Introduction

• The government changes Roth IRA contribution limits year to year.
• In this article, you will find Roth IRA contribution rules for 2019 and 2020.
• First, let’s start with a few definitions to make sure we are all on the same page.

What is a Roth IRA?

A Roth IRA is an investment account that allows you to invest after-tax money now, and then withdraw it tax-free later. Moreover, both your initial investments and your interest grow tax-free, and are taken out tax-free, if all the Roth Rules are followed.

In other words, you cannot deduct the money you put into a Roth IRA from your tax base the year you put it in. However, if you follow all the rules, you can take all the money (principal and interest) out of a Roth tax-free.

You can find the official IRS webpage for Roth IRA’s here.

What are the 2019 & 2020 Roth IRA Contribution Limits?

• In addition, if you make less than that amount of money in the year, then you can only contribute the amount of taxable income you had for the year. However, this rule includes your spouse, if you file a joint tax return. In other words, if you don’t make money (or just make a little), but your spouse does, then you can still contribute up to the max levels for both of you. Assuming your spouse makes more than the limits.
• The IRA contributions do not apply to rollovers.
• Finally, contribution limits apply to both of your traditional and Roth IRAs combined. (This is separate from your 401ks held with employers.)

Who can Contribute to a Roth IRA?

You can contribute at any age, as long as you or your spouse earn income that is taxable, and your adjusted income levels are under a certain amount. (Click here to learn what the IRS considers your “Adjusted” income amount.)

2019 Annual Income Roth IRA Contribution Limits

• You can contribute the max limit to a Roth if your income is:
  • Single = Under $122,000
  • Joint-Filed Married = $193,000
• You can contribute a reduced amount if your income is between:
  • Single = > $122,000 but < $137,000
  • Joint-Filed Married = > $193,000 but < $203,000
• You cannot contribute if you make over:
  • Single = $137,000
  • Joint-Filed Married = $203,000

2020 Annual Income Roth IRA Contribution Limits

• You can contribute the max limit to a Roth if your income is:
  • Single = Under $124,000
  • Joint-Filed Married =$196,000
• You can contribute a reduced amount if your income is between:
  • Single = > $124,000 but < $139,000
  • Joint-Filed Married = > $196,000 but < $206,000
• You cannot contribute if you make over:
  • Single = $139,000
  • Joint-Filed Married = $206,000

These are numbers for Married Filling-Jointly, For married filing separately (living with spouse at any time in the year), then you have to make less than $10,000 to contribute in both 2019 and 2020.

Are there Roth IRA Contribution Limits on Age?

Finally, there is no age limit on when you can contribute to a Roth. This is different than a traditional IRA where the age limit is 70.5 years old.

When can I take Money out?

You can start taking your money out of a Roth IRA without any penalties anytime after you turn 59 1/2 years old. Good news for people who want to retire early!

However, you are allowed to withdraw your money at any time. Just be aware of any penalties or taxes you might have to pay if you are withdrawing it early.

But, do I have to take money out?

Unlike Traditional IRAs, you do not have to take money out until after the death of the owner. This is because you have already paid your taxes on this money.

There are required minimum distributions on all other IRAs after 70 1/2 years old. This is because you have not yet paid taxes on this money, and the government wants its taxes!

Further Reading

Please reference the following articles to help you further on your retirement planning:

• The New Rules of Retirement
• The Best Retirement Books
• Life Insurance in Retirement?
• What is an IUL?
• What is Medicare?

The post Roth IRA Contribution Limits appeared first on Medicare Life Health.

This article, “Jobs for Retired People” is the second article in our New Series: The New Rules of Retirement.

Jobs for Retired People? Doesn’t retired mean “NOT WORKING?” Maybe, but maybe not! In our Series – The New Rules of Retirement, we are exploring what it means to re-define retirement to fit your needs and lifestyle.

In our last article, we discussed how the “Average American” close to retirement age these days might not have as much saved as they would like. We also did some math to discover what amount of side income might be needed for the majority of Americans to still “retire” when they wanted to.

In our case study, the “Average American” with the most average of savings might need an extra $1,295 a month to live the lifestyle they envisioned in retirement.

Retire Early???

Some of these side gigs might even allow you to quit your job earlier than you thought possible. We have heard stories of people LOVING their side job so much, and actually making good money from it, that they were able to retire from their full-time job early.

