Haven Financial Group Radio
Haven Financial Group Radio - 7/14/24
an official message from Medicare. A new law is helping me save more money on prescription drug costs. Maybe you can save too. With Medicare's Extra Help program, my premium is zero and my out-of-pocket costs are low. Who should apply? Single people making less than $23,000 a year or married couples who make less than $31,000 a year. Even if you don't think you qualify, it pays to find out. Go to ssa.gov/extrahelp Paid for by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services You've worked hard for your money, but do you know how to make it work hard for you? You need a team with experience, vigilance, and a strategy to help you live the retirement you deserve. Find your financial safe haven with Haven Financial Group today. You're listening to the new and improved Haven Financial Group radio show, where we bring you comprehensive weekly financial wisdom from the professionals. It's all about helping you solve retirement problems so you can make your nest egg last. You're tuned to the Haven Financial Group radio show with your host, Larry Colvig and Kim Carrigan. Your guides to weekly retirement confidence. If you're interested in protecting and growing what you have, let us be your financial safe haven. The full minds are always open at 612-504-8400. Now, get your financial questions ready because the Haven Financial Group radio show starts now. Good morning and welcome to the Haven Financial Group radio show. I'm Larry Colvig, founder and CEO of the Haven Financial Group. Thanks for listening. Give us a call today. 612-504-8400, or visit us online at havenfinancialgroup.com. Check out all our activities and classes that we have coming up. And Kim, good to be with you after a great 4th of July, long weekend. Good to be with you. Oh, it's great to be with you as well. And here we are sliding through July and watching a whole lot of things happen on the world stage. And certainly a lot of things happening here in this country as we start to kind of turn our attention toward a big election coming up this fall. I love our topic today because the financial world is certainly dependent on a lot of decisions that are made out of Washington and geopolitical issues. And we're going to talk about what your retirement needs to know associated with some of the decisions that have been made in Washington in the last quarter or so. So, Larry, let's take a look. We're going to first update everybody on the June decisions and some of the things that have come out of the Federal Reserve. Just this last week, Jerome Powell, the Fed Chairman coming out and saying cuts could be coming if he continues to see what he thinks is some positive trend. So we'll talk more about that. Americans just aren't ready to retire, but there is hope. We'll explain what that means. IRA balances are growing, but it could be a double edged sword, which I can't imagine what that means, but I know you'll explain it to us. And finally, lowering the retirement age. Here's why that is complicated. Those are some of our subjects today that we're going to talk about. We want to get started by talking about some of the changes that happened in the month of June and how they relate to the Federal Reserve. So, again, Larry, were you surprised by Chairman Powell's comments this last week about the fact that he could start cutting some some rates? Not fully surprised. The Federal Reserve has a great deal of control of the financial situation and the markets of the United States and their task to keep the U.S. economy in balance by influencing interest rates. And certainly the Fed Chair Powell has been in the news a lot in the last two years for obvious reasons with inflation out of control and getting better. He did express some satisfaction. You know, with the progress, although we're still always from that 2% target, but there has been some good progress, but he's looking for more sustainable progress, which I get personal expenditures are actually down about 4% from what they were a year ago. So that's good, but he really emphasized not moving too quickly. They're being very cautious. It's really a fine line to be, if you do it too fast or too slow, there's repercussions, inflation, or, you know, the economy really pulled back. He did mention that what I thought was interesting is that really, they're not really reliant on making decisions based upon the political in the election, which I thought was interesting. He goes, you know, they just got to do their job as they normally would. I don't know about that one because I think the election is good. I think election has a lot to do with a lot of things and especially with both sides of the aisle being so far apart and so many things that kind of surprised me a little bit. So again, there comes the good that with the bad with these decisions, but I wasn't fully surprised just somewhat. Yeah. Well, you know, I think first off, a lot of people get very frustrated with the idea that they're not moving more quickly to bring these rates down, but I think for maybe those of us on the outside, I'm not sure everyone's fully grasping the repercussions of bringing it down too quickly. So I admire the fact that I think he moves pretty slowly and that he plans to continue to do so. I know he was asked specifically what would happen in September at the meeting and he's not willing to commit to that quite yet. Do you anticipate that it'll be at that September meeting or will they push to a little later in the fall? I think they're going to push it back. Of course, a