4 Reasons to Relocate in Retirement - Motley Fool

Many seniors wind up retiring in the same place they lived during their working years. And if the city or town you lived in throughout your career is filled with amenities, family members, and friends, then you may want to stay put during your golden years. At the same time, relocating in retirement could make for a more relaxed, stress-free lifestyle. Here are a few reasons to consider making a move.

1. You live somewhere with a high cost of living

Some cities are more expensive than others across the board. Often, living in a pricey city gives you access to better jobs and a higher paycheck, but once you stop working, that's no longer a motivating factor to stay. Therefore, if you live someplace where the overall cost of living is high, moving could allow you to better stretch your limited income.

IMAGE SOURCE: GETTY IMAGES.

2. You live in an area with high income or property taxes

High taxes can be a source of financial stress in retirement, even if you live someplace that isn't all that expensive. Though you won't be collecting a paycheck from a full-time job, you'll still have income from Social Security, retirement savings (hopefully), or maybe a part-time job or business. The less tax you pay on that income, the more money you'll have left over to spend.

The same holds true for property taxes. Many seniors enter retirement with their mortgages already paid off, but even if you own your home outright, high property taxes can be brutal when you're on a fixed income. Moving someplace where it's cheaper to own a home could therefore help you better manage your limited income.

3. You live in a state that taxes Social Security

Most states do not impose a tax on Social Security benefits, but there are 13 that do:

1. Colorado
2. Connecticut
3. Kansas
4. Minnesota
5. Missouri
6. Montana
7. Nebraska
8. New Mexico
9. North Dakota
10. Rhode Island
11. Utah
12. Vermont
13. West Virginia

The good news is that most of these states also offer exemptions for low-income to middle-income households, so if your retirement income isn't particularly high, you may avoid taxes on your Social Security benefits. The only states that don't offer an exemption at all are Minnesota, North Dakota, Vermont, and West Virginia. Still, it pays to consider moving someplace where you won't have to worry about state taxes on your benefits.

That said, some of the above states may offer a lower cost of living on a whole, so don't let taxes on Social Security benefits be the sole factor that informs your decision. Also, keep in mind that even if you manage to avoid Social Security taxes at the state level, you may be taxed on those benefits at the federal level, especially if they're not your only source of retirement income.

4. You live someplace where you absolutely need a car

Living in a walkable city, or one with public transportation, could save you a significant amount of money during retirement by allowing you to get by without a car. It costs $8,849 a year, on average, to own a vehicle, according to AAA.

Meanwhile, walking is free, and public transportation can be relatively cheap compared to automobile ownership, especially since many cities offer discounts to seniors. Living someplace walkable can also help keep you in shape, thereby saving you some money on healthcare.

Relocating in retirement isn't an easy thing to do. It costs money to pack up your life and move, but if you make that investment, it could make your golden years easier from a financial perspective. And who knows? You may find that your new city offers more activities and social opportunities than you had access to previously.

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https://www.fool.com/retirement/2019/09/01/4-reasons-to-relocate-in-retirement.aspx

2019-09-01 10:18:00Z
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The 3 Best Ages to Claim Social Security Benefits - Motley Fool

Whether you're already retired or plan to retire at some point in the future, the data doesn't lie: Social Security has a good chance of helping you to make ends meet.

According to data from the Social Security Administration, more than 3 out of 5 retirees lean on the program to account for at least half of their monthly income. Meanwhile, two separate polls from Gallup found that 90% of current retirees, and 83% of future retirees, will rely on Social Security as either a "major" or "minor" source of income. This means that deciding when to take Social Security just might be the most important decision seniors make.

Image source: Getty Images.

Your claiming age has a big impact on how much you'll receive from Social Security

Although there are a number of factors that can affect how much seniors are paid by Social Security, including your work history, earnings history, and birth year, it's your claiming age that can have the biggest impact on your monthly and lifetime payout.

As you may already be aware, Social Security allows eligible retirees to begin taking their benefit at age 62, or any point thereafter. The catch is that the program incents patience. For each year an individual holds off on taking their payout, it'll grow by approximately 8%, up until age 70.