Side or Part-Time Jobs for Retired People

The Best Side Jobs for Retired People & People Saving Extra For Retirement

This article will help you to find a fun or creative “Side Job” / “Side Hustle” / “Part-Time Work” or another source of passive income to help you retire or save more for retirement.

A few things to keep in mind:

• First, these are jobs to supplement your retirement savings. They may or may not be HUGE money makers – often they are just a way to make some extra income.
• Second, they are meant to also be enjoyable and creative! Yes, they are still work, but with a retirement flavor and happy attitude. Some keep you active or challenge you mentally. Others are creative, and some even keep you social!
• Finally, you can start these jobs before you retire. Use them as a second job to give your retirement savings an extra boost. In addition, many of the passive income generating jobs take some time to develop. That means the earlier you begin them, the more you can sit back and just maintain them later.

Side Job Category One: Jobs that Keep You Active

Pet Sitter / Dog Walker

Listen, retirement is not getting any cheaper or any easier. Everyone thinks they have enough saved for retirement as they near their golden years, however, the truth of the matter is that majority of people have nowhere near enough money saved. This is likely why you’re looking for a side job in retirement. Either that, or you’re just plain bored.

Either way, becoming a pet sitter or dog walker is a great opportunity to make a little extra money. 

Sites such as Wag! or Rover make it easy to do this. You’re probably already going to a morning walk anyway, so why not bring a furry friend with you and get paid to do it. If you’re really feeling adventurous, you could let the furry friend sleep over and get paid even more.

You could earn several hundred dollars a week all by just living as you normally would, but having an awesome four-legged companion with you. (From Austin with TheLogicofMoney.com)

Handy-Person

If you are good at fixing things, there are a lot of people that are not, and they need your help. People all over need help with small house projects and light outdoor work.

Becoming a “handyman” or “handywoman” might be as simple as making some quick business cards and passing them out to everyone you know. It is a great word-of-mouth, referral business, for those with a solid network of friends, family and co-workers. If you need help finding people to help-out and are comfortable online, services like TaskRabbit, can point you towards people looking for help.

Category Two: Jobs that Keep You Social

Vacation House/Room Renter

Tom Blake, from ThisOnlineWorld, suggests Airbnb as a way to stay both active and social in retirement while making extra money. He includes this in his list of “The Best Gig Economy Jobs – Make Extra Money On The Side.”

Airbnb allows you to make your house, or a room in your house available for rent to travelers. You can make decent side-income renting your home if you live in a well traveled area.

Tom mentions Airbnb is a great way “to make use of any extra space you might have in your home (in case you haven’t downsized) as well as meet new people!” Many of our friends have great Airbnb stories from both sides of the service. It’s a unique travel culture that can provide exciting experiences to an otherwise quiet retirement.

Drive for Uber or Lyft

Uber and Lyft are good ways to make a little extra money while interacting with new people. If you are in a touristy town and like to talk up your local hot spots and events, then you will find your happiness with a driving service.

On the other hand, driving services can also work out for people that don’t like to constantly chat (or drive around tipsy people late at night). Everyone needs trips to the airport, especially in the quite early mornings. Moreover, if you really aren’t feeling social, Uber Eats allows you to drive around food instead of people.

Category Three: Jobs that Keep You Creative

Selling Crafts – Online or In-Person

Craft Fairs are still hot! If you like to craft, you can tour your state (and beyond…) selling your creations. Makers Markets, Junk Stocks, Fundraising Craft Fairs, State Fairs and Flea Markets abound and are fun for all involved.

For those of you like enjoy selling online, the popular markets include Etsy, Artfire and Bonanza. To learn more about how to sell on Etsy and everything it entails, I recommend this article on Successfully Simple Sisters.

If you need help with setting up an online shop, hop onto a site like Fiverr and search for “help with etsy shop” or something similar. You will find freelancers that will help you get started!

Freelance Writer

For those of you that like to write, look into becoming a freelance writer. Online publications (and some local in print ones) are always looking for people to add valuable content to their sites for their readers. We suggest reaching out to the smaller ones you might already read first.

In addition, you can find places to write for by searching for “best sites for freelance writing” or something similar. Here is one article we found to start you off. Insert your specific area of interest to make it more relevant. For example, “best sites for music freelance writing.”

