Your employer 401k or 403b plan calculates your MRD each year.   The same calculation is done on your IRA accounts.   

Simple math, here's the calculation... they take your year end balance and divide by your life expectancy.  The calculation is approximately 4% of your account balance.  They do this calculation in January each year so you could call your your employer plan or IRA and request the funds now or wait until later this year.

 Probably makes sense to call and request your MRD amount!  You could send a check out or many plans will add your bank and send send electonically.  Pretty simple.

At Fidelity, the average 401(k) balance hit $91,300 by the end of 2014. While that’s up just 2% from 2013, it’s a jump of more than 30% from 2011’s average balance of $69,100, Fidelity reported.

The increase was due in part to the stock market, which saw the S&P 500 climb by more than 10%– its third year of double-digit gains. But a spike in worker contributions also played a significant role.

Workers and their employers contributed an average of $9,670 in 2014, up 4% from the year before.

Sure, head down to your local Social Security office when you reach age 62...get ready-some very long lines!

If you decide to delay benefits until age 70 you'll get a 76% increase, yeah a huge boost.  And, for those whose full retirement age is 66, collecting Social Security benefits at the earliest age, 62, results in a 25% reduction in benefits.  Those who wait until the lastest age, 70,receive an extra 32% in delyed retirement credits.

Source: InvestmentNews

Today’s 55 to 64-year-old with a 401(k) has only about $111,000 in combined 401(k) and IRA assets.

2015 resolutions include a Roth IRA!..If you have not set one up, go to any of the online brokers and establish your Roth IRA.   Make sure and add beneficiaries on the account and set up up your bank routing numbers on the account.  Simple..you'll be able to contribute or withdraw at any time.

There's a contribution limit for IRAs (both Roth and traditional) for each year. For 2014 and 2015, it's $5,500 for most folks and $6,500 for those aged 50 or older.

Jonathan Clements of the WSJ has 31 Rules to Guide your Investments This Year.

Heres a few of our retirement favorites:

1.Check your retirement progress by taking your nest egg and applying a 4% annual portfolio withdrawal rate, equal to $4,000 a year for every $100,000 saved. Will you have enough retirement income—or should you be saving more?

11.Always contribute at least enough to your employer’s 401(k) plan to get the full matching contribution. Even if you leave your employer, immediately cash out your 401(k), and pay taxes and penalties, you’ll likely still come out ahead.

All right...you're doing some web surfing this week, guests have left after the holidays and it's time check your portfolio.  Pull out your passwords and log into your retirement plan, if you're not using the computer call your financial providers.  

Check your balances at year end, look at your asset allocation (ratio of stocks, bonds, cash).

 In your employer plan check on the percentage you're adding each paycheck.  Also, check on the returns for your portfolio.  Most websites will provide all of this information at your fingertips.

Here's a recap of 2014 stock markets returns:

Medicare representatives can be reached at 800 MEDICARE.   Get help understanding the different plans.

Hope you had a great holiday...next week you'll be thinking about some resolutions for 2015.  We think opening a Roth IRA is one of the best moves you can make.  Simple, any of the brokerage firms will set one up and you can start with a few bucks.  Your employer 401k or 403b plan generally doesn't offer the Roth...so you'll need to use the brokerage Roth IRA.

Oh, Jim Cramer on CNBC agrees.

Anyone can contribute to a Roth IRA, as long as they make less than $127,000 year. The difference between a regular IRA and a Roth IRA is when the tax is deducted for contributions.

Regular IRA contributions are taxed when you have retired and decide to withdraw the money. Roth IRA contributions are made with after-tax income. So once an investor's money is in the Roth IRA, they won't have to pay taxes on it again.

"I think that, aside from the earned income tax credit, the Roth IRA may be the single greatest thing our government has done for low-income families since the end of the war on poverty, which at best, ended in a draw, with poverty possibly winning on points," Cramer added.

On December 19th, President Obama signed H.R. 5771, known as the “Tax Increase Prevention Act of 2014.” Among other things, this legislation extends the favorable charitable IRA rollover rule to gifts made in 2014.

The legislation allows persons who are older than 70½ to, once again, make a tax-free charitable gifts from traditional and Roth IRAs to charity.

Deadline on Dec 31st... you can only do this from your IRA, your employer 401k does not allow the charitable contribution.

Prices in 22 states now average below $2.50. Only Alaska and Hawaii have average prices above $3.00 per gallon, according to GasBuddy.com, which tracks gas prices. The website’s blog says that 13 states have at least one station selling gas for $1.99 or less.

Social Security beneficiaries who continue to work before they reach full retirement age are subject to what's known as the earnings test.  In 2015, if you make more than $15,720, you'll lose $1 in benefits for every $2 you earn over that limit.

In the year you reach full retirement age, a more lenient test applies: You'll give up $1 for every $3 in earnings over $41,880 before your birthday. Starting in the month you reach your full retirement age, you can earn as much as you want without worrying about the earnings test.

Only wages from a job or self-employment income will trigger the earnings test; investment income, pension benefits, and money withdrawn from an IRA or 401(k) aren't counted.

 
Courtesy of Kiplinger's