End of Year Retirement Planning

The end of the year is coming up.  What are you doing to plan for it?

What are you doing for any end of year retirement, investment planning, or tax planning?

If you are a financial advisor, please post your suggestions and ideas for others to read.

Thanks and hope you have a GREAT holidays!

Christmas Presents Under the Christmas Tree

Christmas Presents Under the Christmas Tree

Your Favorite Thanksgiving Dessert or Dish?

What’s your favorite Thanksgiving dessert, treat, or dish?

Please post your thoughts below… and from all of us at Torrid Tech… have a wonderful Thanksgiving!

Doceur-de-france Dessert Case - Pumpkin pie on the bottom

Doceur-de-france Dessert Case – Pumpkin pie on the bottom

IS YOUR RETIREMENT LOOKING A BIT SCARY?

IS YOUR RETIREMENT LOOKING A BIT SCARY?

Protect yourself from these 9 Terrifyingly Haunted Retirement Traps.

(October 26, 2013) Marietta, GA—With one in every six elder Americans living below the poverty line, which is $22,350 for a family of four, according to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, retirement for many is a frightening subject; it’s the orange elephant in the room.

While following the spirit of Halloween’s creepy theme, retirement planning software company Torrid Technologies releases its Top 9 Terrifyingly Haunted Retirement traps with a conjoining Retirement View holiday offer for new customers only.

Described as “Retirement Planning for Everyone, even those not good with a computer” by both customers and financial professionals, this easy-to-use retirement planning software tool is an incredibly effective retirement ghost-busting tool for both financial advisors and consumers alike.   Says Tim Turner, Vice President at Torrid Tech, “It can be incredibly scary to stare into the dark abyss of your retirement financial chasm wondering what frightening creatures and monsters await you once you pass into it, but our software will shed some light on the darkness and shrink back those spooky  thoughts and visions into a much less scary picture.”

Now until November 1 anyone can try Torrid Tech’s RetirementView program for the very unfrightening price of “no charge”.   You can download the demo version from their website any spooky day or scary night through Halloween.

These Top 9 Terrifyingly Spooky Retirement traps serve as a point of reference so that you too don’t face a dauntingly scary retirement planning experience…

  1. Due to the recent economic downturn, baby boomers born between 1948 and 1954 will need to save an additional 4.3 percent of their annual pay to counteract the impact of the financial and housing crisis in 2008 and 2009, according to Employee Benefit Research Institute calculations. For many people this will require working beyond traditional retirement age in a job market already tight and challenging for older workers.

 

  1. 57% of workers have $25,000 or less in savings and investments, excluding the value of their primary homes and benefit plans, and 28% of workers have less than $1,000 saved.

 

  1. Among retirees, 55% have $25,000 or less in savings and investments, and 31% have less than $1,000.

 

  1. Just 50% of workers and 52% of retirees said they could come up with $2,000 if an emergency or unexpected need occurred within the next month, while 28% of both groups said they probably or definitely could not produce $2,000, if needed.

 

  1. The percentage of workers saying they’re “not too” or “not at all” confident in their ability to pay for basic retirement expenses is 29%, while 52% are “not too” or “not at all” confident they have enough money for basic post-retirement medical expenses and 62% are “not too” or “not at all” confident they can pay for long-term care expenses.

 

  1. The top five reasons workers gave for planning to delay retirement were the poor economy (25%), lack of faith in Social Security or government (21%), inadequate finances or inability to afford to retire (21%), a desire to make sure they have enough money to retire comfortably (16%) and change in job situation (13%).

 

  1. Debt also weighs heavily on Americans when they consider their retirement, as 55% of workers and 39% of retirees reported having a problem with their level of debt.

 

  1. Almost half, 47%, of current retirees were forced to retire early, mainly because of disabilities, poor health, the loss of a job and the inability to get a new one.

 

  1. According to the Employee Benefit Research Institute, 46% of all American workers have less than $10,000 saved for retirement and 29% of all American workers have less than $1,000 saved for retirement.

Now until November 1st, anyone can try the demo of Torrid Tech’s RetirementView program for no charge, by simply downloading it from the company’s website at www.torrid-tech.com.

Statistic sources: [Old Link Removed]; http://moneymorning.com/2013/03/20/the-scariest-facts-about-americas-retirement-crisis/#; http://www.financial-planning.com/gallery/fp/twelve-retirement-facts-unsettling-baby-boomers-financial-advisors-2676576-1.html
About Torrid Technologies:
Torrid Technologies was founded in 1993 and provides easy-to-use financial planning software to consumers, financial advisors, and financial companies including Pacific Life, JANUS, MassMutual, Sentry Insurance, and AXA. You can contact Torrid at:
Torrid Technologies Inc.
For More Information on RetirementView software, please visit:
http://www.torrid-tech.com
Address: 1860 Sandy Plains Rd., Suite 204-129, Marietta, GA 30066
Tel: (888) 333.5095

Press Contact:
Miji Pearse
Phone: (888) 333-5095 x47

Broke NFL Athletes – why do they fall so fast?

