Only about half of employed men and 43% of employed women are enrolled in a workplace retirement plans according to a recent Wells Fargo study based on 2,036 companies.

Contact your 401k or 403b plan and find out how to log in and enroll!...It's simple.

It's OK to spend your income, but never, ever dip into capital. Remember that old financial commandment? It was discarded long ago as a fuddy-duddy rule that doesn't work in our low-yield world. But as I ponder retirement, focusing on dividend-paying stocks, so you don't have to dip so often into capital, looks better and better— for seven reasons.

The WSJ provides helpful information on dividend funds in retirement.  Veteran WSJ reporter Jonathan Clements is back!

WSJ article:  The Case For Dividend Funds In Retirement

The rollover is a reportable event on your income tax return. The 1099-R should reflect that the total amount was rolled over into your IRA, thereby making a nontaxable event.

Box 1 on your 1099 R would reflect the gross distribution

Box 2a would reflect that none of the amount is taxable since its been rolled over

Box 7 should reflect code "G"—Direct rollover of a distribution (other than a designated Roth account distribution) to a qualified plan, a section 403(b) plan, a governmental section 457(b) plan, or an IRA.

You should report on your form 1040 inbox 16a the gross distribution and in box 16b "none," since it has been rolled over.

The rules for securing a reverse mortgage are getting tougher. And most financial advisers say that's a good thing.

In a reverse mortgage, homeowners borrow against the equity in their house. They can take the money in a lump sum, monthly payments, or as a line of credit to be tapped when needed. Reverse mortgages are generally made by specialist lenders, and the most common loans are backed by the Federal Housing Administration's Home Equity Conversion Mortgage program, widely known as HECM loans. Borrowers must be 62 years or older to qualify.

Reverse mortgages can be very complicated, here's a resource to help:

NeighborWorks America is one organization that helps train counselors and provides referrals to counselors that specialize in reverse mortgages across the country. The group operates a hotline for those looking for general information or counseling referrals: 888-990-4326.

Courtesy of Wall Street Journal

 Only 8.4% of traditional IRA investors aged 25 to 69 made contributions during the last tax year of 2012.  Most people roll funds into their IRA and then forget to contribute.

Boeing said on Thursday it will end pension plans for 68,000 non-union employees, including its chief executive.

The move takes effect Jan. 1, 2016, and is part of the company's effort to reduce the growing costs of its pension plans.  Boeing will shift those workers to 401(k) retirement-savings plans, starting in 2016.

  Sorry, you can't take out a loan on your IRA

 Your active 401k may allow you to take approx 50% of your account balance as a loan.  If you have left that employer loans are generally not available.

 One legal way taxpayers have used to access their IRA money is by taking it out for a short-term need, and putting it back in within 60 days. It’s called the 60-day IRA rollover rule. Where you get into trouble is if you sit on it and miss the 60 day deadline for re-contributing the funds into an IRA. Again You can get a waiver of the 60-day rule in some cases, but it’s not guaranteed.

In a recent case, Bobrow v. Commissioner, the U.S. tax court in ruled that you can only do one 60-day IRA rollover in a 365-day period—not one 60-day rollover per IRA–so a taxpayer who did this maneuver with two IRAs was assessed penalties.

Fidelity Investments' latest report on 401(k)s has both good news and bad news about our preparedness for retirement.

The good: The average 401(k) balance managed by Fidelity reached a record $89,300 in the fourth quarter of 2013. That's a 15.5% increase from a year ago and almost double the low of $46,200 set in 2009.

The number is higher for pre-retirees 55 and older: $165,200.

The bad: More than one-third (35%) of all 401(k) participants cashed out their accounts when they left their jobs in 2013. That number is even higher among younger participants ages 20 to 39.

Money Magazine provides a great resource for retirement planning.

No fees, low minimums. A saver could open a myRA with as little as $25, and thereafter, contributions of any size would be allowed, with minimums of as little as $5. That departs from the savings-bond  model, in which bonds can only be amassed in fixed denominations of $50 and up. Savers also wouldn’t pay any fees on their accounts. Although many big financial-services companies have eliminated their annual fees on traditional IRAs, those that do still charge fees can eat up a substantial percentage of the earnings of beginning savers.

It’s not attached to your job. Employers won’t be administering, or paying administrative costs for, the myRA—the Treasury Department is going to pick a private sector firm to take care of that. The administration will need employers’ help on one level, however: They want myRAs to be funded by paycheck deductions, which employers would need to set up. The White House says no employer will be forced to take part in the myRA. President Obama has also proposed a separate provision that would require employers who don’t offer retirement plans to set up automatic IRA deductions for their workers, but that would require an act of Congress.

Funded after-tax. The myRA will be structured like a Roth IRA account, which means savers will fund it with after-tax dollars—rather than with a pre-tax deduction, as with a 401(k). That would also mean that under most circumstances, eventual withdrawals from the account wouldn’t be taxed.

Once the account reaches $15,000 you'll be required to transfer to your Roth IRA.