Retire Secure!

With New Year’s celebrations behind us, it’s time to look toward what the financial world has in store for us in 2017. Unfortunately, retirement and estate plans may be taking a huge tax hit from the IRS this year.

As Jim mentioned in Part I, the “stretch IRA” has been an invaluable tax-management tool for investors and estate planners for decades. Today’s rules allow beneficiaries of inherited IRAs to limit distributions to the minimum, which maintains money in the tax-deferred environment and allows for compound tax-deferred growth - potentially a very lucrative strategy.

But in September of 2016, the Senate Finance Committee unanimously voted to kill the stretch IRA. It is very likely that this change will become law this year - and that the new law will require those who inherit an IRA to pay taxes on all but $450,000 of the money within five years.

While the strategies in Jim’s new book, The Ultimate Retirement and Estate Plan for Your Million-Dollar IRA (available for free at www.paytaxeslater.com) can help you reduce the impact of this potentially devastating law, it will still be major blow to any family who has more than $450,000 in their IRA or retirement plan.

In this episode of The Lange Money Hour, Jim will talk about the impact of the “death of the stretch,” focusing specifically on little-known - but perfectly legal - strategies to prepare for its passage, including:

TOPICS COVERED:

1. Roth IRA conversions

2. Maximizing Social Security

3. Flexible estate planning

4. The value of a Charitable Remainder Unitrust (CRUT) as the beneficiary of an IRA

5. Setting up a gifting program

To read the show transcript or listen to the MP3 file, http://bit.ly/2lhA6Yu

Retirement and estate plans may soon be taking a huge tax hit from the IRS. The “stretch IRA” has been a critical tax management tool for investors and estate planners for decades. Current rules allow beneficiaries of inherited IRAs to limit distributions to the minimum, which maintains money in the tax-deferred environment and allows for compound tax-deferred growth - a very profitable strategy.

But in September, the Senate Finance Committee unanimously voted to kill the stretch IRA. It is very likely that this change will become law sometime in 2017 - and that new law will require those who inherit an IRA to pay taxes on all but $450,000 of the inherited IRA within five years.

While the strategies in Jim’s new book, The Ultimate Retirement and Estate Plan for Your Million Dollar IRA (available for free at paytaxeslater.com) will reduce the impact of this miserable law, it will still be a major blow to the heirs of anyone who has more than $450,000 in their IRA or retirement plan.

In this episode of The Lange Money Hour, Jim will talk about the impact of the “death of the stretch” for everyone who isn’t a financial planner--that is to say, in layman’s terms that we can all understand.

TOPICS COVERED:

1. How Does the Stretch IRA Save My Heirs Money?

2. Calculating Your Minimum Required Distribution

3. Why Is the Stretch IRA Likely to Go Away?

4. Without Stretch, Heirs Must Pay Taxes on Entire IRA in 5 Years

5. ‘A Heist of a Middle-Class Retirement’

6. Death of the Stretch IRA Would Not Affect Spouses

7. IRAs Less Than $450,000 Not Affected If Stretch IRA Dies

8. Tax Exclusion of the First $450,000 Would Be Prorated

9. Exceptions for Disabled, Chronically Ill and Minors

To read the show transcript or listen to the MP3 file, http://bit.ly/2lo0Xmd

In this episode of The Lange Money Hour, Jim welcomes guest P.J. DiNuzzo, a nationally recognized expert in investment management and president of DiNuzzo Index Advisors, Inc. P.J. was one of the first few hundred independent advisors in the U.S. permitted to access Dimensional Fund Advisor's (DFA) index funds for individual investors. DiNuzzo Index Advisors, Inc. consistently ranks among the country's Top 500 investment companies.

Jim and P.J. will be talking about the foundations of your financial house.

Just as a solid house is built on a good foundation, you cannot ignore the foundations of your financial house. The four corners of your financial house include: legal planning, tax planning, financial planning, and investment planning. A bad foundation can undermine your security, and jeopardize your long-term objectives. In this episode, you will learn how your CPA, estate attorney, and money manager should work together to protect your best interests.

Jim and P.J. will also discuss the Senate Finance Committee’s recent vote to kill the “Stretch IRA” -- which signals a major change on the horizon that could devastate your ability to pass wealth to your children and grandchildren. The so-called “Death of the Stretch IRA” is also covered in-depth in Jim’s new book, The Ultimate Retirement and Estate Plan for Your Million-Dollar IRA.

This show will discuss:

• How to build a good foundation for your financial house.

• The value of a personal balance sheet.

• How Jim and P.J. manage their collaboration, and the value for the client.

• An overview of index funds and a review of the market for 2016.

• The "Death of the Stretch IRA".

Interested listeners can sign up to receive Jim's latest book, The Ultimate Retirement and Estate Plan for Your Million-Dollar IRA: Including How to Protect Your Nest Egg from the Pending “Death of the Stretch IRA” Legislation by going to: www.paytaxeslater.com/MillionDollarIRA

To listen to this radio show and others, go to www.paytaxeslater.com/radioshow.php

The outcome of this past election caused economic jitters nationally and internationally. The first response was a precipitous drop of almost 700 points in Dow futures. Since the initial drop, the market has rebounded reaching an all-time high. Is this our future? Will we be on an economic rollercoaster for the next four years? The market is never very comfortable with unpredictability, and individuals approaching retirement are never very comfortable when the market is unpredictable.

