Money, Wealth & Power—A Daily Look at the Financial World
Social Security faces a convergence of financial pressures heading into 2026 that could accelerate the program’s already deteriorating fiscal outlook. Three distinct forces, a rising cost-of-living adjustment, the fallout from a major benefit expansion law, and a trust fund depletion timeline that just moved closer, are combining in ways that demand attention from anyone counting…
The Social Security system just moved one year closer to an automatic benefit cut that would shrink retirement checks for tens of millions of Americans. The 2025 Trustees Report, released on June 18, 2025, projects that the combined Old-Age and Survivors Insurance and Disability Insurance trust funds will run out of reserves by 2034, at…
The Working Families Tax Cuts package, promoted by House Ways and Means Chairman Jason Smith as delivering “No Tax on Social Security,” actually creates a temporary $6,000 deduction rather than eliminating taxes on benefits. That gap between the political branding and the statute’s fine print carries a real cost: income taxes paid on Social Security…
Warren Buffett’s decision to step down from Berkshire Hathaway at the end of 2025 carries a message that extends well beyond corporate succession. For anyone within a few years of retirement, the combination of Berkshire’s disclosed financial risks and Buffett’s own defensive cash positioning amounts to the clearest caution he has ever issued about the…
Millions of Americans reach their mid 60s with little or no money in retirement accounts, yet they still manage to leave full‑time work. The reason is simple: Social Security checks arrive every month whether or not someone ever built a large nest egg. The harder question is whether relying mainly on that check is sustainable…
The window for converting a traditional IRA to a Roth IRA at current tax rates is narrowing, and the stakes are climbing. Final regulations from the Treasury and IRS now confirm that mandatory Roth catch-up contributions will apply to taxable years beginning after December 31, 2026, which means higher earners over 50 will soon face…
Missing a required minimum distribution from your retirement account can trigger a 25% penalty, a costly mistake that catches thousands of retirees off guard each year according to IRS enforcement data. Three major RMD rule changes take effect in 2026 that fundamentally alter when you must start withdrawals, which accounts require them, and how inherited…
Market volatility has surged in recent months, leaving the 60 million Americans who hold 401(k) accounts according to Department of Labor data wondering whether their retirement savings can weather another potential downturn. With the Leading Economic Index declining for six consecutive months and unemployment metrics approaching recession thresholds, I’ve identified five critical warning signs that…
Some Americans are opening their banking apps in 2025 to find a Social Security deposit they did not expect. The Social Security Administration is rolling out a retroactive lump sum program that reaches back to benefit increases that should have started in January 2024, with more than $7.5 billion already distributed to 1 million people…
Retirees are staring at a strange mix of wanderlust and worry: bucket list dreams on one side, inflation headlines on the other. Yet right now, some key travel costs are unusually favorable, from January 2026 gas prices at $2.81 per gallon to a limited Amtrak rail pass sale at $250, which opens the door to…