Weekend Reading: Seven Retirement Myths Debunked

This article appears as part of Casey Weade's Weekend Reading for Retirees series. Every Friday, Casey highlights four hand-picked articles on trending retirement topics and delivers them straight to your email inbox. Get on the list here.
Weekend reading retirement myths Weekend reading retirement myths
Weekend Reading

Retirement planning legends and rules-of-thumb are plentiful, but do they hold true when it comes to your hard-earned dollars?

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This article takes a look at several popular retirement “rules”, and why you must always pay attention to the flip side of the coin. Here are a few:

📌You should max your 401(k) contributions: Certainly take advantage of any employer match within your 401(k), but beware of maxing out your account. Since contributions are tax-deferred, finding yourself in a higher tax bracket in the future could be leave you with a hefty bill to Uncle Sam upon withdrawal.

📌You should defer tax in retirement accounts: A time will come when you have to pay income taxes on your pretax retirement accounts, and keep in mind, experts believe those rates will only continue to rise.

📌You can’t collect Social Security benefits until you retire: You can still utilize Social Security while working, however, you must first understand the annual earnings test before doing so.

📌Expenses go up in retirement: Cost-of-living and healthcare costs are on the rise, but many studies show your overall expenses actually decrease as you age.

📌You must enroll in Medicare at age 65: If you continue to work beyond age 65 and are covered under a group health plan, you could be eligible for a special enrollment period for Medicare upon your departure.

Read with caution: Don’t believe everything you find on the internet. In many instances, it’s not that you are consuming bad advice. It may be perfectly acceptable for the masses, but you are not “the masses”.