Financial tips from those who have retired recently

[anonymous]

Planning to retire in a year or so if I don't get displaced before then. Looking for advice from those who have retired in the last 5 years or so. Did you keep your 401k at Fidelity thru AZ? Anything you would have done differently in hindsight? Any hassles with keeping health insurance thru AZ?

 

[anonymous]

Planning to retire in a year or so if I don't get displaced before then. Looking for advice from those who have retired in the last 5 years or so. Did you keep your 401k at Fidelity thru AZ? Anything you would have done differently in hindsight? Any hassles with keeping health insurance thru AZ?

meet with a financial planner first and try to find one familiar with the AZ pension format. Make sure they check the numbers to make sure they are accurate. Do not DO NOT TRUST ANYTHING COMING FROM AZ. They are not there to help you. Health Care is a nightmare and do not expect anyone to assist you. They don't care about you now so imagine what it will be like when you retire and be prepared to deal with it. If you have stock options, do not trust AZ to get the number of issues correct. Check and double check and never ever trust Human Resources or Benefits to get it right.

 

[anonymous]

meet with a financial planner first and try to find one familiar with the AZ pension format. Make sure they check the numbers to make sure they are accurate. Do not DO NOT TRUST ANYTHING COMING FROM AZ. They are not there to help you. Health Care is a nightmare and do not expect anyone to assist you. They don't care about you now so imagine what it will be like when you retire and be prepared to deal with it. If you have stock options, do not trust AZ to get the number of issues correct. Check and double check and never ever trust Human Resources or Benefits to get it right.

Retired 5 years ago too. Took the lump sum on the pension, and challenged their figure, and won! I know several people that took the annuity, and Mercer contacted them a few years later demanding a payback on their pension money because they were overpaid!!! One actually contacted a lawyer who told her that it would cost more than what they are asking to go after them and contest it. The AZ retirement plan is run by Mercer, and they are basically idiots. Sold all options as soon as I could. You have 2 years to do so, I believe. The health benefits have gone down and the premium up each year. Only communicate to HR by email, and keep copies of EVERYTHING! Write down the name and dates of whom and what you talk about.

 

[anonymous]

You need to reach a total of 70 between years of service and age to be able to take the lump sum?

 

[anonymous]

meet with a financial planner first and try to find one familiar with the AZ pension format. Make sure they check the numbers to make sure they are accurate. Do not DO NOT TRUST ANYTHING COMING FROM AZ. They are not there to help you. Health Care is a nightmare and do not expect anyone to assist you. They don't care about you now so imagine what it will be like when you retire and be prepared to deal with it. If you have stock options, do not trust AZ to get the number of issues correct. Check and double check and never ever trust Human Resources or Benefits to get it right.

This is 100% accurate. I retired four years ago and the initial figures for the lump sum and my stock options were wrong. And of course the mistakes all benefited AZ. I had an attorney work with my financial planner to handle all contact with AZ. They uncovered multiple errors and the fee was well worth it in the end.
Bottom line is AZ will screw you either on purpose or due to incompetence. And once you sign the papers they are done with you. They will not return e mail or phone calls unless you owe them something.

 

[anonymous]

This is 100% accurate. I retired four years ago and the initial figures for the lump sum and my stock options were wrong. And of course the mistakes all benefited AZ. I had an attorney work with my financial planner to handle all contact with AZ. They uncovered multiple errors and the fee was well worth it in the end.
Bottom line is AZ will screw you either on purpose or due to incompetence. And once you sign the papers they are done with you. They will not return e mail or phone calls unless you owe them something.

How were you able to determine the lump sum was inaccurate?

 

[anonymous]

How were you able to determine the lump sum was inaccurate?

I hired a lawyer and financial adviser who were familiar with AZ's formulas for pensions and stock options. It took them less than 30 minutes to discover significant errors that save me thousands of dollars and exposed the corrupt practices of AZ in manipulating numbers to cut benefits to retirees. Whatever you do, do not trust anything they send you. Check and verify because this is standard practice for them and my lawyer doubted it was based on honest mistakes.

 

[anonymous]

This is 100% accurate. I retired four years ago and the initial figures for the lump sum and my stock options were wrong. And of course the mistakes all benefited AZ. I had an attorney work with my financial planner to handle all contact with AZ. They uncovered multiple errors and the fee was well worth it in the end.
Bottom line is AZ will screw you either on purpose or due to incompetence. And once you sign the papers they are done with you. They will not return e mail or phone calls unless you owe them something.

