I am ending my podcast as I am unhappy with the results. I have more projects for my retirement so I will discard the ones I am find less than satisfying! But I wanted to let you know for those who were subscribing and downloading out of respect for you rather than just let the podcast die without saying anything.

Peace and love!

I do invite you to subscribe to my blog at   https://retiredguyusa.com/

This blog post:   https://retiredguyusa.com/social-security-2100-act/               

LINK: https://larson.house.gov/sites/larson.house.gov/files/Social%20Security%202100%20-%20One%20Pager%20116th.pdf  (the Act described)

                Benefit Increases

A slight increase in benefits for current and new beneficiaries.  Social Security 2100 provides an increase for all beneficiaries that is the equivalent of 2% of the average benefit.

Better protection against inflation.  Social Security 2100 would change the COLA (annual cost of living adjustment) to better reflect the costs incurred by seniors. The COLA would now be based on the CPI-E (Consumer Price Index for the Elderly). The CPI-E rises faster than the index currently in use. This provision will help seniors who spend a greater portion of their income on health care and other necessities of old age.

Better protect low income workers.  The new minimum benefit would be set at 25% above the poverty line. It would be tied to wage levels to ensure that the minimum benefit does not fall behind.

Cut taxes for beneficiaries.  Millions of Social Security recipients would see a tax cut under the 2100 Act.  Presently, your Social Security benefits are taxed if you have non-Social Security income exceeding $25,000 for an individual or $32,000 for couples. The threshold would be raised to $50,000 and $100,000 respectively.

  Saving the Trust Fund

High income earners would pay more Social Security taxes.  The current ceiling for payroll taxes is $132,900. Social Security 2100 would apply the payroll tax to wages above $400,000. This provision would only affect the top 0.4% of wage earners.

Increase Social Security tax rate to keep the system solvent.  Gradually increase the contribution rate beginning in 2020. By 2043, workers and employers would be paying 7.4% instead of the 6.2% today. Basically, young people will be paying more taxes!

Social Security Trust Fund Established.  There are technically two trust funds: (1) Old-Age and Survivors (OASI) and, (2) Disability Insurance (DI). They are usually referred to collectively as the Social Security Trust Fund. This provision combines the OASI & DI trust funds into one Social Security Trust Fund. This supposedly will help ensure that all benefits will be paid.

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 I am Trippe, 67, retired U.S. Government Financial Analyst. M.B.A., grew up on a farm, played in rock bands for several years. This podcast is for entertainment and education. I am neither a personal financial adviser, medical provider nor an attorney. Consult your own professionals. 

Blog:   https://retiredguyusa.com/

Podcast:  https://retiredguyusa.podbean.com/

This blog post: https://retiredguyusa.com/2018-19-flu-season-prevention/ 

LINK: https://www.cdc.gov/flu/weekly/usmap.htm 

During the 1918 epidemic, the flu infected nearly a half billion people and 50 to 100 million died world-wide. My dad showed me an old house near our farm where locals remember an entire family taking refuge there at that time. The whole family reportedly died.

The 2017 – 2018 flu season cost $17 - 20 billion in medical care and lost wages. A serious illness can bankrupt someone who is financially ‘on the edge’. That flu season was particularly deadly with only partly-successful prevention efforts. It was the most cases reported since 2009. The illness was considered severe across all age groups. Nearly 80,000 people died in the United States.

Prevention steps for the flu season

All those 6 months and older should get the vaccine by the prior October. You need to get vaccinated every year.

First – health care workers should be immunized. Then, the very young, the very old and pregnant women. Also, people with high risk medical problems have the highest risk of becoming seriously ill and needing hospitalization for the flu.

If sick, stay at home except for going to the doctor. Cover your nose if sneeze – wash your hands often – or use an alcohol based hand rub. Don’t touch your eyes, nose, or mouth. Clean surfaces you come into regular contact with. Disinfect phones, doorknobs and TV remotes. Don’t shake hands with others.

