You should break these six retirement rules. Here's why.

Are there right and wrong ways to retire? While that's a relative question, there are retirement rules that are in your best interest to follow — and those you might want to break. Consider these six retirement rules you might be better off ignoring.

1. Depending on a Pension or Social Security

Counting on a pension or Social Security to help you ride out your retirement years? That's probably not the best strategy to have, considering that very few companies still offer pensions (though you'd know if yours does) and Social Security is still in crisis (so much so that it might be bankrupt and not even exist by the time you retire). That's not to mention that inflation is likely to outpace your per-month payouts in the off chance that you do receive these income sources.

Continue reading source article at CSmonitor.com.

Damian J. Sylvia
Managing Partner
Retirement Income Solutions

Self-employed? Start saving for retirement

If you’re self-employed, retirement may be the last thing on your mind.

When financial gurus recommend setting aside 15-20 percent of your income toward retirement, your eyes may glaze over. After all, as an independent contractor or small business owner, you know income is often sporadic. Clients don’t always pay on time. Markets tend to move in cycles. Seasonal fluctuations may pinch your company’s cash flow.

You also know bills need to be paid – every month. Once you’ve settled up with suppliers, utility companies, lenders, and all those other folks clamoring for your money, most of your remaining cash may need to be pumped back into the business to keep it afloat. Contributing to a retirement account can seem like a luxury you can’t afford.

Continue reading source article at MeridianStar.com.

Damian J. Sylvia

Managing Partner

Retirement Income Solutions

When Is the Ideal (and Actual) Retirement Age?

The ideal age to retire falls somewhere between the ages of 60 to 65, according to a new Allstate/National Journal Heartland Monitor Poll.

The ideal age to retire falls somewhere between the ages of 60 to 65, according to a new Allstate/National Journal Heartland Monitor Poll. Retiring then works best, poll respondents say, because it's the sweet spot for both age and finances. People are young, healthy, and financially secure enough then to enjoy their time.

Continue reading source article at NationalJournal.com.

Damian Sylvia

Retirement Income Solutions

220 Monmouth Road

Oakhurst, NJ 07755 

How To Play Catch-Up For Retirement At 50 Or Older

Are you farther along in your career than you are in your retirement planning? If so, you’re not alone: 42% of people in their 50s surveyed for a recent Transamerica Center For Retirement Studies report said they expect their standard of living to decline after they retire. But no matter how far behind you may be, you can still improve your retirement prospects, if you go about it the right way.

Continue reading the source article at www.realdealretirement.com.

Damian J. Sylvia,

Managing Partner

Retirement Income Solutions

220 Monmouth Road

Oakhurst, NJ 07755

How do you define retirement?

Everyone knows what retirement means, right? Well, according to the 16th Annual Transamerica Retirement Survey, it turns out that people define retirement differently. In prior generations, when someone told you they were retired or plan to retire, it meant they weren't working at all. But that's no longer the case.

Continue reading the source article at CBSnews.com.

Damian J. Sylvia

Managing Partner

Retirement Income Solutions

Three Reasons Why Women Should Lead Household Retirement Planning

It's high season for nuptials, and newlyweds-to-be are better focused on wedding plans than retirement plans. Fair enough. But there’s an additional, important vow for new husbands to consider post-honeymoon: Thou shalt look to thy wife to drive retirement planning.

If that sound sexist, it’s not. In many cases, it’s just smart financial planning, given a few key retirement facts:

Continue reading the source article at Bloomberg.com.

Damian J. Sylvia

Retirement Income Solutions

220 Monmouth Road,

Oakhurst, NJ 07755

Here’s the Unsettling Truth About the Retirement Crisis

It all depends on whether you're on the right side of the retirement divide.

It’s late spring, and retirement surveys are falling like so many cherry blossoms from the trees. Some of the results are profoundly grim, especially for Gen Xers. In one survey, 67% of Gen X respondents felt that the targets for how much you need to retire are way out of reach. Meanwhile, another survey, this one from Transamerica, found that 37% of workers expect one source of income in retirement to be…working.

Continue reading the source article at Time.com.

Damian Sylvia

Managing Partner

Retirement Income Solutions