Another year passes and still there are no inductees to the market-timing hall of fame.
After accounting for the reduction in Medicare related spending, she has similar spending power. But she had to go back to work to achieve that. This, and the previous examples, reinforce the importance of understanding a couple’s financial details before and after the passing of a spouse. Income will likely be reduced, but expenses may also be reduced. Lower income retirees who depend primarily on both partners SS benefits may see the biggest impact. I also ran a comparison of our tax return for 2026, for both MFJ and if my wife filed single. I assumed our income consisted of my pension, my wife’s SS benefit, and my SS benefit had I claimed it on January 1, 2026. When I die my wife will receive 75% of my pension, and my higher SS benefit. The results were not surprising.
Richard Connor is a semi-retired aerospace engineer with a keen interest in finance. He enjoys a wide variety of other interests, including chasing grandkids, space, sports, travel, winemaking and reading. Follow Rick on Twitter @RConnor609 and check out his earlier articles.From HumbleDollar Founder Jonathan Clements
Adam M. Grossman is the founder of Mayport, a fixed-fee wealth management firm. Sign up for Adam's Daily Ideas email, follow him on X @AdamMGrossman and check out his earlier articles.NO. 3: WE SHOULD focus relentlessly on what we want from our financial life. That’ll motivate us to save, drive our investment strategy—and help ensure we pursue the goals we care about most.
NO. 93: PAYING down a mortgage is often the best bond we can buy. We earn a return equal to the mortgage’s interest rate, which will typically be above the yield on high-quality corporate and government bonds. True, if we pay down a mortgage, we’ll have less mortgage interest to deduct—but that deduction is now less valuable, thanks to 2017’s tax law.
NO. 53: WE FEAR spoiling our kids, and yet the next generation almost always seems spoiled because rising living standards mean our children typically live better than we did at their age. In fact, we may want to “spoil” our kids by giving them money and then nudging them to use it responsibly. Think of this as a trial run before they receive any inheritance.
EXPLORE EASING into retirement. Could you work fewer hours at your current job or switch to a new career that’ll carry you through your initial retirement years? By phasing into retirement, you can limit your portfolio withdrawals and put off claiming Social Security, while also giving yourself time to figure out what a fulfilling retirement might look like.
NO. 3: WE SHOULD focus relentlessly on what we want from our financial life. That’ll motivate us to save, drive our investment strategy—and help ensure we pursue the goals we care about most.
I’ve known since I was a young woman that my siblings and I did not win the genetic lottery when it comes to health, particularly regarding heart disease. My grandfathers and my father all died of heart attacks in their 60s. My dad was the youngest, only 61 when he passed. My brother, now 54, had a quadruple bypass when he was just 47.
Only recently did I become aware that a “bad family history” actually had a specific indicator,
I’m gifting a New York Times article on new legislation affecting Pharmacy Benefit Managers. There’s a lot of detail, but since the PBMs apparently opposed it, maybe it will help a little.
The medication I used to take for rheumatoid arthritis cost $2,000/month retail when it went on the market around 2012 (even though some of the research was funded by the government), but had risen to $6,500/month retail by the time I stopped taking it ten years later…
I am attempting to gift a Wall Street Journal article. I hope it works, but if not, all you really need is the headline: “The Average Cost of a Family Health Insurance Plan Is Now $27,000”. Think about that. Then consider that US health care is generally considered to be twice as expensive as health care in other, comparable, countries for worse results. Think what corporations, never mind employees, could do with an additional $6,750/year per person.
Medicare is starting a program called the GLP1 Bridge program.
The basics of the program are:
1) This is available to Medicare recipients but is a special program not associated with your drug plan.
2) Begins 7/1 and runs through 12/31/27, with no details at this time as to what will occur after the scheduled end date.
3) $50 copayment is for all four levels of dosages (some other programs only cover the starting dosage then the copayments sky rocket).
When my 76-year-old mother-in-law was told she needed a dual-chamber pacemaker, our family’s attention shifted to one thing: getting her safely through the surgery. Joey was especially anxious. Living thousands of miles away, he struggled with not being there for his mother. Thankfully, the surgery went well.
As relief replaced worry, I found myself thinking about something entirely different. Her surgery took place in the Philippines, and her family’s share of the cost, after government health insurance paid its portion,
I will be starting to receive my SS benefit when I turn 70 this October. I understand that my first check will be issued in November. Since I began Medicare when I retired several years ago I have been paying my quarterly-billed Part B premium through the Medicare.gov website. I anticipate my next invoice (for Oct.- Dec. of this year) will be mailed to me in the next couple of weeks, with a due date of Sept.
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In Retirement
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- Her total income would be 68% of our combined pre-death income.
- Her annual tax bill would be $1,250 more than our joint tax bill.
- Her effective tax rate would increase by 4.2%.
- 85% of her SS benefits would be taxable
- Her spendable income after taxes would be about 65% of the joint amount.
- She would lose about 20% of the new Senior Deduction
- She would have no NJ State Tax liability
I then ran an additional scenario with the same assumptions, but also assuming we were 4 years older and would both have to take initial RMDs in 2026. This scenario reflects one of the concerns frequently expressed when discussing this topic – what happens when the surviving spouse is responsible for reporting the income from both RMDs on her Single tax return. The results changed to reflect the scenario.- Her total income would be about 79% of our combined pre-death income.
- Her annual tax would be $708 more than the joint tax filing.
- Her effective tax rate would increase by 3.8%.
- Her spendable income after taxes would be about 80% of the joint amount.
- She would lose all of the new Senior Deduction.
- Her NJ State Income tax would be $540 more than the joint tax filing.
- She would be pushed up one IRMAA bracket in 2028.
These results are a simplified look at our finances today. My pension and my wife’s SS benefit cover our non-discretionary, and a decent portion of our discretionary, expenses. The wild card is travel – how much we spend in any year is our choice and may require additional income. I’m about 11 months from claiming my SS benefit, at which point virtually all of our expenses will be covered in a fairly tax-efficient way. RMDs are still 4 years away. This was a good exercise to get a feel of how my demise would impact my wife’s finances. It would have some financial impacts, but I believe our plan can handle them. I’m considering running some more detailed projections varying the age at death to assess the impacts, but a quick look made me reasonably confident our retirement savings will be adequate, even considering long term care. I will also continue to look at Roth conversions each year.In Retirement
Is your retirement plan counting on a Social Security COLA in the future?
R Quinn | Sep 24, 2026
From HumbleDollar Founder Jonathan Clements
Lists
Why HumbleDollar?
Spending
Anyone For S.K.I.ing?
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Behavior
Time Is Priceless
Andrew Clements | Sep 23, 2026
Retirement
Will Congress Wait Until the Last Minute on Social Security?
Jeff Peck | Sep 27, 2026
Taxes
Shouldn’t property taxes be a realistic part of retirement planning? Sorry, I think this is a major financial and social issue.
R Quinn | Sep 23, 2026
Investing
Financial Lessons
ArticleAdam M. Grossman | Sep 26, 2026
Taxes
Does the new-for-2026 $1000/$2000 charitable deduction for non-itemizers reduce AGI?
Andrew Forsythe | Sep 22, 2026
Health
My Name is Dan, and I’m a CPAP User
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