lot of it will depend upon what July and August bring, but he wasn't ready to commit on any dates whatsoever. I think that my opinion is that they're going to push it back and there's pros and cons that come with that. And one of the pros is we finally can make some interest on some of these fixed income types of investments, which we and I have talked about with high yield savings accounts and CDs, five plus percent. You know, that's good news. That's really good news. So people should be getting some returns on that. And I think that's going to stay around a while for some people that are into income annuities. Because of the higher interest rates, there's higher payouts for these income annuities. And, you know, I always say people, if they're looking at annuities, should that get educated in all the various areas of those. You know, the challenge is that we've had some declining bond values because of that, because higher rates, they move in opposite directions, higher interest rate, lower bond values. So there's always pros and cons with this. That's why people just need to make sure that they understand what they're doing as far as their retirement planning and their investments, and make sure they're in the right place at the right time. So these don't have such a negative impact on retirement. Absolutely. You've talked about some of the impacts that some of these changes throughout the month of June and the Federal Reserve's announcements might have on retirees. Let's talk about, you know, is the Fed moves slowly. What kind of impact do you think that will have on volatility when it comes to the markets? And then let's relate that back again to retirees. Well, I think if they, by moving slowly, the markets have been very, very strong. Yes, they've jumped around a little bit, but I see a strong market. The economy is still strong. A lot of hinges, I think, still on that election, which everybody's going to talk about. And I think one thing we know is there's going to be chaos no matter what happens. I think that's pretty obvious. But again, lowering interest rates can stimulate, you know, the economic growth by encouraging borrowing and investment, but excessively slow, you know, low rates may lead to inflation, which he's really trying to avoid. And, you know, what that does is it erodes the purchasing power and potentially undermining the desired expansion of companies. So it's, it's a very delicate balancing act, and they're taking the very cautious approach. Absolutely. So, Larry, tell me what it is that you are telling your clients who are coming in and are feeling the same way that we're feeling today as we talk about this, which is just a lot of uncertainty. How are you guiding them? Well, here's one thing we want to be, and that's very consistent. Our approach is consistent. It doesn't change. You know, we're looking at things from a retirement perspective and visiting with both for the most part. I mean, we take care of clients, kids that are younger, but that are, you know, five years before retirement or in retirement. So we start down to start with the same process. We sit, we get an idea, ask a lot of questions, take a lot of notes. You know, that lead, that can lead to an evaluation and some recommendations and suggestions and, you know, really have helping people get an awareness of understanding of what they're doing, why they're doing it, stress test that portfolio, making sure they're in the right place at the right time. So these things, this volatility, which happens, that's what the market does, will not have a negative impact or a major negative impact on their decision making and making knee jerk reactions and have a negative impact on their retirement plan. So consistency by educating and having, you know, helping them with awareness and understanding. Sure. Have you had clients who have come in and wanted to pull everything out or, you know, that fear factor has played a part in decision making. Yeah, actually more in the last couple weeks, because of all the election discussions and, you know, I've said it before, historically speaking, in the markets, election years are not bad. Now, that doesn't mean it's going to be great or good this year, but I have had more discussions of people being fearful. Well, Larry, should we just put everything to the sidelines right now because of that. And again, we, if you have a plan, first of all, get a plan, stick to the plan. And let's not, let's just not make, you know, decisions that are based upon the news of the day. I mean, that's not a good way to retirement plan is negative news, big decisions. No, let's look at this from your plan perspective. And first of all, people have to have one. Yeah, absolutely. So if you are listening to us and you're thinking to yourself, number one, I don't have a plan. So I do need to get a plan or maybe you have a portfolio that hasn't been stress tested for a while. We would like to invite you to call Haven Financial Group and set up an appointment with a member of the team. Come in, sit down, talk about what your fears might be, what you're concerned about, or maybe, again, the idea that you don't have a plan and what you'd like to have in your retirement. That number is 612-504-8400. I want to give you the number again, 612-504-8400. Again, call Haven Financial Group, sit down with a member of the team, talk to them about what your concerns might be. I mean, I can't imagine that everybody isn't feeling sort of the same thing that we're talking about, whether you're secure in your decision making in the past or not. There is a lot of uncertainty in the world and certainly in the United States right now. There most definitely is. Kim, we've been getting a lot more calls lately from folks listening and thanks for listening. Because of the uncertainty, because of the elections, because of the fear factor, and at the end of the day, you have to have faith in something. The US economy has always bounced back. It remains strong, but volatility is going to come and it's going to go. What happens in between is we get older and the element of time becomes that much more important. And that's what we want to really focus on is folks that come in, they have retirement plans. How are we going to accomplish those goals and objectives? In fact, we're in everything like volatility, growth, life, health, and everything else that goes with it. Absolutely. 