Big Picture Retirement

Danielle Roberts of BoomerBenefits.com is back again this week, talking with Devin about more Medicare issues. Danielle is an expert on Medicare supplements and Medicare Advantage plans, and runs the Boomer Benefits company to help seniors with their Medicare needs. In last week’s episode, Danielle and Devin talked about the parts of Medicare, the difference between a Medicare supplement and a Medicare Advantage plan, and how to find the right agent and product for you. For more information, visit the show notes at https://www.bigpictureretirement.net/106

Danielle Roberts explains the different parts of Medicare to us in a way that is easy to understand and follow. This is Part 1 of a 2-part series with Danielle Roberts of BoomerBenefits.com. For more information, visit the show notes at https://www.bigpictureretirement.net/105 

How do you figure out how much money you're spending on your investments? In this encore presentation, Devin and John talk about the types of fees you might be paying, and how you can figure out what they are. For more information, visit the show notes at http://www.bigpictureretirement.net/104 

David Stein, host of the Money For The Rest of Us podcast, will explain the importance of trade, and how the trade, and trade wars, might impact you and your retirement. For more information, visit the show notes at http://www.bigpictureretirement.net/103

Devin and John continue working their way through some of the listener questions that have been coming in. John has a question about making a trust the beneficiary of an IRA, and then Devin has a question about Social Security benefits for public employees who have not contributed to Social Security. For more information, visit the show notes at https://www.bigpictureretirement.net/102 

John received a question from a listener with a blended family. The wife needs long-term care, and the assets to support such an expense! He talks about “Medicaid estate recovery” and other recommendations for power of attorney, etc. Then Devin answers a question about the Social Security earnings limit and then tackles some myths about Social Security. For more information, visit the show notes at https://www.bigpictureretirement.net/101 

What kind of rights do grandparents have? John Ross from the Big Picture Retirement Show deals with a lot of people in retirement, and many of those folks have grandchildren. He shares some harrowing stories and tips you can use to makes sure your rights are honored. For more information, visit the show notes at http://www.bigpictureretirement.net/100 

CRUTS are Charitable Remainder Trusts. Any time you are dealing with charitable planning, you must first have the charitable intent. You can find some tax benefits that go along with that charitable intent, but you have to start with the charitable intention. Ultimately, the charity is almost always going to benefit more than the donor. For more information, visit the show notes at http://www.bigpictureretirement.net/099

Part 2 of the conversation about active versus passive investing with guest Rick Ferri, author of Smart Money. For more information, visit the show notes at https://www.bigpictureretirement.net/098 

This week, Devin welcomes Rick Ferri to the show to talk about active versus passive investing. But before the interview gets started, John and Devin have an entertaining conversation about the recently released 2019 Social Security and Medicare adjusted numbers, including: The increase in Social Security benefits Medicare premiums Adjusted Social Security earnings limit Higher limit on how much money you will pay Social Security benefits and more! For more information, visit the show notes at http://www.bigpictureretirement.net/097

In light of the recent market activity, Devin and John thought it would be useful to re-broadcast their original episode on the lessons they've learned from past market declines. Lesson 1: Market declines are normal Lesson 2: No one can consistently predict market movements Lesson 3: The best days hang out with the bad days ...and more two more you can read about at https://www.bigpictureretirement.net/lessons-learned-from-market-declines

On the surface, Social Security survivor benefits seem pretty simple: at the death of the first spouse, the surviving spouse is eligible to receive his or her own benefit, or the benefit of the deceased, whichever is greatest. In today's show, Devin and John go over: Who Is Eligible for Survivor's Benefits How Much Is The Spousal Survivor Benefit The RIB LIM, or "Widow's Limit" and Restricted Filings For more information, visit the show notes at http://www.bigpictureretirement.net/095

Important benefits offered by the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) are changing. Devin and John talk about: Improved Pension with Aid and Attendance Clearly Defined Assets Test Adding A Look-back Period For more information, visit the show notes at http://www.bigpictureretirement.net/094

Part 3 in the Big Picture Retirement series on Drawdown Strategies: Brandon Renfro talks about "setting a floor." For more information, visit the show notes at http://www.bigpictureretirement.net/093

Part 2 in our series. In this episode we answer the question "How are you going to take your money out so that it lasts?" Then, once you have a plan for which accounts you should access in which order, how are you going to figure out the amount of income to take out from your portfolio? For more information, visit the show notes at https://www.bigpictureretirement.net/092

When you stop working, you've put aside some money into different types of accounts, and maybe you have a pension, or some rental property, or other investments. How do you start converting those assets into an income stream that will last for the rest of your life? Brandon Renfro, Ph.D., joins Devin on a discussion about: The tax torpedo The Net Unrealized Appreciation Rule Provisional income and how much of your Social Security is taxable For more details, visit the show notes at https://www.bigpictureretirement.net/091

There are a few areas within Social Security that you could mess up without even meaning to do things wrong. One of my most trusted mentors has often told me, "Big doors swing on little hinges." I've found that to be applicable to many things in life and it's certainly true in retirement planning. The small decisions you make, when stretched over long periods, can have big consequences. Here are the 5 Social Security mistakes that can cost you dearly when you retire. There's more to learn at http://www.bigpictureretirement.net/090

Did you know you could buy a horse as an investment in your IRA? What about real estate and other assets? Kirk Chisholm, of Innovative Advisory Group, joins us to explain how self-directed IRAs work. They a tricky thing, so you need to understand the rules before taking any action. You will learn what a Disqualified Person is, the rules behind handling real estate in an IRA, and what other things you can find in a self-directed IRA. For more information, visit the show notes at http://www.bigpictureretirement.net/089

What’s the big deal about cryptocurrencies? And is it too late to get in now? Joe Saul-Sehy from Stacking Benjamins joins us to talk about what cryptocurrencies are and what we should be looking out for in the future of Bitcoin. One of the benefits Joe shares is, “It is a way to get governments out of transactions, and also a way to make transactions happen faster.” It’s sort of like moving money into the currency of a different country, except that it isn’t (so far) regulated by the government, and transfers can happen super-fast. Is this a currency, or is this an investment? Listen to learn more. For more information, visit the show notes at https://www.bigpictureretirement.net/088

Continuing on from last episode's discussion about buying rental property for retirement income, Devin and John talk about the mechanisms for evaluating a rental property. ...and John will entertain you with taxes. For more information, visit the show notes at http://www.bigpictureretirement.net/087