Entries for July 2008

Most seniors can remember a time before their family purchased a television. The first commercial sets hit stores in 1928, but it took over a decade for them to become household items. And even 20-somethings can recall life before every public gathering was interrupted by someone's cellphone belting out pop music. But two organizations are worried about our elders' access to mobile phones and television.

Mobile security. Cellphones can be a lifeline for seniors living alone. A single button push can connect anyone who has experienced an accident, a sudden health problem, or a crime situation with help. The nonprofit Seniors Coalition says that older consumers can best take advantage of the "cellphone security blanket effect" by wearing a cellphone whenever it's not being charged—even around the house—and preprogramming the phone with key numbers to emergency services and their doctor, pharmacy, and adult children. Seniors who plan to use the phone only for emergencies can avoid pricey cellphone contracts that start at $30 to $40 per month by using low-cost prepaid cellphones for as little as $15 and prepurchased minutes for $20 or less for three months. U.S. News technology blogger David LaGesse recently tested four cellphones for seniors.

If you read the newspaper, watch television, or have picked up a recent copy of U.S.News & World Report, chances are you've seen an advertisement encouraging you to roll over you retirement dollars into a IRA. TIAA-CREF and Fidelity both recently ran advertising campaigns encouraging federal employees and retirees to move their retirement savings out of the ultralow-cost Federal Thrift Savings Program and into higher-fee accounts.

U.S. Senate Special Committee on Aging Chairman Herb Kohl, a Wisconsin Democrat, sent letters on July 15 to Fidelity and TIAA-CREF pointing out that "consumers can suffer unnecessary harm when they choose plans that have higher fees than their original 401(k) plans" and requesting that each company re-examine its marketing practices.

A 2006 law that made it easier for companies to automatically enroll employees in 401(k) plans went into effect late last year. And, indeed, employers have changed their retirement offerings.

A new online survey of 436 plan sponsors by Deloitte, the International Foundation of Employee Benefit Plans, and the International Society of Certified Employee Benefit Specialists offers a snapshot of current 401(k) participation.

Rolling Stones frontman Mick Jagger reached retirement age on Saturday. But the deep grooves lining his face don't mean he can't groove. This aging but still gyrating rocker's last tour with the Stones in 2007 grossed close to $558 million.

Sir Mick is now eligible for a U.K. pension of just under 91 pounds a week, Reuters reports. But, like many of the aging boomers who flock to his shows, Jagger is eschewing retirement because he gets more satisfaction from working. The Rolling Stones and Universal Music Group have signed a long-term recording agreement that includes rights to future albums, Universal announced Friday. The deal also covers iconic anthems like "Brown Sugar," "Angie," and "It's Only Rock 'N Roll," and a "long-term campaign to reposition the Rolling Stones's entire catalogue for the digital age."

Grandpa Jagger also displayed his energetic strutting and pouting in the Martin Scorsese (who is also 65) 2008 rock documentary, Shine a Light. But he will have to wait another five years for free roof insulation, according to Reuters. That benefit is available only to Brits over age 70.

More older Americans now work as retail salespersons than in any other occupation. But baby boomers are expected to find other things to do besides being store clerks as they come to dominate the 55-plus age bracket.

Boomers are likely to land in growth fields that welcome older workers, according to a new Urban Institute study. And many boomers will breathe a sigh of relief to find that retail jobs did not make the top 20 occupations projected to be the fastest growing among the older set.

Most people who diligently tuck money into a 401(k) know that those dollars are intended for retirement. But many 401(k)'s have provisions that allow workers to take loans when necessary. And economically squeezed workers are increasingly raiding their retirement plans to make ends meet.

Here's how 401(k) loans work. If your 401(k) plan allows loans, you can borrow $50,000 or one half of the vested balance from your retirement account, whichever is lower. Any loan has to be repaid within five years, except for loans taken out by first-time homeowners who get up to 15 years to repay.

Sometimes, saving for retirement seems an awful lot like going to the dentist. You worry about it a lot before you go. Then, you busy yourself with some extra brushing and flossing immediately preceding your visit. But after you finally succumb to a half-hour under the bright lights, your shiny and smooth teeth can make you feel somehow healthier.

A study released yesterday by the Hartford insurance company and MIT AgeLab quantified the retirement anxiety we all face. And no matter what we do to prepare, it never seems to be enough—especially in the years immediately preceding retirement. Women in particular seem to have a nagging little voice in their head telling them to plan more for retirement and scolding them if they haven't saved enough.