Category Four: Jobs for Retired People that Keep You Busy

Taking Surveys

If you are looking for a way to make money on the side that doesn’t take a whole lot of effort, then taking surveys is a fun way to pass your time. You can sit on the couch, listen to music or the TV, and provide your opinions to people who want them.

Popular online survey sites include Pinecone Research (which I did for a couple years and loved!), Opinion Outpost, Inbox Dollars, and the National Consumer Panel.

If you want to take this one into the “real world,” then look for paid opportunities for participating in Focus Groups and Health Studies.

Category Five: Jobs for Retired People that Keep You Challenged

Start a Blog

Oh boy, if you are up for the challenge, then try starting a blog! People actually do make money from their blogs these days – especially niche blogs. However, there is a steep technology learning curve, if you are not already very comfortable creating online.

Blogging can be a great way to generate passive income. Typically, you can make good money after years of effort, lots and lots of writing, and much search engine optimizing. If you enjoy learning and writing more about a subject you are already passionate about, then you will love blogging. On the other hand, you will also have to find learning about blogging interesting, because half of your time will be devoted to that.

Tutor or Teach

Both in person and online, tutors and teachers are in demand. If you have a field of expertise or passion for helping a certain age, then start there. This is a great business to grow by word-of-mouth if you have a decent network of friends and family to reach out to, but there are also businesses that can bring you students. Tutoring centers exist both online and in physical locations and are always looking for qualified help.

If you have graduate degrees in certain areas, you can look into teaching at your local universities and community colleges as an adjunct professor. Certain fields are always looking for people with Master’s degrees and beyond to teach both online and in person classes.

Jobs for Retired People Conclusions

There are so many opportunities to create the kind of retirement and work-life you want in our new economy. The New Rules of Retirement say you have the creative power to shape your life.

You can work and play at the same time with these part-time jobs.

We will be continually adding to this list. We would also love to hear your suggestions and what has worked well for you. Please email us or comment below.

The post Jobs For Retired People appeared first on Medicare Life Health.

Minimalist Living, Minimalism, Conscious Consumerism, Simple Living, The Joy of Less, Decluttering, Downsizing… Perhaps you have encountered these words recently and realized this is a movement spreading across America. Minimalist living is nothing new, but weary Americans coming off the consumerism roller-coaster, are discovering it again.

Minimalism Across Generations

Millennial Minimalism

Minimalism is appealing across generations, but it seems to be most appealing to the Millennial Generation. The Millennial generation (born 1981-1996) grew up with the high spending of the 1990’s and the bubble bursts of the 2000’s. Exiting school with a poor job market and lots of debt shaped the way Millennials see the world. Moreover, the highlighted effects of climate change from global consumerism are concerning to this generation which will most likely live to see the effects of our changing weather.

According to Forbes, 78% of Millenials would rather spend money of experiences than on stuff. (59% of Baby boomers say the same thing.) Millennials are opting for smaller house, smaller carbon footprints, and sharing cars/tools/etc. They are decluttering and donating the remnants of their early spending, and the mainstream is taking notice.

Baby Boomer Minimalism

The Baby Boomers are noticing too. As we mentioned, over half of the Boomers said they would rather spend money on experiences than things. However, this number is far below the Millennial count, and Boomers have a much more complicated relationship with things.

The Baby Boomers (born 1946-1964) grew up with rapid U.S. economy growth, the rise of the suburbs, and the marketing of the “American Dream.” As a result, Boomers were the generation of accumulation. Generation X (born 1965-1981) was not far behind in picking up where the boomers left off in consumption of stuff.

Now, the Baby Boomers are entering retirement in droves (10,000 Boomers each day reach retirement age) and sometime after this (hopefully a long time after this) they will pass. What happens to all their stuff?

Unloading Your Stuff for Minimalist Living

Here is the new reality: the generations after you do not want your “stuff.” Heirlooms to one generation are now the junk of the next generation. This is not to say that nothing is precious. You might have a few very special objects that can be confidently passed down. However all the china, crystal and large pieces of furniture that were once considered essential and now considered (heavy) burdens.

Step number one will always be – STOP buying more stuff! Once you have accepted this concept as more than theory, it is easier to move on to step two – minimizing your stuff.

