Updates Blog

We examined over a dozen retirement planning sites and picked the “cream of the crop.”  Don’t waste your time at other sites that may cover retirement only as a front to sell you investments.  We’ll point you to some sites that give you really solid retirement planning advice.  Exploring just one or two of them could be a real eye-opener:

1. BankRate.com’s 2007 Retirement Guide  is the easiest to read, covering just five short pages.  These pages dispense basic advice for various life stages:

• The early years,
• Midcareer retirement moves,
• 5 to 10 years to go,
• Living in retirement, and
• Calculators & tools.

Their basics of estate planning guide has six sections covering

• Wills: the cornerstone of all estate plans,
• Trusts as a complement to wills,
• The estate tax system: how it works,
• Quirky rule change coming up,
• Gift tax on generosity, and
• State inheritance tax may apply.

2. CNN Money Lesson 13: Planning for retirement is uncomplicated, yet covers the basics quite well.  Seven pages cover

• Top things to know,
• What should I do first?,
• How should I invest?,
• The virtues of the 401(k),
• The IRA advantage,
• What to do when you switch jobs, and
• How can I get the most out of my money in retirement?

Their Lesson 21: Estate planning section covers

• Top things to know,
• Take stock,
• Why do I need a will?,
• Do I need a living will and health-care proxy?,
• Why should I assign power of attorney?,
• Does a trust make sense? and
• What’s the best way to give money now?.

3. AARP’S Financial Planning and Retirement is a well-organized site overseen by people who have actual experience with the retirement process.  You’ll find in-depth coverage of retirement planning, although perhaps to the point of being a bit long-winded.

4. SmartMoney Retirement and SmartMoney Estate Planning have more advanced information, contained in a wide selection of articles.  The retirement section has a video section called SmartMoney TV, and you’ll also find worksheets that allow you to plug in your own numbers to help figure out your best course of action.  Two articles written to help you avoid traps are 10 Things Your Financial Planner Won’t Tell You and 10 Things Your Estate Planner Won’t Tell You.