Hertz Schram PC ERISA & Pension Lawyers

Callers sometimes ask me this question, and I tell them the answer depends on a number of factors unique to them. But, here are a few things to consider. First, if you qualify for Social Security retirement benefits (SS benefits), you may choose to start receiving them between age 62 and age 70. However, if you start your SS benefits before your full retirement age (FRA), they will be reduced; if you wait until age 70, they will be increased….

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Each year, Social Security’s trustees report on the current and projected financial status of the Social Security trust fund. Their 2018 annual report is worrisome. In a nutshell, the trustees conclude that the Social Security trust fund faces insolvency and resultant benefit cuts by 2034 if changes are not soon made to the program. BackgroundSocial Security actually has two trust funds: the Old-Age and Survivors Insurance (OASI) Trust Fund, which pays retirement benefits and survivors benefits; and the Disability Insurance…

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On June 5, 2018, Medicare’s Board of Trustees issued its annual report on the state of its two trust funds: the Hospital Insurance Trust Fund (Hospital Fund) and the Supplementary Medical Insurance Trust Fund (Supplementary Fund). The Hospital Fund, known as Medicare Part A, helps pay for hospital stays, home health services following a hospital stay, care in a skilled nursing facility, and hospice care the aged and disabled. The Hospital Fund is financed by taxes on workers’ earnings. Thus,…

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A paper by the Bipartisan Policy Center (BPC) provides intriguing insights into the role of immigration on our Social Security retirement system. [See “America’s Demographic Challenge: Understanding the Role of Immigration,” Aug. 2017, by Kenneth Megan and Theresa Cardinal Brown]. The U.S. population has been aging rapidly the past few decades, due mainly to declining fertility rates and increasing life expectancies, a trend that is expected to continue. This demographic shift has placed a strain on our Social Security retirement…

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It’s all about the money, honey. In April [2018], the Census Bureau released data comparing men’s and women’s 2016 median earnings in over 300 occupations. In nearly all occupations, women earned less than men. Overall, women’s median 2016 earnings equaled $40,675, while men’s median earnings equaled $50,741-nearly 25% more! However, the gender pay gap varies among occupations. The widest gender pay gaps were in financial management and sales (real estate brokers, real estate sales agents, insurance sales agents), and in…

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When our nation’s Social Security program was enacted in 1935, there was no automatic adjustment in Social Security retirement benefits to account for inflation. Rather, Congress would periodically adjust benefits to reflect inflationary increases in the costs of goods and services. In 1972, however, Congress enacted an amendment to the Social Security Act that requires benefits to be increased based on the increase in the Consumer Price Index (CPI) the previous year. At the time of the 1972 amendment, there…

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A recent issue brief prepared by the Pew Charitable Trusts (Pew) reports that most state pension plans are significantly underfunded and that, for many, the funding gap is growing. [See “The State Pension Funding Gap: 2016. Investment shortfalls, insufficient contributions reduced funded levels for public worker retirement plans (Pew, April 12, 2018)]. Pew, founded in 1948, is an independent non-profit organization that strives to inform the public and improve public policy by providing useful data and analysis to illuminate issues…

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Women face more obstacles than men in achieving a financially secure retirement. That’s the conclusion of a recent report based on an online survey of 6,372 workers conducted by the Harris Poll between August and October 2017 for TransAmerican Retirement Studies. [See “Here and Now: How Women Can Take Control of Their Retirement” by TransAmerica Retirement Studies]. For starters, women earn only 80.5% of the salary of men. They are also more likely to work part-time and to take time…

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There exists a large and troubling gap between retirement expectations and retirement realities, according to the results of a recent online survey conducted by the Harris Poll on behalf of Prudential Insurance. [See “Planning Your Retirement? Expect the Unexpected” by Salene Hitchcock-Gear, Pres. Prudential Advisors] For starters, the average anticipated retirement age of pre-retirees was 65, while the actual retirement age of retirees was age 59–a six-year gap which is expected to widen into the future. Moreover, approximately half (51%)…

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I regularly review commentary, data, and analyses of respected financial advisors concerning retirement savings and investing. While they don’t all agree on everything, there exists a consensus around the most common retirement savings and investment mistakes. Here are the top “dirty dozen” mistakes (as I see them). 1. Holding a Large Portion of Your Savings in Just One or Two Stocks. Even if they are performing well today (or for years), if there occurs a major downturn in the companies’…

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