Traditional Downsizing and the Rise of Sweedish Death Cleaning

Let’s say you are a Baby Boomer (as an example, this applies to all ages), with a average to above average living space and perhaps even a storage unit. You have accumulated many things in a large amount of categories including clothes, shoes, accessories, kitchen wares, furniture, decor, outdoor tools, camping gear, exercise equipment, beauty supplies, cars, holiday decorations, etc.

How does the responsibility of this amount of stuff make you feel? Moreover, who will inherit this responsibility when you are gone?

There are several ways to look at this situation that fall along the spectrum of minimalist living:

• Organizing
• Decluttering
• Downsizing
• Minimalist Living

Let’s look at each step on the journey:

Organizing

Organizing is not minimizing. It is taking what you have, sorting it out and putting into a manageable system so you can use it and enjoy it effectively. It can be helpful to you, and those that have to sort through your stuff later, but it does not take away any of the burden of material things.

Organizing will always have a place in the process of minimizing. You will need to organize what you have at every step in the minimalist journey. In addition, organizing will get easier as you let go of more and purchase less.

Decluttering

Decluttering is the first step in embracing minimalist living. It involves not only a physical shift of letting go, but also a mental shift into what it means to live more with less.

Marie Kondo’s book, The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up: The Japanese Art of Decluttering and Organizing, brought decluttering into the spotlight in 2014. (As did her Netflix special a few years later.) It is still a great book to start you on your journey of letting go and learning to find the joy of living with less. Are you unfamiliar with this book? The premise is to only allow things to exist in you life that “spark joy.”

For example if a pair of shoes does not bring you joy – get rid of them. If you have 10 shirts in your closet, but only 2 shirts make you feel good and look good (i.e. bring you joy) then you have 8 shirts too many. Kondo also has a very effective system of gathering, sorting and deciding what stuff stays and what goes.

Downsizing

Downsizing goes beyond decluttering and challenges us to face our mark on this world and what we might leave behind. In this way, we consider how our current living situation is affecting our own happiness and the happiness of those around us.

For example, consider the size of your living space. How much space you live in affects your comfort level, but it also dictates the amount of responsibility (or burden) you have. Your space size decides how much time you spend cleaning and maintaining and how much money you spend doing these activities. It also affects those around you by the amount of energy you use (your carbon footprint) and the amount of resources you use to maintain your home.

When you pass, your responsibility (burden) for all of your things becomes someone else’s responsibility (burden). The Gentle Art of Swedish Death Cleaning is a very recent book on an old subject. It is dedicated to helping people unload their stuff now, so their loved ones will not have to when they pass.

When done in the Swedish fashion, downsizing and decluttering becomes an act of love. Moreover, it becomes a journey that allows you to share experiences and meanings behind objects and heirlooms, before you part with them.

Minimalist Living

Finally, after you have organized, decluttered, and downsized, you may just be ready to embrace a minimalist life. Minimalism asks you to let go of anything that does not serve you or bring you happiness. It favors quality over quantity, and conservation over consumerism.

More than any of the other step, minimalism is a lifestyle. You get to define what simple living means to you. Maybe it means only owning 30 items of clothing or letting go of a large house or an extra car. Minimalism can free up your cash now that you have stepped off the consumer wheel. Maybe that means you can retire early – or even retire at all!

Above all, minimalism can give you freedom. It is amazing how much stress and pressure comes from our accumulation and maintenance of our stuff. If you are looking for a guide to start you on your path to minimalist living, then I have a few recommendations:

• The More of Less: Finding the Life You Want Under Everything You Own. This book by Joshua Becker is an excellent starting point for any curious reader. It was one of the first minimalist books I read, and it reached me right where I was at – in my suburban home with a crowded garage.
• Project 333. For those of you that want to create a minimalist life, but would like to start smaller, Project 333 will help you minimize your wardrobe. This is a website/blog that will challenge you to evaluate what you really need in regards to clothes, shoes and accessories.
• The Minimalists. This website will lead you to articles, podcasts, movies and other resources that will help you discover more about minimalism and the people that practice it.

Going Forward with Minimalist Living

Whatever stage of life you are in, it is good to know that it is not to late to minimize! It is just going to be a lot harder for some. Starting small with one specific area or project will help. As will understanding that letting go of stuff is a journey. We are never really done, and choosing a minimal lifestyle is an everyday process. However, it is worth is when you consider all the benefits: time freed up, money saved, resources conserved, and stress relieved.

The post Minimalist Living appeared first on Medicare Life Health.