In The Matter Of Mary V: Fill & Download for Free

TL; DR Pretty much any popular personal finance book will help you better manage or understand your finances (but for the scammy ones); but almost none will give you the scoop on changing programs like Social Security and Medicare supplements. Look to websites, government and nonprofits, and financial literacy programs at community colleges and community centers; or to qualified and communicative financial planners to keep you up-to-date and knowledgeable.Just like your physical health, your financial health is complex and unique-to-you.I don’t believe there is any one excellent book that focuses on issues related to retirement finances - for one thing, most people with money books are trying to sell you something. Or get you to buy real estate instead of going into the securities markets; or tell you to buy insurance. Almost all say the same thing; live frugally, develop avenues of passive income, pay off debt, have an emergency fund, buy more of my books, worksheets, and programs.I’ve read a ton of money books. I was disappointed by Tony Robbins’ book “Money Master the Game” - when push came to shove, it was a long ad for investing in Robbins’ client Ray Dalio’s funds - a “special offer” for readers. But a lot of books and money gurus are like that: Robert Kawasaki runs extremely profitable workshops; Suze Orman backed and sold, through affiliates, pre-paid debit cards, long-term disability insurance, and DIY legal documents.Here’s a list of of top finance books from Inc. (from 2013 but still covers the “big” ones): Top 10 Personal Finance Books of All Time ; here’s a good list from The Balance: The 9 Best Personal Finance Books to Buy in 2019 (including this, AgeProof ) and here’s a final list from NerdWallet: 7 Personal Finance Books for Your 2018 Must-Read List - NerdWallet There’s some overlap.I read, or skim, at least a few money books every year, and they’re all usually pretty good on the basics of financial literacy and retirement planning - though I’ve yet to find something that’s really “great.” And in terms of what you’re looking for, almost none are that detailed - they can’t be! For one thing, the “rules”, as they relate to Social Security and Medicare, keep changing.There is plenty of well-written good information available on how to have healthy finances, especially on for-profit financial services organization websites (banks, brokers, etc.) - in fact, that’s some of the best information out there. They have a stake in making sure that they tell you what you should know about investing and investments* - it’s just that it’s not always specific to you, and not as comprehensive as you might like.You are absolutely right that in order to get a sense of how to plan ahead, you need to read and understand the equivalent of at least one long book. Everytime I read one of these books, I get at least a few new helpful takeaways, but any book that covers performance and “reasonable expectations” goes stale, quickly.I’ve also put my savings and retirement planning through at least 10 different financial companies’ planners and calculators; and despite the same facts and expectations, I’ve come up with conclusions telling me that I am “on track” (yes!) to “deep in the red” (yikes!) to feeling pretty damn confident and considering buying myself a new high-end Tesla! (Yabba dabba doo!).And when I change my plans due to unforeseen events, like changing jobs or other dramas, I have to go through all ten again, until I find one that doesn’t make me panic. Which I inevitably do. Because no one wants you to STOP investing for retirement. Those calculators and sites get updated regularly, too.There are a ton of popular investing, finance and retirement blogs and websites (and podcasts) available; many of which are very worth reading and listening to, and often have the most up-to-date information.One issue is that unless those sites are associated with a particular broker - and so subject to rules which prevent them from talking crap or being misleading and failing to disclose material risk, and/or not clear that what they are saying may not be the right thing or not suitable for you - they’re not always reliable. It’s really, really important to know what someone’s background and experience is - and what their bias, motivation, and potential conflicts are - and take that into consideration. Disclosure and the “about” sections are really important; place more reliance on the opinions of people who have relevant backgrounds and real expertise. Still, there are plenty of popular finance blogs and podcasts that are great for ideas, to see new financial products, and develop new ways of thinking about about your future financial well-being.*No one can really predict the future although some outcomes are more probable and likely than others, especially the closer you are to pulling from your retirement savings. The more the uncertainty (including the amount time before retirement), the more the volatility, the more everything gets more complicated. Those people who retired into the “Great Recession” were a lot more freaked out than those retiring four years ago - and justifiably so. On the other hand, a lot has to do with knowledge and expectations. I’d always worked from the rule of thumb that 6–8% returns on investments were huge; now many people expect 8-10% or more. Knowledge, timing, and low expectations have a lot to do with your satisfaction and stress level with respect to good retirement planning.That said, one of the best places to get the detailed information you are looking for - or at least to recognize that there might not yet be firm answers for you about Social Security supplements and whatnot - might be through the AARP magazines, newsletters and websites. If you are 50+ you can be a member and have access to various discounts and such; but there’s a lot of information in articles and materials available online for free. They do a really good job of communicating to a very wide range of people about money and issues related to being an older American on a fixed income. AARP® Official Site - Join & Explore the BenefitsAnother good place to look for specifics is directly to the federal government, and The United States Social Security Administration . Medicare.gov: the official U.S. government site for Medicare provides help for people trying to understand what it’s programs are about. Those are the two specific areas you mentioned in your question: go direct to the source and see whether there’s information on those sites to answer your questions.You can also go to SEC.gov | HOME for information on investing and investments, generally, including about some annuities, popular with people-who-sell-you-retirement-products. Finally the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau has some information for consumers to get help with issues specific to seniors, and if you have a private or federal government pension (including a 401(k)) you might want to check out Additional Protections fact sheets on Department of Labor regulation and laws about pension and benefit plans.All of these