27.7% – Percentage of retirement plan participants making contributions to a Roth 401(k) plan in 2021 Source: Plan Sponsor Council of America, 2022 Roth 401(k) plans can offer an ideal opportunity to build a source of tax-free retirement income. There are no income restrictions to participate, they have much higher contribution limits than Roth IRAs,
60% – Share of health-care expenses for Medicare beneficiaries age 65 and older that was covered by Medicare in 2020 (most recent data available). Private insurance covered 17% and out-of-pocket spending accounted for 12%. Source: Employee Benefit Research Institute, 2023 The chart below shows the savings that a man, a woman, and a couple who
A couple of federal personal tax credits are available for the installation of certain energy efficient or clean energy property in your home. The energy efficient home improvement credit is available for qualifying expenditures incurred for an existing home or for an addition to or renovation of an existing home, but not for a newly
More than 37 million U.S. adults are living with some hearing loss, but only about one-fourth of those who might benefit from a hearing aid have used one.1 Cost is a big obstacle: The average price of a pair of prescription hearing aids runs about $4,600. Traditional Medicare and most health insurers cover routine hearing
38% – Shelter’s contribution to the 12-month, 6.5% increase in consumer prices (through December 2022). Source: Bureau of Labor Statistics, 2023 Fast-rising U.S. shelter costs — consisting of tenants’ rent and owners’ equivalent rent — were the top driver of inflation in 2022, but this may be a trend that has already shifted. Shelter costs
The typical fees charged for child care vary widely by state. The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services considers child-care costs to be affordable when they are at or below 7% of annual household income — but many families face costs far above that threshold. $310,605 – Estimated cost for a middle-class family to
“London Bridge is down.” On September 8, 2022, those words were reportedly used to launch what was arguably the most complex end-of-life proceedings the world has ever witnessed: the funeral arrangements for Queen Elizabeth II. The plan, known as Operation London Bridge, laid out in exacting detail how the ensuing days would unfold. Although most
Inflation is a sustained increase in prices that reduces the purchasing power of your money over time. According to the Consumer Price Index (CPI), inflation peaked at an annual rate of 9.1% in June 2022, the fastest pace since 1981, before ticking down to 7.7% in October.1 The CPI tracks changes in the cost of
53% – Percentage of Americans who said they had set aside at least three months of emergency funds in 2021, up from 49% in 2018 and 35% in 2009. It’s likely that government stimulus programs contributed to this improvement. The end of stimulus payments coupled with high inflation may make it more difficult for some
21.8% – The inflation-adjusted jump in charitable giving to arts, culture, and humanities in 2021, the largest increase of all categories. Source: Giving USA, 2022 Americans donated $484.85 billion to charity in 2021, a 4% increase over 2020’s record amount. Adjusted for inflation, however, the growth was a relatively flat -0.7%. For the fourth year