612-504-8400. That's the number you call for the Haven Financial Group or go to HavenFinancialGroup.com. When we come back, Americans just aren't saving enough money for retirement, but there is some hope. In fact, I believe that Larry and Haven Financial Group can give you a lot of hope. That's our subject. When we come back, you're listening to the Haven Financial Group Radio Show. Don't go too far. We're gathering more important insights and retirement wisdom. The Haven Financial Group Radio Show will be right back. Stick around. You've got questions. We've got answers. You're tuned to the Haven Financial Group Radio Show with your host, Larry Colvig and Kim Carrigan. Now, back to the show. Welcome back, listeners. My name is Larry Colvig, founder and CEO of the Haven Financial Group. And you're listening to the Haven Financial Group Radio Show, where we discuss crucial retirement and financial topics that really can make the difference between surviving in retirement and thriving in retirement. And again, thanks for listening. Glad to hear with us. And retirement comes quicker than sometimes we think. And is there hope? Well, what I'll say, Kim, is hope is not a plan. We have to have hope, but it's not a plan. We really need to have a specific plan. Absolutely. A lot of Americans are approaching, because we've got these baby boomers who are now, you know, approaching or in retirement. And they're asking themselves, "Have we saved enough money? Do we have money to retire?" And I think in some cases, the answer may unfortunately be no, but in a lot of cases, in most cases, the answer is yes with a plan. So let's walk through a little bit about what you're telling your clients when it comes to putting together a plan and making sure they have enough money to get into retirement and to live comfortably. You know, the biggest questions you and I have talked about this is, "People come in and do I have enough to retire or when am I going to run out of money?" You know, there's some staggering statistics out there that nearly 40% of Americans are at risk of running out of money in retirement. Question is, at what age will you be when you do run out of money? Is that 95 or is that 75? Kind of a critical assessment or question to ask yourself, and that's where we do projections and help people understand based upon reasonable returns and adjusted for inflation. You know, what those numbers look like, and sometimes those numbers are mind-boggling to people that they're in a much better position than they think they are. And sometimes it's an eye-opening experience to go, "Wow, we're not prepared." And 40% of Americans running out of money in retirement, that's not a good thing. So, you know, that can be some certain challenges is, "Okay, then what? Are you going to rely on those kids? Have they saved? Are you going to start? Do they have to support mom and dad?" So there's major concerns with that and retirement accounts have increased in recent years, which is good, but everything costs more. So it's all relative to that. But again, that's why a failure to plan is a plan to fail and we don't want to fail in retirement. Absolutely not. So do you think that lawmakers can do something to help Americans be more prepared? Well, if you're of the mindset that you want to rely more on government to fund retirement, that's one thing. But I think, again, my perspective is, do you really want to rely on the government? Or can you independently think that be responsible, work hard, save, do what you can rather than relying on the government? And I'm very careful. Too many people rely on the government, they just do. And that's not a good thing, because where are you going to draw your income from? Do you want to draw it from something that you've worked hard to put together or do you want to rely on the government for that income? I completely understand Social Security is a major income stream for retired Americans and we educate and help lots of people in making the right decision on when they should take it. But where else are you going to draw from? Income is the major, major discussion in retirement, replacing that paycheck you receive for years with something now. Is it your IRA money? Do you have a pension? Do you take a lump sum from that pension? Or do you turn on those payments? These are also part of the decisions that we help people make, so they make the right decision and they make an educated decision, so income is so important. What I hear you saying, which certainly follows suit with what you talk about, I'm consistently here on the show, education is so important when it comes to retirement. Well, education is the potential for power, it's what you do with it, and it's why our classes, they're online, you visit