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 I am Trippe, 67, retired U.S. Government Financial Analyst. M.B.A., grew up on a farm, played in rock bands for several years. This podcast is for entertainment and education. I am neither a personal financial adviser, medical provider nor an attorney. Consult your own professionals. 

Blog:   https://retiredguyusa.com/

Podcast:  https://retiredguyusa.podbean.com/

This blog post: https://retiredguyusa.com/13-ways-save-money-valentines-day/

Valentine's Day can get expensive. However, there are ways you can keep the craziness down and avoid the over-the-top spending habits of so many people. This podcasts considers alternative solutions to keeping your expenses down but still honoring the one you love!

LINK: https://www.nrf.com/insights/holiday-and-seasonal-trends/valentines-day consumer tastes, preferences, and spending patterns related to Valentine's Day

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 I am Trippe, 67, retired U.S. Government Financial Analyst. M.B.A., grew up on a farm, played in rock bands for several years. This podcast is for entertainment and education. I am neither a personal financial adviser, medical provider nor an attorney. Consult your own professionals. 

Blog:   https://retiredguyusa.com/

Podcast:  https://retiredguyusa.podbean.com/

This blog post:    https://retiredguyusa.com/best-money-advice-children/  

Here is my best money advice for young adults (or even teens)! This is based on what I think works (and does not) looking back on my long life. Financial advice tends toward the same subjects like budgeting, investing, saving, and retirement. But I would not put them at the top of the list. None of that even matters if you make poor life choices. Marriage and family plus a healthy lifestyle are the top things you should get right! Following that are the typical money imperatives regarding credit, saving, investing, spending etc. 

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  Please SUBSCRIBE, COMMENT, and SHARE this podcast with others!

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 I am Trippe, retired U.S. Government Financial Analyst. M.B.A., grew up on a farm, played in rock bands for several years. This podcast is for entertainment and education. I am neither a personal financial adviser, medical provider nor an attorney. Consult your own professionals. 

Blog:   https://retiredguyusa.com/

Podcast:  https://retiredguyusa.podbean.com/

This blog post: https://retiredguyusa.com/year-end-tax-changes-know-2018/

There are quite a few 2018 tax changes you should be ready for at the end of the year. You should know about how the recent far-reaching tax reform might affect you. Maybe you can make some changes to reduce your taxes for 2018. You can also be prepared for changes in 2019. Keep in mind that many retirees are still working. I tried to focus on tax code changes that affect mostly retirees but everyone is affected by this huge tax reform! And of course, some of them are still working part-time. The definition of ‘retirement’ is changing!

The 2017 TCGA (Tax Cuts and Jobs Act) is the biggest tax reform since the 1980s. It is FAR MORE COMPLICATED than what I am presenting here. Here I focus almost entirely on the personal as opposed to business side of the tax reform.

I discuss taxation of Social Security, IRAs, 401(k), selling a home, exemptions, deductions and too much more!

Before acting on any advice here, consult your tax pro! 

  USEFUL LINKS:

https://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-pdf/p5307.pdf    more than you wanted to know about the 2017 TCGA

  

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 I am Trippe, retired U.S. Government Financial Analyst. M.B.A., grew up on a farm, played in rock bands for several years. This podcast is for entertainment and education. I am neither a personal financial adviser, medical provider nor an attorney. Consult your own professionals. 

Blog:   https://retiredguyusa.com/

Podcast:  https://retiredguyusa.podbean.com/

This blog post: https://retiredguyusa.com/how-long-keep-tax-records/ 

This post will tell you how long you should keep tax records. I tried to keep this as simple as possible as there are always exceptions to general rules.

Consult your tax advisor as every taxpayer has a unique situation.

I read that the average tax filer spends about eight hours (a full workday) getting their tax information together. It is a massively wasteful tax system whose main beneficiaries are tax accountants and tax lawyers. And of course, the tax code whereby public policy tries to award winners and punish losers. The information contained herein discusses your federal tax return, not individual states’ returns. Further, all this discussion pertains to individuals’ taxes, not business taxes. 

