=============================================
SMART MONEY STRATEGIES FOR EVERY AGE AND SITUATION
Your 60s and Up—The Retirement Years

Section 7 of 11:
EMPLOYEE BENEFITS:
How Can I Make the Most of What My Company Offers?
=============================================

Whether you work for a large or small company, a nonprofit
organization, a for-profit firm, or a government agency, the
package of employee benefits available to you is crucial in putting
together your personal financial plan.

If you take the time and effort to understand and fully utilize your
benefits package, you will end up in much better financial shape
than if you toss your employee benefits handbook in a drawer and
vow to yourself, “I’ll get to it as soon as I can.”

Each section of this report contains useful tips, techniques and
action strategies that you can implement right away.  Combined
together, these tips and strategies are designed to help you learn
how to micro-manage your funds so that your money multiplies
itself.

Read on and reap the financial rewards!

Jordan E. Goodman
America’s Money Answers Man
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
EMPLOYEE BENEFITS:
How Can I Make the Most of What My Company Offers?

Once you retire, you lose your active employee benefits, but you can start to collect on the pension funds you have accumulated for years. When you leave the payroll, you no longer are covered by your employer’s group term life insurance. Neither do you qualify for education or employee assistance programs. And your employer no longer covers your health insurance premiums.

Some benefits, though, may continue into retirement; make sure
that you know which ones they are. For example, try to obtain
continued medical coverage. You will have to pay the full premium,
but your company’s retiree health plan probably offers far better
rates than you could get on your own.

Determine when it is most advantageous to retire. The later you
stop working, the greater your monthly Social Security and defined
benefit pension checks. Your benefits counselor can calculate your
monthly pension check at different retirement ages. If you receive
an early-retirement offer, your company may add a few years to
your actual years of service to allow you to qualify for a more
generous pension.

You will be offered several options for the payout of the
accumulated value in your defined contribution plan. For example,
you may take the money in a lump sum and roll it into your IRA or
buy an annuity with it. Or you may leave the money with the
company and withdraw cash regularly. Consult an employee
benefits counselor or a financial planner when making such decisions.

^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
RESOURCE | RESOURCE | RESOURCE
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
You work hard for your money.
But do you maximize the money you earn?

Everyone’s Money Book shows you how to proceed confidently into
your future. In this completely revised and updated bestseller,
Jordan Goodman covers all of the options available for managing
your money wisely in friendly, easy-to-understand language.

Packed with worksheets, step-by-step instructions, charts, graphs,
application forms, quizzes, and more than 6,000 resources to help
you turn concepts into actions, Everyone’s Money Book is the most
comprehensive, accessible, and easy-to-use book available.

Over 200,000 copies sold.

Order Everyone’s Money Book (970 pages) today for only $30.
www.moneyanswers.com/bookstore/

=============================================
SMART MONEY STRATEGIES FOR EVERY AGE AND SITUATION
Your 60s and Up—The Retirement Years

Section 8 of 11:
ESTATE PLANNING:
What Do I Need to Know?
=============================================
The two-thirds of Americans who do no estate planning might be
shocked to learn that when people die without wills, the probate
court takes over and can dominate survivors lives for years.  The
small amount of time and money you must invest now to dictate
what happens when you die is well worth the effort.

Combined with the tips, techniques and action strategies included
in the other sections of this report, you can learn how to micro-
manage your funds so that your money multiplies itself.

Read on and reap the financial rewards!

Jordan E. Goodman
America’s Money Answers Man
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
ESTATE PLANNING:
What Do I Need to Know?

If you have accumulated assets worth more than $675,000 (rising
to $1 million in 2006,and $1.3 million for farmers and small
business owners), you need to execute a detailed estate plan, which
may involve establishing trusts. Even if you do not have that much
money, you need a will to instruct the probate court how to
distribute your assets. To avoid probate, look into establishing a
living trust, which you control while you are alive but that can curb
estate taxes and complications for your heirs when you die.

To guard against the possibility that you may become mentally or
physically incapacitated, execute a living will, durable power of
attorney, or health care power of attorney, which allows your
spouse, children, doctor, or close friend to make vital medical
decisions if you are incapable of doing so.

Also, plan your funeral, and make arrangements for burial,
cremation, donation to science, or whichever method you choose
to dispose of your remains.

^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
RESOURCE | RESOURCE | RESOURCE
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
You work hard for your money.
But do you maximize the money you earn?

Everyone’s Money Book shows you how to proceed confidently into
your future. In this completely revised and updated bestseller,
Jordan Goodman covers all of the options available for managing
your money wisely in friendly, easy-to-understand language.

Packed with worksheets, step-by-step instructions, charts, graphs,
application forms, quizzes, and more than 6,000 resources to help
you turn concepts into actions, Everyone’s Money Book is the most
comprehensive, accessible, and easy-to-use book available.

Over 200,000 copies sold.

Order Everyone’s Money Book (970 pages) today for only $30.
www.moneyanswers.com/bookstore/