us online, you can see where they're at, they're very well attended, and people need to learn, they want to learn, and no better way than to come out to one of those. They are educational, we're not selling you anything, and people do find that out when they come in and, you know, again, rely on, you know, they call it a generational deficit when those kids are going to have to support you if you don't have enough money in retirement. And Kim, you're right, you know, the education piece of, okay, how can I get guaranteed income rather than variable income, and maybe I mentioned it earlier, maybe annuities are the right decision or the wrong decision. We look at, there's annuities out there today that have lifetime income payouts that are guaranteed, it's a way to actually sell, I call it a self-directed pension. Now annuities aren't for everybody, absolutely not, but they can be, if you're worried about lifetime income, they can be a great way to learn about those. Again, there's four types of annuities, nobody has to have any, but they can factor into a very efficient, strong portfolio if done right. Sure. Now you've mentioned a couple of times here on the show and let's just tell everybody how they can go about learning more about those learning sessions that Haven Financial Group puts on. You go to HavenFinancialGroup.com, okay, so HavenFinancialGroup.com. There you'll find a list of some of the upcoming educational seminars that Larry and his team will be putting on throughout the Twin City area. You do need to sign up, right Larry, because they do fill up very quickly and you guys just want to get a sense of how many people are coming, correct? Yeah, we do a variety of different educational classes. I can tell you next week, we have two retirement dinner classes and we don't do hardly any dinners at all anymore. Both of them are almost completely full. They're done at Porter Creek in Burnsville. They're almost full, so they do need to sign up. That one is a wide brush of all the retirement things that we help people in. I'm there to talk about a variety of things, investments and so on and so forth. We bring Carrie, our state planning attorney in. She does a little speaks a little bit on a state planning. Glenn talks about Medicare and long term care and life insurance. So it's a wide brush on all the retirement topics, so very informative sign up and Social Security and tax classes at local libraries. We do those, an upcoming class. I don't have the dates set about the truth about annuities. So we do tax classes. So all of these things that are so relative to retirement and there's no cost. It's educational. What I can tell you is for those that do attend, they do have the opportunity to come on. Come on in and visit with us. What that looks like is simply an informational meeting. Get to know you. You get to know us again, asking lots of questions, taking notes and frequently we get people to say, my guy or gal has never asked us about this. Nobody's ever inquired about this. And these are important probing questions that people deserve answers and much of our job description. I always say is to answer questions. That's really, that's how that's how people learn. Sure, absolutely. So again, Haven Financial Group dot com. Be sure you check it out. And if you see one of these classes that's coming up that is of interest to you, be sure to sign up. So Larry, one last thing on this topic. And then we can move on. Again, Americans just aren't quite ready for retirement. That may be the case, but there are a lot of people who are more ready than they think. Isn't that true? And if they come in and sit down with you and say, here's what I've got, Larry, please help me. Tell me, do I have enough? And how do I use this in my retirement? I think people might be very surprised, correct? Yeah, we like those meetings. When people come in worried about retirement and because they just really haven't reflected or given it much thought, I just had the couple that was in. She retired from Medtronic. And, you know, for much of her career, she worried about retiring, not having enough money. The same things we talk about. But, you know, in our discussions, it wasn't flattery. But I said, the reality is barring any life changing moment, you guys are very well prepared. You're not running out of money. At age 95, you still have a couple million dollars to pass on to the kids. If that's important, if not, you know, you have the ability to spend more than you are. And they left with an idea of, wow, we feel much better. And that's based up on numbers and facts, real numbers. And the good news is they had a good plan. We tweaked it. They had a really good idea of what their expenses are in retirement, which is important. They had some big ticket items. They were just very, very organized, which is very helpful. When it comes to retirement, if you're winging it, it's probably not a good approach. Yes, hope is not a plan. So start with that again. You have to have faith in something. But again, have more than hope actually have a plan. And we want to remind everyone that you don't have to necessarily have millions and millions in the bank to be able to benefit from visiting with Larry and the team at Haven Financial Group. Correct. Kim, I'm glad you mentioned that, because so often people, they bury their head in their sand. They feel bad. I don't have enough. You know what, if you're listening, no matter if you have a little bit or a lot and everything in between, whether you have a big family, no family, complicated situation or simple situation, you