private equity for the first time — Trump’s executive order opens $9 trillion in retirement money to assets that don’t trade on public markets
A 35-year-old software engineer in Austin who has never picked a single fund in her 401(k) could soon own a slice of a private equity...
Hardship withdrawals from 401(k) accounts just hit a record — up 252% since COVID, because everyday bills are eating retirement savings
The money was supposed to be for retirement. Instead, it is going to back rent, emergency room copays, and grocery bills that keep climbing. Across...
The 2027 Social Security COLA is now projected at 3.2% to 4.5% — today’s 3.8% inflation and $4.52 gas guarantee it lands at the high end
A retired postal worker in Tampa pulling $1,800 a month from Social Security stands to gain roughly $81 per check starting in January 2027. A...
Social Security’s 2.8% COLA added $56 a month — but with inflation at 3.8% and the 30-year Treasury at 5%, retirees’ fixed-income investments are losing ground too
The $56 raise was supposed to help. When the Social Security Administration announced a 2.8 percent cost-of-living adjustment last October, the bump looked like a...
Social Security’s 2.8% COLA added $56 a month — but with inflation at 3.8% and wholesale prices at 6%, retirees are falling further behind every month
The January raise was supposed to help. Instead, five months later, it is not even close to enough. Social Security’s 2.8% cost-of-living adjustment put an...
Social Security’s 2.8% COLA added $56 a month — but 3.8% inflation means retirees are losing purchasing power faster than the raise covers
Social Security’s 2.8% COLA added $56 a month – but 3.8% inflation means retirees are losing purchasing power faster than the raise covers The 2.8%...
The IRS deployed 125 AI models to flag tax returns this year, up from 54 two years ago — crypto now triggers automatic matching
This spring marks the first time cryptocurrency brokers are required to report your sales directly to the IRS. If you sold Bitcoin, Ethereum, Solana, or...
Social Security’s 2.8% COLA added $56 a month — but today’s 3.8% CPI means retirees are losing purchasing power faster than the raise covers
The extra $57 in January’s Social Security check was supposed to keep retirees even with rising prices. By spring, it was already underwater. Consumer prices...
Social Security’s 2.8% COLA added $56 a month — but the Medicare Part B premium hike swallowed $17.90 of it, leaving retirees with just $38 more
Five months into 2026, the extra money from Social Security’s latest cost-of-living adjustment has had time to settle into retirees’ budgets. For most, the verdict...
Every generation cut 401(k) contributions this year except Gen Z — they raised theirs to 6.2%, and 57% say multiple income streams are now essential
While workers across every other age group quietly dialed back their retirement savings over the past year, Gen Z did the opposite. The youngest full-time...
Social Security’s May checks reflect the full Medicare Part B deduction — retirees who expected a $56 COLA raise are netting $38 after the $203 premium
Social Security’s May checks reflect the full Medicare Part B deduction – retirees who expected a $56 COLA raise are netting $38 after the $203...
New deductions for tips, overtime, and car loan interest took effect under the One Big Beautiful Bill — they apply starting with your 2026 return filed next year
For the first time, a restaurant server’s tips, a factory worker’s overtime pay, and a commuter’s car loan interest can reduce their federal tax bill...
The IRS is phasing out paper refund checks under a new executive order — filers without direct deposit will need a bank account on file by next tax season
If you got your federal tax refund as a paper check last year, that’s almost certainly not going to happen again. Under Executive Order 14247,...
Social Security’s 2.8% COLA added $56 a month — but Medicare’s Part B premium hike swallowed $17.90 of it, and retirees on fixed incomes are netting just $38 more
Every January, millions of retirees open their bank statements hoping to see the full effect of Social Security’s annual cost-of-living adjustment. In January 2026, the...
Gen Z is the only generation still increasing 401(k) contributions — they bumped theirs to 6.2% while boomers, millennials, and Gen X all pulled back for the first time in 3 years
A 25-year-old earning $50,000 is now putting roughly $3,100 a year into a retirement account. That figure, on its own, is easy to dismiss. But...