Here’s our weekly collection of helpful reads on investing and personal finance — served up a day early this week to make way for our DAA and Sector Rotation updates tomorrow.
How ’unretirement’ affects your Social Security (Barron’s). What happens to your Social Security benefits if you go back to work? (If you get a pop-up that blocks the article, click the "X" in the top right corner and the article should appear.)
Turned 70½ last year? Don’t miss this key April 1 deadline (CNBC). If you have a retirement account that falls under the Required Minimum Distribution rule, you have only until April 1 to take your first distribution — or you’ll face a 50% penalty.
You may still be able to get a $3,450 deduction on 2018 taxes with a Health Savings Account (MarketWatch). Just as with IRAs, you can make a contribution to an HSA up through April 15 and apply it to the previous tax year.
IRS giving millions a pass on penalties for 2018 underpayment (CNBC). In an attempt to smooth out implementation of the new tax law, the IRS has further lowered the no-penalty threshold for underpayment.
Half of older Americans have nothing in retirement savings (Bloomberg via Yahoo). The good news is the situation has improved slightly from a few years ago, according to updated data from the U.S. Government Accountability Office.
And from the bloggers and pundits...
The perfect track record (Michael Batnick, The Irrelevant Investor). Yes, the inversion of the yield curve has always been a reliable recession precursor — but don’t overreact.
Inflation: The silent killer of retirement (Fritz Gilbert, The Retirement Manifesto). At 3% annual inflation, a $50,000 lifestyle today will cost $90,000 20 years from now.
401k early withdrawal: What to know before you cash out (Mintlife blog). We touch on this subject briefly in our current newsletter article, Roth IRAs and Roth 401(k)s: Similar, Yet Different. This piece covers the seven(!) "exceptions to the rule" regarding the penalty for early 401(k) withdrawals.
The more money you make, the more you can delude yourself (Peter Dunn, Indianapolis Business Journal). "Pete the Planner" says there are really only two successful retirement strategies: 1) Have a bunch of money, or 2) Not need a bunch of money.
The mileage game: Getting started with credit card bonuses (Rocco Pallante, Vagabond Finances). A helpful companion piece to our April newsletter article, Credit Card Perks Can Be Attractive, But Users Beware.
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