All things being equal -- work history, earnings history, and birth year (which determines your full retirement age) -- a person claiming at age 70 could receive a monthly payout that's up to 76% higher than someone claiming as early as possible at age 62. The trade-off being that the person claiming at 62 could receive a (reduced) payout for up to eight years before the individual at age 70 receives their first payout.

Trying to figure out which claiming strategy works best for your situation isn't easy, especially given that we don't know our expiration date, and there's no concrete guide that works for everyone.

Image source: Getty Images.

The three best ages to take your Social Security benefit

However, there is a new study from United Income that took a hard look at Social Security claiming data from the University of Michigan's Health and Retirement Study (HRS) to determine the ages where taking Social Security benefits was optimal. The results showed an almost perfect inversion of when people are taking benefits versus when they should be taking them.

According to the analysis from United Income, just 6.5% of the senior households that were included via the HRS would have made an optimal claiming choice by taking their payout at ages 62, 63, or 64. Yet, close to 4 out of 5 senior households that were analyzed had taken their payouts prior to reaching age 65. In layman's terms, these early claimants wound up leaving a lot of money on the table, at least in hindsight.

On the other end of spectrum, United Income was able to identify a handful of ages that maximized what claimants received over their lifetime. The data showed that 57% of seniors would have been better off waiting until age 70 to take their payout, with around 10% benefiting from an age 67 claim, and just shy of 10% from an age 69 claim. And yes, if you're curious, age 68 was the fourth-most optimal claiming age. In effect, more than 4 out of 5 seniors would be best off waiting until age 67 or later to begin taking their benefit. And, as a reminder, age 67 is the full retirement age for anyone born in 1960 or later.

Image source: Getty Images.

Your claiming strategy is a bit of science and luck

While the data is pretty clear that seniors would overwhelmingly be better off waiting to take their Social Security benefit, the fact remains that this suggestion won't work for everyone. That's because none of us knows (thankfully) our expiration date in advance, which is an important piece of information if we're going to maximize our lifetime payout from the program.

In order for seniors to have the best chance at maximizing their lifetime benefit, they'll need to really think about the variables that matter most to them. This involves taking into consideration your health history, financial situation (i.e., need for immediate income), and marital status, to name a few factors.

For example, if you're in excellent health; have no chronic health conditions; and have immediate family members, such as parents, who have lived well into their 80s, if not longer, science would suggest that you have longevity on your side. That would mean a later Social Security claim should give you the best chance to maximize your monthly and long-term payout.

However, some luck is involved, too. Without knowing our expiration date, we simply won't know if we made an optimal claiming decision until well after the fact. All we can say with certainty, at least from United Income's analysis via the HRS, is that far too many seniors claim Social Security benefits early, and it's resulted in a lot of money being left on the table.

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https://www.fool.com/retirement/2019/09/01/the-3-best-ages-to-claim-social-security-benefits.aspx

2019-09-01 10:06:00Z
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Gut Check Time for Treasuries After Biggest Rally Since 2008 - Bloomberg

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1. Gut Check Time for Treasuries After Biggest Rally Since 2008  Bloomberg
2. What the Jackson Hole Summit commentary augurs for global financial markets  Moneycontrol
3. Only the Fed Can Save Us  The New York Times
4. Worried About Negative Interest Rates Coming? They Are Already Here, And That Is A Serious Problem  Forbes
5. View full coverage on Google News

https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2019-09-01/gut-check-time-for-treasuries-after-biggest-rally-since-2008

2019-09-01 04:46:00Z
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China's factory activity shrinks for fourth month as trade pressure mounts - Investing.com

© Reuters. Worker welds automobile parts at a workshop manufacturing automobile accessories in Huaibei, Anhui

By Roxanne Liu and Dominique Patton

BEIJING (Reuters) - Factory activity in China shrank in August for the fourth month in a row as the United States ramped up trade pressure and domestic demand remained sluggish, pointing to a further slowdown in the world's second-largest economy.

