Retirement Planning
401(k), IRA, Roth accounts, pension plans, withdrawal strategies, required minimum distributions, and how much you need to retire.
Latest in Retirement Planning
About $2.1 trillion sits in nearly 32 million forgotten 401(k) accounts
Roughly $2.1 trillion in retirement savings sits in about 31.9 million 401(k) accounts whose owners have walked away from them. That money was not lost...
Retirement savers set a record, putting away 14.4% of pay into their 401(k)s
American workers funneled a record share of their paychecks into workplace retirement plans in early 2026, with the combined 401(k) savings rate reaching 14.4% —...
A pension’s survivor option decides whether your spouse keeps getting checks after you die
One decision at the moment a pension starts paying can quietly determine whether a surviving spouse keeps receiving income or watches it stop at the...
A health savings account is the only account with three tax breaks, and 55-and-older savers can add an extra $1,000
A health savings account carries a tax advantage no other account can match: money goes in tax-deductible, grows tax-free, and comes out tax-free when spent...
After a spouse dies, the survivor can get hit with a “widow’s penalty” of higher taxes on a single return
The first tax year after a married retiree loses a spouse often brings an unwelcome surprise: the household’s income has barely moved, yet the federal...
Qualified charitable distributions let those 70½ and older give from an IRA and cut their tax bill
Retirees who have reached age 70½ can send money straight from a traditional IRA to charity and keep that amount off their taxable income entirely,...
A Roth IRA lets retirees withdraw money tax-free and skips required withdrawals for life
A Roth IRA gives retirees two advantages that no traditional retirement account matches at once: withdrawals that come out entirely tax-free when the rules are...
Starting in 2027 the government will deposit up to $1,000 a year into low- and middle-income savers’ retirement accounts
Beginning in 2027, the federal government will start depositing money directly into the retirement accounts of lower- and middle-income savers, matching up to $1,000 a...
Nursing-home Medicaid lets a stay-at-home spouse keep up to $162,660 in assets in 2026 without disqualifying their partner.
When one spouse enters a nursing home and turns to Medicaid to pay for it, the couple’s savings do not have to be spent down...
Rolling a 401(k) straight into an IRA avoids the automatic 20% withholding.
A worker who cashes a 401(k) into a personal check rather than moving it directly to a new account loses 20% of the balance to...
401(k) hardship withdrawals hit a record 6% of savers in 2025, most to head off a foreclosure or eviction.
Six percent of workers enrolled in Vanguard 401(k) plans pulled a hardship withdrawal in 2025, the highest share the firm has ever recorded and up...
Many inherited IRAs must be emptied within 10 years, even when annual withdrawals also apply
“Ten-year rule” sounds like permission to wait, but for many inherited IRAs it describes only the outside boundary. A nonspouse beneficiary may have to empty...
Roth 401(k) owners no longer face lifetime required minimum distributions
Roth money inside a workplace plan no longer comes with an age-driven withdrawal order for the original owner. That change gives a Roth 401(k) something...
Delaying a first required minimum distribution can force two taxable withdrawals into one year
The first required minimum distribution comes with a one-time April 1 extension, but using it does not move the next December 31 deadline. That overlap...
IRA contribution limits rose to $7,500 for 2026, plus a $1,100 catch-up after 50
The 2026 IRA increase creates $8,600 of contribution room for someone at least 50 by year-end, but that room is shared across traditional and Roth...
Workers ages 60 to 63 can make an $11,250 retirement-plan catch-up contribution in 2026
A four-year window now allows many workplace-plan participants to add $11,250 beyond the regular 2026 deferral limit, creating the largest catch-up just before traditional retirement...
Workers 50 and older whose 2025 pay topped $150,000 must now make 401(k) catch-up contributions in a Roth, with after-tax dollars.
Starting in 2026, workers age 50 and older who earned more than the inflation-indexed $145,000 threshold in the prior year will lose the option to...
A 10-year fixed annuity now pays as much as 7.65%.
Retirees hunting for guaranteed income can now find 10-year fixed annuity quotes advertising rates as high as 7.65 percent, a figure that would have seemed...
Companies are mailing retirees lump-sum pension buyout offers with 30-to-60-day windows.
Retirees across the country are receiving letters from former employers offering a one-time lump sum to replace their monthly pension checks, and the clock to...
$25,000 is the projected 2027 401(k) limit, with $11,750 more for savers aged 60 to 63.
Workers approaching retirement just got a clearer picture of how much they can stash away in the next two years. The 401(k) elective deferral limit...