Retirement may be a long way off for you – or it might be right around the corner. No matter how near or far it is, you’ve absolutely got to start saving for it now. However, saving for retirement isn’t what it used to be with the increase in cost of living and the instability of social security. You have to invest for your retirement, as opposed to saving for it!

Simplification is a beautiful thing in investing.

Many people who lost hugely on investments during the Great Recession are looking for better ways to invest.

Many people struggle to keep all their retirement planning and financial information straight.

Many people have become somewhat jaded in the past decade as they’ve watched retirement funds dwindle in the aftermath of a recession that left an entire economy reeling.

Every wise investor wants to be a better investor.

You’re making plans for a comfortable retirement.

It’s never too early to begin preparing for your retirement and one of the best ways to prepare is to set up an Individual Retirement Account (often referred to as an IRA).

The purpose of an IRA is to serve as a personal tax-qualified retirement savings plan. Anyone who works, whether as an employee or self-employed, can set aside a set amount in an IRA, with the earnings on these investments tax-deferred until the date of distribution. In addition, certain individuals are permitted to deduct all or part of their contributions to the IRA. Plus, as of 1998, certain individuals can also set up Roth IRAs, to which contributions are not deductible, but from which withdrawals at retirement won’t be taxed.

While self-directed IRAs (SDIRAs) are growing wildly in popularity, they remain a bit of a mystery to many investors.

Deciding on an investment strategy is important for your financial future.

What Is MyRA and Is It a Good Idea for You?

Meeting with a financial advisor can be intimidating to many people – especially if you feel like you’re barely treading water in the current economy.

Are there times when it DOESN'T make sense to contribute more money to your IRA or 401k?

The Roth IRA (Individual Retirement Account), named after Senator William V. Roth, Jr., came into effect on January 1, 1998. A result of the Taxpayer Relief Act of 1997, the Roth IRA provides a benefit which is otherwise not available in any other form of retirement savings. If you meet the criteria and subscribe to the Roth IRA, all your savings will be tax-free when you or your beneficiary draws on them.

A Roth IRA is another type of Individual Retirement Account (IRA). With a Roth IRA contributions to the account are not tax deductible, but “qualified” withdrawals from the account are not taxable either. A “qualified” distribution from a Roth IRA is a withdrawal made after the taxpayer attains age 59 ½. Also a Roth IRA is qualified if it is made to a beneficiary after the taxpayer’s death, made because the tax payer is disabled, or made by a first-time homebuyer to acquire their original residence.

Living a life along the beach could be one of your fondest dreams. Maybe you could have one, right after you have retired.

However, retirement is not focused on picturesque views alone. There are other things that you might need when you retire and they may not be properly provided by the people you expect to give them to you.

It’s relatively easy to save for retirement when you’re still young. Five thousand dollars set aside for a new baby grows to an amount that generates over a $100,000 a year in current-day dollars if the money earns 12 percent annually and inflation runs at 3 percent.

Many people plan on investing some of their money so they can have enough to live on when they retire. With the poor economy many people have been starting to learn that that isn't always a safe way to go. Or is it? Is retirement in the stockmarket a viable option and if so, what pitfalls do you need to be on the lookout for?

Take control of your retirement investing in non traditional assets. The Self Directed IRA LLC is a tool that allows you to use your IRA funds to invest in non traditional assets like real estate, oil and gas, tax liens, and many more.

You have been longing for the day that you no longer have to rush for the bus or step on that gas, head for the office as fast as you can in order not to be late.

All of these will come true by the time you reach your retirement age. It is a point in your life wherein work is no longer attractive yet income remains the top most necessity. If the day comes that you will no longer have to work, the biggest dilemma will be on what will happen next?

Let’s face it. Most of the financial advice out there says something like this, “If you make on average $60,000 per year…” Most of the advice is designed for baby boomers about to retire. The young generation 35 years-old and under are not going to relate when their incomes range from $25,000 to $40,000. True their income may rise someday but there is a good chance it could decrease with the onslaught of lay-offs, downsizing and cost cutting. The wages their parents earned who worked at companies like GM making a combined income of benefits and wages in the $65 per hour range are not likely to be around in the future. Many of these companies have two-tier wage systems that hire new workers somewhere around $24 per hour (benefits and wages combined). Not only are low wages going to be a problem but also lack of employment opportunities, high interest mortgages, expensive college education, lack of social security income and major cut backs in all federal spending. So what strategies should a young person making his/her way in a “tough times” economy to do?