Persistent weakness in China's vast manufacturing sector could fuel expectations that Beijing needs to roll out stimulus more quickly, and more aggressively, to weather the biggest downturn in decades.

The Purchasing Managers' Index (PMI) fell to 49.5 in August, China's National Bureau of Statistics said on Saturday, versus 49.7 in July, below the 50-point mark that separates growth from contraction on a monthly basis.

A Reuters poll showed analysts expected the August PMI to stay unchanged from the previous month.

The official factory gauge showed growing trade frictions with the United States and cooling global demand continued to wreak havoc on China's exporters.

Export orders fell for the 15th straight month in August, although at a slower pace, with the sub-index picking up to 47.2 from July's 46.9.

Total new orders - from home and abroad - also continued to fall, indicating domestic demand remains soft, despite a flurry of growth-boosting measures over the past year.

"Frontloading of exports to the U.S. ahead of higher tariffs supported trade and overall activity growth, but this effect will likely fade in the next few months," said analysts at Goldman Sachs (NYSE:) in a note.

Manufacturers in consumption-oriented industries such as the auto sector have been especially vulnerable. Carmakers such as Geely (HK:) and Great Wall (SS:) have slashed expectations for sales and profits.

The data showed activity at medium- and small-sized firms contracted, even as large manufacturers, many backed by the government, managed to expand in August.

Factories continued to shed jobs in August amid the uncertain business outlook. The employment sub-index dropped to 46.9, compared with 47.1 in July.

ESCALATIONS

August saw dramatic escalations in the bitter year-long Sino-U.S. trade row, with President Donald Trump announcing early in the month that he would impose new tariffs on Chinese goods from Sept. 1, and China letting its yuan currency sharply weaken days later.

After Beijing hit back with retaliatory tariffs, Trump said existing levies would also be raised in coming months. The combined moves now effectively cover all of China's exports to the United States.

Trump said late on Friday that trade teams from both sides continue to talk and will meet in September, but tariff increases on Chinese goods set to go into effect on Sunday will not be delayed.

The U.S. president had said earlier in the week that China wants to reach a deal "very badly", citing what he described as increasing economic pressure on Beijing and job losses.

But most analysts are highly doubtful of an end to the dispute any time soon, and some have recently cut growth forecasts for China in coming quarters.

The sudden deterioration in trade ties has prompted speculation over whether China needs to roll out more forceful measures to keep growth from sliding below 6% this year, the bottom end of its target range of around 6.0-6.5%.

Analysts widely expect Beijing will cut some of its major lending rates in September for the first time in four years to help stabilize growth.

But sources had told Reuters before the latest trade escalations that big benchmark rate cuts were considered a last resort, as policymakers worry that could fuel a further build-up in debt and squeeze bank's profit margins, heightening financial sector risks.

So far, Beijing has relied on a combination of fiscal stimulus and monetary easing to deal with the economic slowdown, including hundreds of billions of dollars in infrastructure spending and tax cuts for companies.

But analysts note infrastructure investment growth has remained subdued despite the earlier pump-priming measures, underlining the need for additional support.

SERVICES GROWTH

Growth in China's services sector activity picked up for the first time in five months in August, with the official numbers from a separate business survey rising to 53.8 from 53.7 in August.

Beijing has been relying on a strong services sector to cushion some of the economic impact from trade uncertainties and sluggish manufacturing activities.

However, despite the higher overall figure, activity in the property industry contracted, the statistics bureau said in a statement.

The services sector has been propped up by Chinese consumers' rising wages and robust spending power in recent years. However, the sector softened late last year amid a broader slowdown.

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https://www.investing.com/news/economic-indicators/china-july-factory-activity-shrinks-for-fourth-month-official-pmi-1967760

2019-08-31 08:22:00Z
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Tweeters Make Same Chilling Point About Jack Dorsey's Account Being Compromised - HuffPost

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2019-08-31 07:46:00Z
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GM, Lyft, Waymo want to be allowed to remove driver controls on autonomous cars - CNBC

Chrysler Pacifica hybrid minivan that's party of Waymo's fleet

Waymo

General Motors and Alphabet's Waymo are among the companies encouraging federal safety regulators to swiftly, yet safely, update laws to better accommodate the testing and approval of fully autonomous vehicles on U.S. public roadways, even those without driver controls.