know what, you owe it to yourself to at least have a discussion. Don't feel bad. There's no cost for a conversation. At the end of the day, if we can, you know, give confirmation and affirmation, great. You know, we are looking to cultivate long term relationships and help people. Absolutely. There's no secret there. And we have the ability to do that. And it starts by building that relationship. And that's how you reach out and get hold of the folks at Haven Financial Group. Still coming your way here today. IRA balances. They are growing. So that's some really positive news. However, it could be a double edged sword. And Larry's going to explain to us exactly what that means. When we come back right here on the Haven Financial Group Radio Show. Ready to find your financial safe haven? Your dream retirement is in reach. Don't go away. The Haven Financial Group Radio Show will be right back. Are you worried that your financial strategy might be missing something? Well, you're in the right place. Larry Colvig is back and ready to help you find your financial safe haven. Good morning. And welcome back to the Haven Financial Group Radio Show. Give us a call at 612-504-8400. Or visit us online at Havenfinanceagroup.com. I'm Larry Colvig, founder and CEO of the Haven Financial Group, talking about retirement. Are you prepared or ill-prepared? Absolutely. We want to talk about IRA balances. In our last segment, we talked about the fact that many Americans are not prepared for retirement, although it seems to be getting a bit better. There are some new statistics out there that show that IRA balances are also growing. But people have to be very careful because that could trigger, of course, higher tax issues for them. So let's walk through a little bit of this. Larry, do you have some statistics on the median size of an IRA? Yeah, the good news is the balances are going up. And they should because expenses are not necessarily going down by any stretch. The median IRA for a retirement plan is roughly about 87,000 this past year to about 81,000 in 2019. So they've gone up. Fidelity came out with a report that indicated the average IRA balance was 127,000 in change in the first quarter of this year. And that's a 29% increase from 10 years ago. So we're heading in the right direction. Now, there is consequences if one doesn't put thought into this. And this is where we really lend a hand to people is that's great to have higher pre tax balances. You know, you've probably been preached your whole life to do it. And you get the tax benefit, you know, by doing this on an annual basis, but that can lead to some tax repercussions. You know, in recent years, the required minimum distribution where the government says you have to take money out, it has increased from 70 and a half to 72 last year. It's 73 this year and an eight years that goes to the age of 75 and required minimum distribution if you're listening is amount that the government's going to force you to take out of those pre tax accounts. Now, mind you, if those balance are getting bigger, you have to take start taking about just over 4% at that age. And every year thereafter incrementally goes up bigger balances more taxes, which leads to. We're big believers in forward thinking tax planning, again, tax planning, successful tax planning leads to successful tax preparation. With these RMDs, if we could do things early on in retirement, like Roth conversions or getting money out of non qualified accounts without any capital gains tax that tax planning discussion. And just this past week, I bet you I had four different meetings where they had done a great job saving, but now they are not they haven't done any tax planning. And most people in this area are not getting the attention they deserve and in retirement, there should be more discussion on taxes than ever. Not that we're trying to make it complicated, but you want to make sure you're taking advantage of these things that you still can do because these tax laws, they're going to change in two years. So people have been taking advantage and many people have not been taking advantage because they've not had the conversations and quite frankly, the coordination of investments, estate planning and tax planning, just doesn't get the attention it should. We're at the end of the day, these things need to be coordinated. They should be coordinated. They don't all have to be under the same roof. But in at Haven Financial Group, we coordinate them very well because we're all here. And we talk to each other and put our minds together to make sure we're not missing opportunities, having unforced errors or missed opportunities that could have been avoided had somebody added some value by creating the conversations that most people are not having. This can also affect your Medicare and Medicaid payments, correct? Yeah, good point. Glenn at our office does all Medicare. And again, one of the top Medicare guys in the state of Minnesota, he truly is very knowledgeable. He was on the air with us a couple of weeks ago, of course. Yeah, higher income. Well, a lot of people don't know is Medicare is a means tested program. The more you make, the more you potentially can pay. Again, if you have a high income and they go back two years. So if you had a high income year, two years ago, there is a Irma. It's called Irma. There is something that Glenn helps a lot of people do to help get that down. But if you make too much higher, you know, in those years, you could be paying more. One can give Uncle Sam a tip if they want to, but it's not going to