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Category: Retirement Planning

A nurse with a clipboard speaks to an older woman sitting on a bed in a bright, modern living room.
  • Financial Planning, Retirement Planning
7 min read

Navigating Medicare: What Retirees Need to Know for Their Financial Plans

Healthcare is often the largest and most unpredictable expense in retirement; it can add up to hundreds of thousands of dollars on average. Though funding for healthcare can come from many sources, Medicare is probably the most important one for most retired Americans and is therefore a major consideration in the financial planning process.
A notebook with "529 plan vs. Roth IRA?" written on a black page, next to a pen and calculator, suggesting a comparison of savings options.
  • College Planning, Retirement Planning
4 min read

From College to Retirement: How 529 Plans Are Evolving

Saving for a child’s education is one of the most loving things you can do, and today’s 529 plans offer more flexibility than ever before. If you’ve been contributing to a 529, you may be wondering what options you have now that life (and legislation) has changed. At Griffin Black, we’re here to help you navigate those decisions with clarity and care. Here are a few timely opportunities worth knowing about.
An elderly woman stands with a cane next to a healthcare worker in scrubs, who is smiling and holding her arm in a supportive manner.
  • Financial Planning, Retirement Planning
6 min read

Planning for Rising Health Care Costs and the Role of HSAs

The cost of health care continues to climb with no signs of slowing down, making it one of the most significant expenses in retirement. As Americans live longer, preparing for these expenses becomes an essential component of any comprehensive financial plan.
An elderly couple sits at a table with drinks, smiling and holding a tablet.
  • Retirement Planning
4 min read

How to Maximize Retirement Savings with Spousal IRAs

Learn about the tax benefits, contribution limits, and other ways that a Spousal IRA can help to optimize your financial future.
People sorting and organizing clothes at a donation center. A person with short grey hair is holding a red and grey piece of clothing.
  • Financial Planning, Retirement Planning
3 min read

Using Qualified Charitable Distributions to Benefit both Yourself and Others

For many individuals, financial planning extends beyond managing their investments with the goal of a comfortable retirement in mind. It can also include the desire to make a positive impact through charitable giving. Charitable Gift Annuities (CGAs) have long been a popular way for individuals to address both their retirement goals as well as their philanthropic interests.
Three people are sitting at a table in an office, engaged in a discussion with a laptop, plants, and papers on the table.
  • Current & Economic Events, My Money & Me, Retirement Planning
4 min read

Big Changes for Retirement Accounts in Congress’s New Spending Bill

In December 2022, Congress passed a new spending bill which also contains many changes to retirement accounts. The changes are extensive, but here is a summary of specific changes that are most likely to impact you.
An elderly couple paddles a red canoe on a calm forest lake, surrounded by lush greenery.
  • Retirement Planning
4 min read

Retirement: Getting Beyond the Numbers  

The popular image of retirement tends to emphasize numbers: a balance in a 401(k) or IRA; a date on the calendar; a quantity of years with the company; a pension plan vesting schedule. For most of us, the questions we ask ourselves as we approach retirement also tend to focus on concepts of numbers and quantity: Do I have enough saved? How much debt should I pay off? What will my medical costs be? What kind of budget should I set? And on it goes. 
An older couple smiles, with the woman leaning her head on the man's shoulder. They are standing outdoors and wearing casual clothing.
  • Retirement Planning
5 min read

Do You Know Your RISA®? Retirement Income Style Awareness 

It’s a well-known fact that people come in all shapes, sizes, and dispositions. Take a close look around at any family reunion and you’ll see it: the crazy aunt who drives too fast and laughs all the time; the bespectacled cousin who always looks like he’s adding a column of numbers, even when he’s talking to you; the grandfather who thinks the sky is always falling; the middle-aged mom who seems to not have a care in the world. And the list goes on.  
A large brown bear stands on grass with a rocky, vegetated backdrop. The bear is looking to the left side of the image.
  • Retirement Planning
4 min read

Waiting Out the Bear: Market Roundup

“How long?” That’s the question on many investors’ mind as we pass the halfway point of 2022. Since its highs last January, the broad equities market in the US, as measured by the S&P 500, fell just over 23% by mid-June, fulfilling the classic definition of a bear market. Since then, the index has clawed back about 6% of the loss, closing (at this writing) a bit below the 4,000 mark.
A weathered wooden sign with the word "Retired" hangs at an angle on a rustic green door with peeling paint.
  • My Money & Me, Retirement Planning, Saving & Budgeting
4 min read

Do You Want to Own Your Future? Here’s How.
A hand drops a coin into a jar labeled "Retirement" filled with coins. An old-fashioned alarm clock and stacks of coins sit next to the jar on a table, with a blurred green background.
  • Financial Planning, Retirement Planning, Saving & Budgeting
7 min read

Four Keys To Retirement Security

"They went to work every day and built a life for themselves, put money away in a savings plan and paid their taxes. And then they got divorced or hurt on the job or sick or widowed or just plain unlucky — and found themselves in the same boat as millions of Americans who are now approaching retirement with most of the financial props knocked out from under them."
A woman and a man sit on a couch looking at documents and a laptop. The woman points at the laptop screen while the man holds papers.
  • Retirement Planning
7 min read

Want to avoid retirement surprises? Talk to your spouse.
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