The companies, considered by many to be the leaders in autonomous vehicles, were among roughly 90 organizations and individuals to submit public comments on a proposed regulation on changing rules for self-driving vehicles to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration and Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration.

Lyft, Volvo, Intel and Mercedes-Benz, New York City and nonprofit consumer advocacy organizations like the Center for Auto Safety all weighed in on new safety standards for self-driving vehicles before the public comment period closed Wednesday.

Notably absent from the comments was Tesla, which has been very public about their aspirations for testing and deploying autonomous vehicles. Tesla did not immediately respond for comment.

The comments will be taken into consideration as federal regulators rewrite the rules, NHTSA said in an emailed statement.

While many believe autonomous vehicles can save lives, some have been skeptical about allowing the vehicles on public roads — particularly following a fatal crash involving a self-driving Uber vehicle in March 2018 in Arizona.

Removing manual controls

Regulators are considering allowing vehicles without manual controls, including steering wheels and pedals, to operate on U.S. roadways. Current laws require such equipment, and companies have to request exemptions to launch such vehicles.

GM, which last year along with its Cruise autonomous vehicle subsidiary petitioned for such exemptions, and Lyft support creating separate requirements that meet the "intent" of the safety standards, not the physical equipment.

"GM/Cruise supports NHTSA establishing new definitions that apply only to ADS-DVs [autonomous vehicles] without manual controls," GM said. "It would allow NHTSA to clearly delineate, where necessary, the requirements that apply to ADS-DV versus those that apply to traditional vehicles."

Lyft, in its comments, agreed that a "separate vehicle classification" for autonomous vehicles with their own regulations would "remove regulatory barriers and modify [federal motor vehicle safety standards] that reference a human driver and/or assume some manual control element within the test procedure."

The Alliance of Automobile Manufacturers, which encompasses 12 automakers that represent about 70 percent of all car and light truck sales in the U.S., encouraged NHTSA to use "a parallel and phased approach" that focuses on vehicles with advanced driver-assist systems as well as autonomous vehicles with and without manual controls.

Safety concerns

While many companies supported changes, several safety advocates and consumer watchdog groups cautioned NHTSA on hastily changing regulations.

Consumer Reports, while acknowledging the potential long-term safety benefit of autonomous vehicles, encouraged NHTSA to focus resources on more near-term benefits.

"In short: for NHTSA to save lives and prevent injuries, there are more important subjects the agency should be focusing on than 'removing regulatory barriers,' especially given the robust pace of industry innovation in many areas today, " Consumer Reports said.

The Center for Auto Safety, a Washington-based consumer advocacy organization, said it remains "skeptical" about companies testing vehicles without manual controls, citing "there is no demonstrable evidence" that the vehicles "can safely operate on (and off) America's roads."

—CNBC's contributed to this report.

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https://www.cnbc.com/2019/08/30/gm-lyft-urge-regulators-to-remove-driver-controls-on-autonomous-cars.html

2019-08-30 11:54:48Z
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Altria: JUUL Of Denial - Seeking Alpha

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1. Altria: JUUL Of Denial  Seeking Alpha
2. Juul CEO says 'don't vape,' long-term effects are unknown  INSIDER
3. Juul Labs announces ID verification system to curb underage e-cigarette use  CBS This Morning
4. Mom of teen with vaping addiction warns parents about the dangers of e-cigarettes: ‘It’s stealth by design’  Yahoo Lifestyle
5. FTC Investigates S.F. Based E-Cigarette Maker Juul Over Ads Targeting Teens  KPIX CBS SF Bay Area
6. View full coverage on Google News

https://seekingalpha.com/article/4288858-altria-juul-denial

2019-08-30 10:53:00Z
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