be me. And the goal is here. Give them what they did, what they're supposed to have, but don't give them any extra. Absolutely. There's also ways around maybe distributing that money for inheritance purposes that can help you tax wise, correct? Yeah, for those when they get to the required minimum distribution age, if they don't need the money, they're called qualified charitable distributions. And we have numerous clients that send their requirement and distribution amounts directly to their favorite charities or nonprofit organizations, which is a great opportunity. Now, you don't give charitable for tax reasons. But if you are charitable, it does open up a lot of different tax avenues that we'll discuss potentially to reduce your taxes. So again, having those conversations, making sure you're not missing those opportunities. Come fourth quarter. I've said it before, we're going to have the tax conversation, Roth conversion conversation with everybody to make sure they're doing the right thing and I'll add one thing to that. We do lots of rollovers from 401ks and other employer sponsored plans. Many of our clients, you know, when they get to that age, they want simplification. They want consolidation. And you can do that and still maintain diversification. So if you have multiple 401ks in various areas, they're orphan 401ks you have worked at that job and years. We can do rollovers and that have any tax implications and really simplify. Just last week, I had a couple from Lakeville in and between the two of them, I think they had seven different old 401ks that we simplified and they're like, wow, now we don't have to get all these things in the mail. Good idea. Again, simplify, consolidate. Absolutely. I want to go back to this just one more time too. People come in and sit down to talk with you and they're trying to determine their, their tax burden. When they start to talk about wealth transfer and inheritance, which I know you have an attorney there in the office who does these kinds of things. Can that help them with their tax burden if they address that early? Yeah. If legacy is important to one and a lot for a lot of people, it is. You don't spend it all. Do you want to pass it to the kids or nieces and nephews or whomever. You want to think of that from a tax perspective as well. The more money you can get into Roth's. Hey, guess what? If the kids inherit those Roth IRAs, and oftentimes when they do inherit, they could be in their peak earnings years. Again, consider the tax implications that could go into that. Much of that IRA you pass on to your kids or loved ones, they could be taxed higher. Do you really want to do that to the money that you work so hard for. So, again, thinking about legacy, what kind of accounts. And by the way, make sure you have beneficiaries in your accounts. And I only mentioned it because it sounds so elementary. But if you'd be surprised how frequently I look at statements, we look at statements, the team looks at statements, and there's no beneficiaries. You want to make sure that they're current and they're up to date. And again, I don't want to be redundant, but I see it so often. Make sure that it's beneficiaries are on there and it's done right. Absolutely. So, if you knew would like to sit down with one of the members of the team to talk about any of these issues, be the tax issues or estate planning types of issues or any kind of retirement issues. We want to give you a telephone number at 612-504-8400. One of the things that's great about Haven Financial, one of the many things that's great about it is that there are experts in all of these fields under one roof. And wow, isn't it easier when we talk about simplifying if you have people in the office who know each part of your plan and understand how it integrates into other parts of the plan. Haven Financial Group can offer you those kinds of services. It's 612-504-8400. You can also reach them at HavenFinancialGroup.com. Alright, so Larry, we have now talked about all kinds of tax issues. Let's talk about the possibility of the government lowering the retirement age and what some of the consequences of that might be. Again, we're in the midst of an election year and that could change a lot of things in this country depending on the outcome after the election is over and this is one of those issues that is being discussed. So, we'll talk about that when we come back right here on the Haven Financial Group Radio Show. Don't go too far. We're gathering more important insights and retirement wisdom. The Haven Financial Group Radio Show will be right back. Stick around. You've got questions? We've got answers. You're tuned to the Haven Financial Group Radio Show with your host, Larry Colvig and Kim Carrigan. Now, back to the show. Welcome back to the Haven Financial Group Radio Show. I'm Larry Colvig, founder and CEO of the Haven Financial Group. Again, thanks for listening where we talk retirement every week, the good, the bad and the ugly and everything that's going on in this world. So, again, Kim, welcome back. Thank you, sir. Good to be back with you. Let's talk a little bit about retirement age. Larry, first off, I think a lot of people probably come to you and say, do I have to retire at 62, 65, you know, 68? And what are the benefits that I can reap if I retire at 62, 65, 68? So, let's first just talk a little bit about that. Well, income, again, when you retire, income is the name of the game. The early years of the go-go years to the slow go to the no-go years, it's going to take money. And again, lowering it is certainly could