In this The Lange Money Hour episode, we are pleased to welcome Charlie Smith, Chief Investment Officer of Fort Pitt Capital Group, LLC.

Charlie's perspectives on the economy and the markets are widely regarded. His opinions have been and continue to be solicited by representatives of the financial media, including CNBC and The Wall Street Journal. He has written and lectured on these subjects over the course of his 33-year career, which has included leadership roles with several Pittsburgh regional investment firms.

To listen to this radio show and others, go to www.paytaxeslater.com/radioshow.php

In this episode of The Lange Money Hour: Where Smart Money Talks, we welcome Linda Waite, the Lucy Flower Professor of Sociology at the University of Chicago and Senior Fellow at NORC (an independent research organization affiliated with the University of Chicago), where she directs the Center on Aging. Her research focuses on sexuality, social connections and health at older ages. One of her current projects develops and tests a reconceptualized model of health at older ages. Linda is also the author of The Case for Marriage: Why Married People Are Happier, Healthier & Better Off Financially. This radio show discuses the five myths about marriage, the happiness and health gaps between married and unmarried people, the relationship between marriage and money — for instance, how married people spend and save differently than single people — and should people get married for the money.

TOPICS COVERED:

1. Introduction of Linda Waite, University of Chicago

2. Children Lose in Divorce, Financially, Materially and Emotionally

3. Single-Parent Families Have Fewer Resources, Less Parental Time

4. Parent’s Marriage to a New Partner Is Highly Stressful for Children

5. Less Is Required From Unmarried Couples Who Live Together

6. Young Children Can Be at Risk When a Mother Cohabitates

7. Cohabitation Is Rare Among Older Couples ‘Living Apart Together'

8. Married Couples Have Many Times More Assets Than Unmarried People

9. Living Separately Is Cheaper, But Not by Much

10. Married People Are Less Depressed, in Better Health, Have Better Sex

11. Wives Manage the Health Care of Their Husbands

12. Divorce, Poor Marriage Affect Woman’s Health More Than Men’s Health

To read the show transcript or listen to the MP3 file, http://bit.ly/2kWTTvb

In this episode of The Lange Money Hour: Where Smart Money Talks, we welcome to the show New York attorney Bruce Steiner, a prolific author and nationally recognized expert on taxation and estate planning. Bruce has over 40 years of experience in the areas of taxation, estate planning, business-succession planning and estate and trust administration. Among many other positions, Bruce Steiner is a commentator for Leimberg Information Services, Inc. He’s a member of the Editorial Advisory Board of Trusts and Estates and is a technical advisor for Ed Slott’s IRA Advisor. Bruce has been quoted in various publications and on various television outlets, including Forbes, The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, CNBC, Fox Business and TheStreet.com.

Jim and Bruce will discuss the 10 common mistakes people make in retirement planning, Roth IRA conversions, the potential death of the stretch IRA, and the differences between Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump’s tax proposals.

1. Introduction of Bruce Steiner: Tax and Estate-Planning Expert, Lawyer, Author

2. Comparison of Clinton and Trump Tax Plans

3. Impact of the Possible Death of the Stretch IRA

4. Charitable-Remainder Trust Is One Way to Save on Taxes

5. Roth IRA and Roth IRA Conversions Can Be Tremendously Beneficial

6. Conversion to Roth IRA Can Be Done in Increments Over Several Years

7. Designating a Trust as IRA Beneficiary Protects Against ‘Ex-Factor’

8. Your Spouse Usually Is the Best Choice as Beneficiary

To read the show transcript or listen to the MP3 file, http://bit.ly/2fLu2XH

In this episode of The Lange Money Hour, Jim gives his listeners the most important advice offered in his newest book, The Ultimate Retirement and Estate Plan for Your Million-Dollar IRA. The Ultimate Retirement and Estate Plan for Your Million-Dollar IRA, provides clear and specific solutions to current tax issues regarding retirement plans, but perhaps more importantly, looks ahead to upcoming legislative actions that could reduce the value of your IRA. Those distressing changes, something we call “The Death of the Stretch IRA,” could cost your family hundreds of thousands, or potentially, millions of additional tax dollars over your children’s lives.

Jim will focus on the 6 main themes in the book that will help you decide how to prepare for the probable “Death of the Stretch IRA” and how to grow your retirement nest egg, and keep it out of Uncle Sam’s hands:

• Pay taxes later (except for the Roth) when working and when planning for your estate.

• The benefits of Roth IRA conversions.

• The most flexible estate plan for married couples.

• Make gifts that grow tax-free including 529 plans and life insurance.

• Charitable Trusts as the beneficiary of your IRA that could give your children more life-long income.

• The grand slam - combining winning tax strategies with low-cost investing.

