Category: Retirement & Social Security

American workers and retirees are losing faith in their financial futures at a pace not seen in years, driven by a collision of persistent cost increases and growing anxiety over Social Security’s ability to pay full benefits. The Social Security Board of Trustees reported in June 2026 that the Old-Age and Survivors Insurance trust fund…

A record 645,000 Americans now hold at least $1 million in their 401(k) accounts, a figure that has climbed steadily as federal contribution ceilings have risen and equity markets have delivered strong returns. The milestone reflects years of disciplined saving by a small but growing slice of the workforce, and it arrives as the IRS…

Workers across the United States saw their retirement savings shrink over the past year, with the average 401(k) balance dropping 4% to roughly $141,000 as a growing number of participants tapped their accounts for emergency expenses. The decline reflects a collision between persistent financial pressure on households and a retirement system that, for the first…

Retirement savers with six-figure 401(k) balances face a quiet threat that federal investigators have documented for more than a decade: fees that are technically disclosed but practically invisible. A one-percentage-point difference in annual fees can drain a large share of a retirement balance over a working career, according to government analysis. The problem is not…

Workers younger than 59½ now have a narrow but real escape hatch from the 10% early-withdrawal penalty on retirement savings. A provision added to the tax code by SECURE 2.0 lets participants in 401(k) and similar defined-contribution plans pull up to $2,500 a year, penalty-free, to pay qualified long-term-care insurance premiums. The rule took effect…

Most non-spouse heirs who inherited an IRA after December 31, 2019, face a hard deadline: the entire account must be emptied by the end of the tenth calendar year following the original owner’s death. That rule, enacted through the SECURE Act as Division O of Public Law 116-94, replaced the old “stretch IRA” strategy that…

Workers saving through a 401(k) or similar employer-sponsored retirement plan can set aside an extra $1,000 per year starting in 2026, after the Internal Revenue Service raised the annual employee elective deferral limit from $23,500 to $24,500. The adjustment, driven by the agency’s cost-of-living formula, also applies to 403(b) and most 457 plans. For the…

Workers who leave a job at age 55 or older can pull money from that employer’s 401(k) without paying the 10% early-withdrawal penalty that normally applies before age 59 and a half. The rule, codified in IRC Section 72(t)(2)(A)(v), applies specifically to qualified employer plans and not to IRAs, a distinction that catches many people…

Retirees who have reached age 70½ can now direct as much as $111,000 from an IRA to charity in 2026 without owing a cent of federal income tax on the transfer. That cap stood at $105,000 just two years ago. The increase, driven by annual cost-of-living adjustments the IRS ties to Notice 2025-67, gives older…

Workers between the ages of 60 and 63 can now steer as much as $35,750 into a 401(k) plan during 2026, a jump of $3,250 over what someone in the standard catch-up bracket can contribute. The increase comes from a new “super catch-up” provision that raises the extra allowance for this narrow age group to…