You cannot take a lump sum on the 401K plan, as the original poster had asked. Well, technically you could take it, and pay the additional tax penalty, but don't do that. You need to decide whether to keep the money in Fidelity or to roll it over into something else. Will you have another job, one that has a new 401K, or is this it? You'll need a financial advisor, but note that they may be in the business of selling you financial instruments, so they may be biased (really think before you act).

One consideration, but it's very hard and is an individual decision - if you have your money in a 401K and the money is mostly in stocks - think about the market being at historic highs, and about your risk tolerance for losing the money. I fear another 2008 could happen, or even worse. If you are just a few years from retirement, you don't want your 401K to drop 30% and you find you no longer can afford to not work, think about safety for your investments (maybe even include money market/cash, bonds, or guaranteed annuities in your mix?). In other words, you might want to really think about capital preservation rather than gains, at this stage in your life.

 

[anonymous]

You cannot take a lump sum on the 401K plan, as the original poster had asked. Well, technically you could take it, and pay the additional tax penalty, but don't do that. You need to decide whether to keep the money in Fidelity or to roll it over into something else. Will you have another job, one that has a new 401K, or is this it? You'll need a financial advisor, but note that they may be in the business of selling you financial instruments, so they may be biased (really think before you act).

One consideration, but it's very hard and is an individual decision - if you have your money in a 401K and the money is mostly in stocks - think about the market being at historic highs, and about your risk tolerance for losing the money. I fear another 2008 could happen, or even worse. If you are just a few years from retirement, you don't want your 401K to drop 30% and you find you no longer can afford to not work, think about safety for your investments (maybe even include money market/cash, bonds, or guaranteed annuities in your mix?). In other words, you might want to really think about capital preservation rather than gains, at this stage in your life.

Like I said, find and hire a trusted financial adviser asap. There are a ton of investment traps in annuities and other marketed investment options. Be very leery of an adviser that hands you flashy marketing tools from investment houses. Always know if they are getting a large commission for selling you something. It is your money and there are a lot of people eager to take it from you.

 

[anonymous]

You cannot take a lump sum on the 401K plan, as the original poster had asked. Well, technically you could take it, and pay the additional tax penalty, but don't do that. You need to decide whether to keep the money in Fidelity or to roll it over into something else. Will you have another job, one that has a new 401K, or is this it? You'll need a financial advisor, but note that they may be in the business of selling you financial instruments, so they may be biased (really think before you act).

One consideration, but it's very hard and is an individual decision - if you have your money in a 401K and the money is mostly in stocks - think about the market being at historic highs, and about your risk tolerance for losing the money. I fear another 2008 could happen, or even worse. If you are just a few years from retirement, you don't want your 401K to drop 30% and you find you no longer can afford to not work, think about safety for your investments (maybe even include money market/cash, bonds, or guaranteed annuities in your mix?). In other words, you might want to really think about capital preservation rather than gains, at this stage in your life.

Without a doubt, take your money from Fidelity. They charge you fees that are hidden from you and substantial. Put your money in VOO, it is a Vanguard S&P 500 index fund. Pays about a 2% dividend and Warren Buffett recommends it for everyone in the lay public. Fidelity is ripping you off.

 

[anonymous]

Without a doubt, take your money from Fidelity. They charge you fees that are hidden from you and substantial. Put your money in VOO, it is a Vanguard S&P 500 index fund. Pays about a 2% dividend and Warren Buffett recommends it for everyone in the lay public. Fidelity is ripping you off.

How exactly is Fidelity ripping you off with " hidden and substantial" fees compared to Vanguard in comparable funds?

 

[anonymous]

Without a doubt, take your money from Fidelity. They charge you fees that are hidden from you and substantial. Put your money in VOO, it is a Vanguard S&P 500 index fund. Pays about a 2% dividend and Warren Buffett recommends it for everyone in the lay public. Fidelity is ripping you off.

Agree, Fidelity has a 1.4% fee which by law is disclosed so only 98.6% of your contributions find their way into the designated investment. They bank on the stupidity and laziness of average retirees or amateur investors.

 

[anonymous]

How exactly is Fidelity ripping you off with " hidden and substantial" fees compared to Vanguard in comparable funds?

By the tone of your question, your snarky quotation marks around my words, you appear to already know the answer. So fuck off. You come here asking advice and when you get it you cannot hide your arrogance.

Good luck investing -- you already know what you need to know. Regardless of your outcome I will certainly read a post from you here about what a great job you're doing on your own. You are simply brilliant and the only reason you need to do anything is because others don't recognize your innate talent.

 

[anonymous]

fidelity is known for charging higher rates..wonder why we use them and not vanguard?