There are some serious doubts among baby boomers that their heirs can handle money properly.  Daily finance says : “Many wealthy Baby Boomers who started out with modest means want their children to have the same incentive to work hard and struggle for their financial prosperity, rather than having it handed to them. Moreover, a large fraction of Boomers believe their offspring don’t know how to handle money — an opinion which might lead them to conclude their children also lacked the wherewithal to handle a large inheritance.  Research bears out those concerns. Figures from The Williams Group estimate that barely a third of families are able to maintain control of their wealth through the second generation, and only one third of that third manage to keep third-generation control.”

Think about putting your monies into a trust if this is a concern for you.  We can use something like an annuity to pay it out slowly over time as to not overwhelm them at a young age.

When should I roll over?

If the distribution from the qualified plan or IRA is paid to you, you have 60 days from the date of receipt to roll it over to another qualified plan or IRA. The IRS may waive the 60-day rollover requirement in certain situations.

One-year waiting period for IRA rollovers: If you make a tax-free rollover of a distribution from an IRA, you generally cannot make another rollover from the same IRA within a one-year period. You also cannot make a rollover from the IRA to which the distribution was rolled over.

Will taxes be withheld from my distribution?

IRAs: IRA distributions paid to you are subject to 10% withholding unless you elect out of withholding or choose to have a different amount withheld. Withholding does not apply if the distribution is paid directly to another IRA trustee.

Retirement plans: A retirement plan distribution paid to you is subject to mandatory withholding of 20%, even if you intend to roll it over later. Withholding does not apply if you roll over the amount directly to another retirement account. A distribution sent to you in the form of a check payable to the receiving plan or IRA is not subject to withholding.

Which retirement accounts can accept rollovers?

You can roll your money into almost any type of retirement plan or IRA. See the Rollover Chart for options.

Why should I roll over?

When you roll over a retirement plan distribution, you generally don’t have to pay tax on it until you withdraw it from the new plan. By rolling over, you are saving for your future and your money continues to grow tax-free.

If you don’t roll over your distribution, you will pay tax on the amount received (other than qualified Roth distributions) and possibly an additional tax on early distributions.

Now for the consumers and financial advisors that have ever “googled” a word or phrase with the word annuity in it, you have probably seen many of the advertisements that pop up right above and beside the true organic content on the first page of the search engine.  From what we have heard from consumers, many of you don’t understand the difference between paid and organic search and how it all works and interacts with your search.  Well the Annuity Gator did a great job explaining exactly how these sites make money, the pros and the cons of each paid search annuity site, and more.

Check out his blog, “An Independent Review of Popular Annuity Websites” by clicking the picture below.

This is where a possible diversification could benefit while you’re up there, and the proper advice form a financial planner is imperative.  If you are with a guy or gal who tell you to ride the wave while it’s good, and we’ll make a move to something safer when we feel like we’ve peaked, may not be looking out for you.  I’m not saying that is wrong, but if you are more of a safe person than a risky one, re-allocation might be something to look into or suggest to your planner.

You may want to look into something less risky with no downside for a portion of your money. Especially if it is to be used for your retirement.  Remember when the joke was that my 401K became my 201K?

And regardless of your political affiliation, your love or hatred of the government, or your views on the country’s leadership, getting the absolute most of your retirement dollars out of the government’s hands and back into your retirement should be at the top of every baby boomer’s agenda in America.

We are entering a period where more people (in both true numbers and as a percentage) will be hitting retirement age than at any other time in American history. And to top it off, this boomer group as a whole is nowhere close to being prepared to have their money last as long as they do. Retiring early and a lifetime retirement income seem like a unreal fantasy to most baby boomers these days.

To add even more pressure to this scenario, the government has racked up massive debts that have far exceeded anything any country in the world has seen before (in true debt numbers). And unfortunately for the current administration, they are being forced (and will be forced to make many more over the coming years) to make some very unpopular tax changes to account for these two forces coinciding at the same time. This should come to no surprise as we have been building these debts up over the last 10 years. Of course, the majority of the debt is a result of the 2008 financial crash that we continue to paper over.

Some of you might have even seen the recent announcement made by the current administration that they are capping the amount the super wealthy can have in their IRA’s at $3 million.

If you think that these upcoming changes will only affect the super-rich, then you couldn’t be farther from the truth. They are just doing the only logical thing by starting the tax changes at the top and then moving their way down into the middle class next. At some point they will most likely have to slowly take away many of the welfare rewards that are place for the less fortunate.

This retirement and debt crisis combo is so huge it will certainly affect and impact every American both rich and poor.

The great news is that there exists a handful of 100% legal means to both protect your hard earned retirement dollars from the government, while at the same time creating a contractual lifetime income.

Download the full PDF “How To Save Your Retirement From The Government” and find out the Secrets to Stress-Free Retirement Income

Watch the video on Youtube by clicking retirement plan

Will you have enough money?  Will your health hold up?  Will you grow bored in retirement?  Will you lose your independence?  Will you be lonely?

By thinking about these types of issues prior to retirement you can plan on preventing them.

Using annuities with guaranteed income benefits will help prevent you from running out of money.  Exercising and eating healthy will help prevent health related issues.  Take up hobbies that can be done even at an elder age that will occupy your time and prevent boredom.  By using annuities to provide an income stream you cannot outlive you can help prevent from losing your independence as you may not require the help of your children if you have your living expenses covered.

For more information on retirement planning and to compare annuities, visit the Annuity Think Tank.

To read the article on retirement stressors, click here.

1)      Stay the course – Don’t let the rally change your strategy, you have a plan for a reason.

2)      Embrace dollar cost averaging – this balances the positives and negatives in the market.

3)      Avoid chasing returns – chasing returns is like trying to time the market just right and is nothing more than a guessing game.

4)      Rebalancing – by adjusting your portfolio to the proper mix by rebalancing quarterly or semi-annually is ideal for a successful plan.

5)      Be prepared – Brace for pull backs, it is bound to happen.  Every bull market comes to an end or experiences some sort of adjustment, therefore be prepared for the peaks and valleys.

For more insight into retirement planning and to plan effectively for income in retirement visit the Annuity Think Tank.

To read the article on retirement strategies in a bull market, click here.

For more information on annuity marketing ideas and to compare annuity rates visit the Annuity Think Tank.

Investment Losses – those born between 1966-1975 lost as much as 45% of their wealth between 2007-2010 or an average of about $33,000.  This is important because they already had low levels of savings to begin with.

High Debt Level – a large part of Gen X had more than $80,000 in debt in 2010 including student loans, mortgages and credit card debt.

Lack of Savings – Even though Gen Xers watched their retirement savings grow from less than $2,000 in 1989 to more than $19,000 in 2007, their savings tumbled by 25% in 2010 due to recession.

For more information on how to secure a solid retirement plan, please visit www.annuitythinktank.com

According to the Social Security Administration the two increases are calculated differently based on formulas set by law.  Changes in the maximum amount of earnings subject to Social Security tax are based on the national average wage increase.

Social Security’s cost-of-living adjustments are based on increases in cost-of-living as measured by the consumer price index for urban wage earners and clerical workers, or “CPI-W.”

Social Security is a staple in retirement planning.  For more information on retirement income planning, be sure to visit www.annuitythinktank.com