I will address: (1) how long you should keep federal tax records, (2) how long the IRS may audit you, (3) kinds of records to retain, (4) what makes up a good filing system. 

USEFUL LINKS:

https://taxmap.irs.gov/taxmap/pubs/p530-003.htm  IRS Statute of Limitations 

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 I am Trippe, retired U.S. Government Financial Analyst. M.B.A., grew up on a farm, played in rock bands for several years. This podcast is for entertainment and education. I am neither a personal financial adviser, medical provider nor an attorney. Consult your own professionals. 

Blog:   https://retiredguyusa.com/

Podcast:  https://retiredguyusa.podbean.com/

This blog post: https://retiredguyusa.com/how-invest-bear-market/ 

 I have lived through booms and busts, bear markets, and the odd market crash or two. Along the way, I picked up a few things which will do investors some good maybe. I say ‘maybe’ because every ‘age in time’ is different. Like the old disclaimer says, ‘Past performance is no guarantee of future results’.

There are a lot of bloggers, writers and financial advisors, who dispense advice. The younger ones or those who became advisors late in life have not been in the game very long. Or at least not long enough to have invested through a real bear market. If you became an advisor after 2009, you are untested. But don’t worry! You will get your chance one day!

The last ten years starting from 2009 have been the happy times due to an expansive Fed policy and reckless government spending. The markets have been rising more or less steadily. No one knows how the inexperienced advisor or investor will react in a true market crisis.

I am offering here the following guidelines for how to invest in a bear market. I shall try to keep it fairly brief. My suggestions include such things as: controlling emotions, avoiding depressing market news, following your financial plan and more! 

USEFUL LINKS:

 

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 I am Trippe, retired U.S. Government Financial Analyst. M.B.A., grew up on a farm, played in rock bands for several years. This podcast is for entertainment and education. I am neither a personal financial adviser, medical provider nor an attorney. Consult your own professionals. 

Blog:   https://retiredguyusa.com/

Podcast:  https://retiredguyusa.podbean.com/

This blog post:  https://retiredguyusa.com/social-media-scams-seniors/

 The Internet is full of social media scams trying to separate seniors from their money. Seniors are more susceptible than other demographics. But they target old and young alike! These scams include: lotteries, romance scams, profile hijacking, extortion, computer repair and more!

There are of course billions of online social media accounts. If only one per cent of them gets scammed, it will still add up to billions of dollars a year. Because we are all mostly on our own in cyberspace, we run an elevated risk of being ripped off. Our emotions get the best of us and we are often too trusting of our social media ‘friends’, even strangers we have never met.

USEFUL LINKS: 

https://www.ic3.gov/crimeschemes.aspx     FBI Internet Crime Complaint Center

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 I am Trippe, retired U.S. Government Financial Analyst. M.B.A., grew up on a farm, played in rock bands for several years. This podcast is for entertainment and education. I am neither a personal financial adviser, medical provider nor an attorney. Consult your own professionals. 

Blog:   https://retiredguyusa.com/

Podcast:  https://retiredguyusa.podbean.com/

This blog post: https://retiredguyusa.com/fight-online-scams/ 

We expend energy and resources trying to fight online scams. It’s hard to keep up with the creativity employed by internet criminals. But we seem always to be just one step behind them. I’ve had my share of close calls and more than once had a virus infect my computer.

Things to be aware of to protect yourself: checking your privacy settings, sharing, personal data, clickbait, Facebook 'friends', public computers, passwords. 

USEFUL LINKS:

https://www.ic3.gov/crimeschemes.aspx     FBI Internet Crime Complaint Center (list of crime schemes)

 Please SUBSCRIBE, COMMENT, and SHARE this podcast with others!

 --------------------

 I am Trippe, retired U.S. Government Financial Analyst. M.B.A., grew up on a farm, played in rock bands for several years. This podcast is for entertainment and education. I am neither a personal financial adviser, medical provider nor an attorney. Consult your own professionals. 

Blog:   https://retiredguyusa.com/

Podcast:  https://retiredguyusa.podbean.com/