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Bloomberg notes, those who are pondering over an early retirement consist of mostly affluent white Americans. And financial advisors told the publication that they believe that the well-off are thinking about retiring early as a result of having a life is short mentality.
The idea of going back to the office following more than a year of working from home will be a really tough pill for a lot of people to swallow, Kenneth Van Leeuwen, founder of New Jersey-based financial services firm Van Leeuwen & Co., told the publication.
In fact, a report from the Pew Research Center last year revealed an increase in the number of baby boomers who said they were retired compared to previous years (1.2 million more than the historical annual average, to be exact).
What should I do with this retirement account that I don’t need?
Updated 9:30 PM;
Q. I’m 55 and retiring in November. I have a 457 plan worth $75,000 that I will have to reinvest. I don’t plan to use this money immediately because I have other retirement funding. What should I do? In the money
A. Congratulations on your upcoming retirement.
Before considering your options, it’s important to understand the type of 457 plan that you have, said Kenneth Van Leeuwen, a certified financial planner with Van Leeuwen & Company in Princeton.
If you have a governmental 457(b) plan, you will have the option to roll over your account to a traditional IRA, he said.
Will closing this credit card hurt my credit score?
Updated Dec 18, 2020;
Q. I have had a popular national credit card since 1988. They raised the annual fee to $150, so I’ve decided to change to a no annual fee credit card from the same issuer and cancel the original card. Will this adversely affect my credit rating, which is an excellent? Credit concerned
A. We understand not wanting to pay that annual fee. It’s pretty hefty.
But yes, but by cancelling one card and opening another it is possible that your credit score could be negatively affected.
One of the calculations for credit scores is the debt utilization rate, or how much money you owe compared to how much you can borrow, said Kenneth Van Leeuwen, a certified financial planner with Van Leeuwen & Company in Princeton.
What’s the best way for a grandparent to set up a 529 plan?
Updated Dec 15, 2020; Grandparent
A. It’s smart to plan ahead so you don’t impact any financial aid for college.
Generally, grandparents can set up 529 accounts and they do not count towards the family contribution when applying for aid, said Kenneth Van Leeuwen, a certified financial planner with Van Leeuwen & Company in Princeton.
As you noted in your question, the caveat is when a grandparent distributes the funds from the 529 to the student.
When this happens, it is considered income to the student, and students must contribute 50% of their income for education, Van Leeuwen said.