sites, due to budget cuts, an administration who favors big business over the consumer, and a depressing directive to either over-complicate or remain silent so as to be accurate and avoid legal challenges, are sadly increasingly less than what they were in terms of providing comprehensive and current information and resources (and they were never great anyway - just better than expected.)There is no one place at the federal government level that I’m aware of that consolidates all the services, programs and special needs associated with being 65+ or in retirement or an older American. Which of course, makes everything far more difficult than it likely needs to be.Some states (and cities) have plain language resources and information available for seniors, but mostly focus on health concerns and abuses: for instance California Department of Aging and Legal Issues and Resources For Seniors. It’s depressing. Most resources are for after seniors get screwed, by individuals or scammers or the system; there are few programs to help people plan for their financial futures other than through private companies or some financial literacy programs in the schools.Operation Hope, or Leading a Global Silver Rights Movement in the 21st Century through economic empowerment is an especially stellar nonprofit organization dedicated to helping adults work out their financial futures, and it is primarily focused on low to moderate income communities. Local senior community centers and libraries also often provide some programming and serve as a hub for people looking to understand planning options.Community colleges sometimes offer adult education programs with one-day seminars or several month programs covering some of these topics, for as little as $30, or the cost of two movie tickets and a popcorn. It can be worth it to talk with someone in a more neutral space and get a better understanding of what you are curious about without a sales pitch.On the other hand, there’s plenty of free information out there, whether or not someone’s selling it to you; all you need to do is spend the time, and find someone reputable to help you. Fee-only (v. commission-based) financial planners (v. advisors) are generally preferable; but there are excellent financial planners who operate primarily on a commission-basis too - but they should tell you up-front exactly what and how they get paid for what they sell you.The best advice I’ve found for retirement planning can be distilled into this:***Stay as healthy as you can. Eat right, exercise, do the best you can to help yourself be as healthy in mind and body as you can. Having health issues and trying to manage them is the single biggest issue you will face in retirement, no matter how much money you have.Save money and invest wisely. Invest with a view to understanding your risks, rather than focussing on promises of reward.Have an emergency fund. According to the Fed, 40% of Americans don’t have enough cash to cover a $400 emergency expense, and would have to sell or borrow to do so. Things can spiral quickly; and soon retirement preparation can be among the very least of your concerns.Find work or a hobby you enjoy.Likely most important: Prioritize your relationships with your family, friends and neighbors. Support and be generous and kind to others in your life; you never know when you will need them to be kind to you, but you most surely will.*Broker-dealers, financial services companies and insurance companies are required to comply with rules relating to disclosures and sales practices. Examiners and regulators from the SEC, FINRA, OCC, CFPB, Fed, NCUA, FDIC, CFTC, DoL, state atty general or insurance commissioners or others are charged with regulation. If they don’t behave under the law, they can be fined, in trouble with or sued by the consumer, and go out of business. Even with that in mind, some for-profit financial firm sites are more comprehensive with respect to financial literacy and planning than others; and very few, if any of these spend more than a nanosecond talking about the details and caveats with respect to social security planning, medicare, long-term disability insurances (unless they are selling it) or cost of senior communities and care centers. And who can blame them! How can we predict what a new laptop or car will cost in 2050 — or if we’ll just be talking into air and implanted with genius chips and driven or even beamed everywhere we want to go? And what about UBI (universal basic income?) or Medicare-for-all? That would change everything. The future - and its potential - is complicated. :-)**Blogs, websites, and podcasts that talk about personal finance are primarily regulated only by the FTC at this time (plus some privacy regs, still ranging from state-to-state) - although if they step into the direct sales and advertising of financial products they can get in big trouble with the various regulatory agencies and consumer affairs enforcers. Thing is, there’s not a lot of downside risk -other than to reputation - if they are wrong, other than potentially losing advertisers or subscribers. If they take advertising from a mutual fund company, for instance, they should disclose that somewhere (and most do). But keep in mind: who they take advertising from also impacts the kinds of products and programs they review, and might make a difference in how they review them.There are many personal finance bloggers who are NOT what the industry would consider experts - they’re good people who are sharing what they believe to be reliable information that they’ve picked up along the way. Which is awesome - but they still can be wrong (as can the experts, too), and there’s little real $$ downside for them if they are with limited enforcement. It’s sort of like being a pastor, or a yoga guru. You still have to do your own research and homework, and shouldn’t put your reliance on any one guru.One of the reasons I really like Clark Howard (the podcast) is that he has a regular segment called “Clark Stinks” where he owns up to his factual mistakes or other errors. I don’t always agree with his opinions on markets or economic policies; but he’s good and fair and makes an effort to be trustworthy, and that matters, at least it matters to me. Also, news outlet podcasts with a money focus - like Planet Money or Marketplace from npr, and Your Money Briefing - WSJ Podcasts from WSJ and Bloomberg Radio are on my daily playlists. They’re great.***In the interests of my full disclosure: I’ve spent more than 25 years in the financial services industry, as an auditor, risk manager, regulatory compliance officer, and securities analyst; and have worked for or with almost every kind of financial services player from big investment banks through to micro-finance organizations and financial literacy groups. I’ve never worked for the government, although I’ve considered it. Right now, I’m really interested in fraud, trust, and better ways to resolve misunderstanding and conflict, through education, mediation and dispute resolution systems. I‘m also worried about my own retirement finances, because the future is already present.