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
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...
A multi-year fixed annuity locks in a set payout, but surrender charges tie up the cash early
Buyers of multi-year guaranteed annuities, or MYGAs, accept a fixed payout rate in exchange for locking up their money, often for six to ten years...
Retirement savers hit a record in early 2026, putting 14.4% of their pay into 401(k)s
American workers are saving for retirement at the highest rate on record, directing an average of 14.4% of their pay into 401(k) plans in early...
Choosing the larger single-life pension payout can leave a surviving spouse with nothing
A married retiree who picks the larger single-life pension check each month locks in a benefit that stops the day they die, leaving a surviving...
Workers 60 to 63 can put an extra $11,250 into a 401(k) this year
Americans turning 60, 61, 62, or 63 this year gained access to a significantly larger 401(k) catch-up contribution limit, allowing them to set aside an...
After 70 and a half, you can route IRA money to charity tax-free and satisfy your required withdrawal
Retirees who have passed age 70 and a half hold a tool that can simultaneously satisfy their required IRA withdrawal and eliminate the tax bill...
A surviving spouse can roll an inherited IRA into their own and delay withdrawals, an option other heirs no longer get
Surviving spouses who inherit an IRA can roll it into their own account and follow their personal required minimum distribution schedule, a privilege that most...