Interested listeners can sign up for that bonus NOW by going to: www.paytaxeslater.com/MillionDollarIRA

In this week’s archive of The Lange Money Hour: Where Smart Money Talks, we’re very excited to welcome Jonathan Clements back to the show. Jonathan Clements is one of the country’s foremost experts on personal finance. Jonathan was a columnist for The Wall Street Journal, where he worked for almost 20 years. He also spent six years as director of financial education for Citi Personal Wealth Management. These days, Jonathan is involved with a financial startup, sits on the investment committee of Creative Planning in Leewood, Kansas, and regularly blogs at JonathanClements.com. Jonathan has written six books on personal finance, including the best-seller The Little Book of Main Street Money and the Jonathan Clements Money Guide 2016, but tonight, we’re going to focus on his latest, How to Think About Money, which came out e arlier this month.

In this episode, Jonathan and Jim discuss the book’s five core insights: buy more happiness, bet on a long life, rewire your brain, think big and win, don’t lose. To find out what all of that means, take a listen to this episode of The Lange Money Hour: Where Smart Money Talks.

1. Introduction of Jonathan Clements, Author and Personal-Finance Adviser

2. Buy More Happiness, Not More Things

3. Bet on a Living Long Life

4. Achieve Financial Freedom Early in Work Life

5. Rewire Your Brain to Overcome the Instinct to Spend Now

6. Think Big About Your Ability to Earn Income

7. To Win, Don’t Lose

To read the show transcript or listen to the MP3 file, http://bit.ly/2dku9YC

In this week’s podcast of The Lange Money Hour: Where Smart Money Talks, we welcome to the show Roberton Williams, Sol Price Fellow at the Urban-Brookings Tax Policy Center at the Urban Institute, where he focuses on communicating the Tax Policy Center’s broad range of work through papers, blog posts on TaxVox, extensive interaction with the media, and a broad range of features on the website. With the presidential election less than three months away, Americans are preparing to choose between two very different candidates. In this episode Jim and Roberton take a look at what might be in store for Americans in terms of Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump’s economic policies. TOPICS COVERED:

1. Introduction of Roberton “Bob” Williams of the Tax Policy Center

2. No Ax to Grind: Tax Policy Center Provides Unbiased Information to Inform the Discussion

3. The Clinton Plan: Big Hikes on the Wealthy Would Raise $1 Trillion Over a Decade

4. Would the Wealthy Change Their Behavior to Avoid Paying Higher Tax Rates?

5. The Trump Plan: More Americans Would Pay No Income Tax; Deep Cuts for Wealthy

6. Trump Plan Would Slash Corporate Taxes, Add $9.5 Trillion to Deficit Over a Decade

7. More Clarity on Tax Plans Is Needed, Expected From Both Candidates

8. Trump Has Not Outlined Spending Cuts to Offset Severe Revenue Losses

9. With Huge Tax Cuts and No Spending Cuts, Government Would Have to Borrow More

10. Would Clinton’s Increases Curb Economic Growth? It Depends on Economic Opportunity

11. The Role of Congress: No President Can Unilaterally Dictate Tax Policy

12. We’re All in Agreement: Complicated U.S. Tax System Needs Reform

13. Where to Go to Learn More About How Taxes Affect You

14. Taxes Are Just a Small Factor in the Decision to Get Married

15. U.S. Is a ‘Relatively Low-Taxed Country Compared to Others’

16. Retirement of Baby Boomers Is Likely to Put Upward Pressure on Tax Rates

17. Alternative Ways to Raise Revenue: Federal Sales Tax and Value-Added Tax

In this episode of The Lange Money Hour: Where Smart Money Talks, we welcome to the show Morningstar's David Blanchett. David is head of retirement research at Morningstar Investment Management, LLC, and in that role, he works to enhance the group’s consulting and investment services and conducts research primarily in the areas of financial planning, tax planning, annuities and retirement. In 2014, Investment News included David in their inaugural “Forty Under Forty” list as a visionary for the financial-planning industry, and in 2014, Money magazine called him one of the brightest minds in retirement planning. He’s a retire mentor for Market Watch and an expert retirement panelist for the The Wall Street Journal.

1. Guest Introduction: David Blanchett of Morningstar Investment Management

2. Should You Spend More Early in Retirement While You’re Relatively Healthy?

3. The Three Buckets: Needs, Wants and Wishes

4. Key Factors: How Long Will You Live, What’s the Return Rate, How Much Will You Spend?

5. David Blanchett’s 25-Times Rule for Sufficient Savings and Accounting for Inflation

6. Managing Your Portfolio with Flexibility, As If It Were an Endowment

7. Think in Terms of ‘Risk Preference’ Rather Than ‘Risk Tolerance’

8. Your Paid-Off Home Is a Powerful Asset for a Comfortable Retirement

9. Comprehensive Planning and the Idea That ‘No Portfolio Is an Island’

10. Beyond Alpha and Beta: The Gamma of Holistic Financial Planning

11. David Blanchett’s Retirement Rule of Thumb: One Size Does Not Fit All

12. Bucket Analogy Helps Clients Better Understand How Portfolio Works for Them

13. One Overall Goal, But Different Investment Strategies to Get There

14. David Blanchett’s Best Advice: You Only Retire Once, Don’t Screw It Up