put a lot more stress on the government and funding. And at the end of the day, do you want to rely on the government or do you want to be independently responsible for your own retirement? My opinion is, over the years, societies become too reliant. Now, I'm not against them lowering, if that is the right thing to do. However, they've talked about social security, lowering that. We already have financial problems and solvency issues with the Social Security Trust Fund. They've also talked about raising the retirement age. It's been a, there's a big debate going on over the retirement age, especially in this election year. You know, both Biden and Trump, both of them have discussed lowering their age. Without an interesting research recently that 79% of working Americans consider a candidate's stance on social security as an influential factor, that's a very high percentage. With about 47% expressing willingness to vote for a candidate advocating to lower the retirement age, you know, there are positive and there's negative aspects with either or. Do we really want to do anything too drastic? I don't think so. Because of the additional funding, we already have, you know, we don't want to focus on the negative here, but we already have debt in this country that's astronomical. Do we want to add to the debt? How would we pay for it? These are all important questions. So my encouragement would be to be independently responsible, work hard, put away money, defend for yourself. And at the end of the day, have a plan. What does that look like? And look at all the various factors that go into that. Again, don't rely solely on the government. Well, this discussion certainly brings us to the issue of Social Security, as you have mentioned, and I know a lot of people who are listening are very concerned about whether Social Security will still be solvent when it's time for them to draw Social Security. And the concept of lowering the age means that more people are going to be drawing and leaves people with a lot of concern. What's your take on the Social Security system? Well, it's broken. It really hasn't been adjusted for inflation for years. You know, it's a hot button, not just in this election time. It has been for years. It's been highly politicized. You know, it's not just a talking point for news outlets or ratings or to showcase political opinions or any of that. For many, it's the backbone of people's retirement. They paid in all these years. They like to get their money back. The problem is we have a shortage and we won't get into the politics, you know, that they've got their hands in the cookie jar over the years, potentially at the end of the day, maybe, probably. But again, not becoming too reliant. My opinion is, will they do away with Social Security? I don't believe that for a minute. They've been talking about this for years. It's still here. Do I think there needs to be some reform and some changes? Of course. So, you know, I use this analogy that one of my clients several years ago that if it's here when I retire, it's icing on the cake. Well, he retired two years ago, it's still here. So he's enjoying a lot of icing. Yeah, exactly. Just don't become too reliant on it. Yeah, but really look at it from the perspective of, do you have a pension? Many people today do not, including me. So then can you can you create a self directed pension? Yes, if you put your mind to it and if you have the assets, what are your retirement assets? What do you have to live off of? When will you run out of money if ever? These are the things that we really put into the planning process and we don't just come up with a plan and stick to it forever. It takes modifications. It takes adjustments. I always say that life doesn't always cooperate with your calendar. Health can come sometimes creep into it. Sometimes the early years you want to, you're on the go and expenses are higher. Middle years, you slow down a little bit and then expenses can go down and then oftentimes latter years of retirement, they go up with health care expenses. And I saw another staggering fact to, you know, when we talk about the US debt and relying on government, the Congressional Budget Office, the number was the federal government spent about one third of its budget on seniors in 2005. Last year, that grew to over 40% or 1.5 trillion of the annual budget. And by 2029, it's supposed to be half of the budget. That's a lot of money spending on seniors. I'm all for it. But if people would just be more responsible, I understand life, throw some curveballs. It does happen. But what's your plan? Right. Are you relying solely on the government? Or are you going to do your part and be independently responsible for your retirement? That's what we believe in. Sure, absolutely. I want to go back to the issue of Social Security because I think this is something that really requires, in many cases, a professional to sit down with employers and employees, employees, I should say, and talk about when to draw Social Security. I don't think that a lot of people understand that there are differing levels of Social Security benefits based on when you begin to draw. And I think that's something you guys at Haven Financial Group do a great job of sitting down with someone explaining to them before they leave their job or they hit their retirement age. You know, just exactly how they should maybe approach that. Yeah. And it's why we teach a lot of these classes on Social Security and educate because, you know, people have their preconceived ideas of, well, I'm just going to turn it on