Money, Wealth & Power—A Daily Look at the Financial World
Retirement over the next decade will be shaped less by market drama and more by slow, grinding arithmetic. Health care costs are projected to reach a lifetime price tag near $1 million for many couples, even as inflation quietly erodes the buying power of fixed incomes. Layer on the prospect of a roughly 24% Social…
Suze Orman built her reputation on clear, memorable rules of thumb, and for years the 4% withdrawal guideline sat near the center of mainstream retirement advice. Now she is publicly distancing herself from that benchmark, calling it “very dangerous” in the current environment and urging retirees to rethink how they tap their nest eggs. Her…
Dividend checks look like the perfect retirement paycheck, arriving on schedule without the stress of selling shares. Yet for a growing slice of retirees, those “safe” payouts are quietly springing a brutal tax trap, inflating Medicare premiums and turning once tax‑favored income into a trigger for higher bills. The problem is not that dividends are…
Mark Cuban is sounding an alarm about Social Security that goes far beyond partisan sniping. He argues that recent moves to close field offices, lean on online tools and tighten identity checks are not just bureaucratic tweaks, but a quiet way to make it harder for seniors to actually receive the benefits they have earned….
By 60, the retirement finish line is finally in sight, but the numbers on many 401(k) statements do not match the glossy brochure version of retirement. Data from Empower, reported in mid‑2025, shows an average balance for people in their 60s of $568,040 in a 401(k), yet the typical saver sits much lower, with a…
For retirees, an annuity can look like the financial equivalent of a guaranteed paycheck, trading a lump sum today for income that lasts as long as you do. The catch is that the value of that trade changes dramatically with age, and at some point the math tilts against new buyers. The real question is…
President Donald Trump has put an unlikely country at the center of America’s retirement debate, pointing to Australia’s mandatory 12% “superannuation” contributions as a possible template for reshaping how workers save. If that idea ever moves from talking point to policy, it could collide with, and potentially transform, the familiar 401(k) that anchors so many…
For many families, an inherited IRA looks like a windfall until the tax bill arrives. The 10‑year payout rule, layered with new required minimum distribution obligations, can quietly push beneficiaries into sharply higher brackets if they wait too long to act. I want to walk through how that trap works and how to sidestep it…
Retirees are rushing to claim Social Security earlier than they once did, and the cost of that anxiety is measured in permanently smaller checks. AARP is warning that fear-driven timing, not just financial need, is quietly stripping older Americans of thousands of dollars in lifetime benefits. The stakes are especially high for those who live…
Roth conversions have become a favorite move for high earners who want tax-free income in retirement, but new research shows many investors are misjudging when the math actually works. Instead of focusing on future tax hikes or gut feelings, the firm behind the analysis is calling out one costly mistake and laying out a surprisingly…