The Water Cooler – Did You Enjoy 2019?

Not enjoying the continuing decline of my neighborhood and the surrounding area. People are so used to it that there’s a certain “Oh, well. . .that’s just how it is now” attitude. The neighbors who don’t feel that way are enjoyable, though. The package/mail/vehicle problems depicted on Ring every single day are a pretty good barometer. I’ve just ordered more security equipment and will be making greater efforts. So, overall, it was a bit disappointing.

Some good spots but the loss of some friends and relatives ruined the year for me. Some of my favorite notables are gone too.

and yes, oniwy, put the cameras as high as can be effective. Point one at your mail box as well as your porch.

I enjoyed watching democrats flip out about the president, republicans bury their heads and pretend he’s awesome, cranky boomers berate millennials, millenials ruin the country by doing what they want. Gen Z coining OK Boomer and then the boomers blaming the millenials for it while saying they aren’t out of touch. It’s been an exciting year in social folly.
America has been a comedy of errors for a while of course but we keep pushing the envelope.Here’s hoping for some improvements in 2020!

Total 2019 IRA fund gains = 18.09%, with some funds gaining 28%.

Thank you President Trump.

Also, check out the new Secure Act, which allows part-time workers to participate in 401k’s and allows those turning 70 1/2 in 2020 to wait until 2022 to make their RMD. Best to check with your CPA. This law was signed on Dec 20th by the President so it’s brand new. The government wants to help our kids plan ahead and not come to rely on Social Security.

The SECURE (Setting Every Community Up for Retirement Enhancement) act doesn’t necessarily help anyone plan for retirement nor does it replace Social Security.

It makes some allowances, and also changes some existing rules.

It offers tax credits for a small businesses if they want to offer a 401k plan to their employees and has protections for multi-employer plans, which can be tricky. Incidentally, those without a 401K can setup an IRA.

There’s provisions for part time employees. This could be beneficial to a lot of people who aren’t working full time.

The age where you had to perform a required minimum distribution was changed from 70 1/2 to 72. This does not apply to Roth 401Ks or Roth IRAs, neither of which have requirements for distribution at any age.

You can now withdrawal $5,000 early without penalty for the birth or adoption of a child.

You can withdrawal $10,000 penalty free from a 529 for payment of some student loans.

There’s provisions for annuities. This is another tricky area. Annuities can be costly. This is a grey area. I would advise anyone to do their homework and research before contemplating one.

It changes the rule for inheriting an IRA. You now have to spend the money within 10 years of receipt. This is a major change.

There’s some changes to taxes.

It encourages auto enrollment in 401k plans– which many companies do already, although I imagine they’re trying to get everyone to adopt such a policy.

That’s it.

The problem, as I see it, it still doesn’t encourage people to save, or save enough, or educate people how to choose their investments, explain how management fees work, it doesn’t allow for better or more investments in 401k plans, or increase the contribution allowable for IRAs. It doesn’t explain that there’s risk involved in investing and it’s up to you to plan. There’s a LONG way Congress can go to improve retirement planning.

I caught my last fish of the year yesterday so, yeah – good year.