at 62 because that's what everybody does. Well, that's not what everybody should do. Yes, the earliest you can turn it on is 62. It grows by 6% plus the cost of living adjustment between 62 and 66 66 to 70. It grows by 8% plus the cost of living adjustment. So if you're going to continue to work. Maybe it makes sense to wait in our discussions. Our job isn't to try to steer people to wait. It's to does it make sense to wait. Does it not make sense. You know, do you have longevity in the family if you're a married couple, obviously that the lower one obviously goes the way and the higher one remains upon the death of the first spouse. So put some thought into it. Right. You know, the idea that I'm going to stick it to the government and I'm just going to take it right away. Right. Maybe the right decision. Yeah, probably not the right decision. Right. Right. Well, and again, I think a lot of people have that fear that it won't be there when they're ready to draw it. Yeah. And that uncertainty has been there for years. You know, it does pose major concerns to people. I get it. You know, the recent statistics shows that by 2035, we're not going to have enough to pay it all now. That's actually been changed recently from 2033 to 2035. So that's a sign we're headed in the right direction. No, I don't know who's putting the numbers in and how. But it poses a problem in the future. There has to be some adjustments. There has to be some changes. Problem is getting both sides of the aisle to at least, you know, come together in some way shape or form is virtually impossible, but put some thought into it. It's not one glove fits all. Maybe that doesn't mean wait till 70. No, there's some outspoken people out there that say everybody should work till 70. Well, that's simply not true, but only 1 to 2% of Americans wait till 70. And almost 70% of Americans turn it on right at 62 educated decisions are the right decision. Absolutely. And again, you guys do some of these classes on social security. I know that's one of the big subjects that you discuss because a lot of people have a lot of interest in that. The way you could find out about some of these educational classes is to go to Haven Financial Group dot com. That's Haven Financial Group dot com. Take a look at when the next class will be held and where and what's most convenient for you. Be sure you sign up. They are free, but it's important that you go there to the website and you sign up. If you'd like to also discuss coming in and sitting down with part of the team here at Haven Financial Group. That number is 612. 504. 8400. That's 612. 504. 8400. Interesting year, Larry. This this election is turning into something very interesting regardless of where you stand, but certainly is going to have some impact on our economy and a lot of impact on retirees. Yeah, you know, either way, I think it's going to be chaotic come through the election. Just be prepared. Have your plan. At the end of the day, we talk about the retirement puzzle pieces and our mission at Haven Financial Group truly is to help people tie these individual retirement puzzle pieces together. Do you have all the puzzle pieces from estate planning to income planning to tax planning to wealth management, you know, making the right decision and educated decision on social security. By the way, when these folks come to these classes and if they choose to come in on the social social security aspect, we're going to give them. We're going to punch in their numbers and they're going to leave with a 16 page social security maximization report. Very helpful, good, better, best. How do they maximize it? Do they take it early? Do they take it later? And the people find it very helpful. Oftentimes people use that to bring it right to the Social Security Office when it's time to actually implement and start their Social Security payments. So really putting all of the pieces together, all the puzzle pieces, do the best you can. And that puts you that requires some time. I always say retirement is more than a meeting once a year for 45 minutes to an hour. You deserve more time and whoever you're paying to help you through retirement. I just last week had somebody say this, and I've heard it many times. You know, our guy or gal got us to where we're at, but we're not comfortable. They can get us to where we where we need to go in retirement. And I really think that really sums it up. It certainly does. Larry, it's great to be with you this week. You as always, Kim. Thank you so much. Thanks for listening. Again, havenfinance your group.com 6125048400. Have a blessed week and we'll see you next week. Investment Advisory Service is offered through Guardian Wealth Strategies, LLC. Haven Financial Group and Guardian Wealth Strategies, LLC are not affiliated companies. Investments involve risk and unless otherwise stated are not guaranteed. Please consult with the qualified financial advisor and or tax professional before implementing any strategy discussed here in and comments regarding a safe and secure investments and guaranteed income streams only refer to fixed insurance products. They do not refer in any way to securities or investment advisory products. Fixed insurance and annuity product guarantees are subject to the claims, pain, ability of the issuing company. An official message from Medicare. A new law is helping me save more money on prescription drug costs. You may be able to save too. With Medicare's extra help program, my premium is zero and my out of pocket costs are low. 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