In a recent article about ex-NFL starting quarterback Vince Young, he has fallen on hard times, having lost his money and is also losing all of his properties.  Why doesn’t the NFL Players Union teach these guys about some basics of finance?  Perhaps some basics of living after the NFL in their retirement?

These guys tend to not save money, put money into bad investments, let shady characters squander their money, and through it all they don’t have the resources to continue the mega-lifestyle they set up for themselves.

Does anyone even tell them that their real estate will be foreclosed on if they can’t pay the taxes after their playing days are gone?  Does anyone tell them to downsize their lifestyle when they finally are cut for the last time and are out of the NFL?

What do you think they should do to teach NFL players about retirement?  Share your ideas here.

You can read about Vince Young’s recent property woes on USA Today in article titles “Vince Young is being forced to sell all his stuff” at:

http://ftw.usatoday.com/2013/07/vince-young-debt-auction-police/

Is playing the Lottery a retirement strategy?

With this weeks $448 million jackpot, lottery fever hits the US again.  Why do so many people talk about “winning the lottery” as their retirement plan when the chances are infinitessimally small?

Not only that, studies have shown that most lottery winners end up miserable, broke and estranged from family and friends, as so many people “expect” them to share their winnings.  That would make for a lousy retirement don’t ya think?

Do you play the lottery regularly hoping to hit it big?

If so, do you deep down really think that you will be one of the winners?  And if you did win, why do you think you would be able to withstand the misery that follows?

Read about the latest powerball jackpot on USA Today at:

http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2013/08/07/powerball-players-jackpots/2629245/

Retirement Software Company donates 25% from all July 4th sales of RetirementView software directly to the Wounded Warrior Project® (WWP)

Retirement Software Company donates 25% from all July 4th sales of RetirementView software directly to the Wounded Warrior Project® (WWP)

(Newswire.net — August 1, 2013) Marietta, GA — Torrid Technologies, Inc. proudly announced it’s confirmed contribution to the Wounded Warrior Project® (WWP). The donation made is 25% of all Torrid Technologies software sales from both the Memorial Day and Independence Day weekends. The final donation was sent on July 16th directly to Wounded Warriors. The decision to donate such a substantial percentage of sales was made by Torrid Technologies’ interim CEO, Tim Turner. After an overwhelming response from the Torrid Technologies customer base, in support of the initial Memorial Day weekend donation effort, Turner made a determination to extend the effort to the Independence Day weekend as well.
The Fourth of July, or Independence Day, is a federal holiday that celebrates the adoption of the Declaration of Independence on July 4, 1776. Memorial Day, the American holiday observed on the last Monday of May, honors men and women who died while serving in the U.S. military. Many cities and towns hold parades on Memorial Day in honor of military heroes, as well as current military personnel and members of veterans’ organizations. “There was such an amazing response from our community for the Memorial Day Wounded Warrior Project donation drive. It only made sense to do it again during Independence Day.” says Tim Turner, one of the founders of Torrid Technologies. “We wanted to do something real to help those that have served our great country, but have been wounded from that service. Our company is proud to honor our injured service members by giving a portion of our sales over both weekends to the Wounded Warrior Project.”
In honor of our veterans and military personnel, Torrid Technologies decided not to just have another Memorial Day or Independence Day sale, but decided to find a way to truly help some of our veterans that are still living. This lead to Torrid Tech’s decision to donate 25% of its Memorial Day and Independence Day weekends’ software sales to the Wounded Warrior Project®. The Wounded Warrior Project website outlines its vision “To foster the most successful, well-adjusted generation of wounded service members in our nation’s history”, a vision fully supported by the Torrid Technologies company.
“Although we aren’t selling the traditional Memorial or Independence Day items, we still feel the need to do our part, Even though we are a software company, we want to do what we can to help our wounded warriors on Memorial Day and Independence Day,” he adds.

The Wounded Warrior Project’s stated purpose is to raise awareness and enlist the public’s aid for the needs of injured service members, to help injured service members aid and assist each other, and to provide unique, direct programs and services to meet the needs of injured service members. Some of the programs it offers to serve warriors and their families include a “Combat Stress Recovery Program”, job training and transition, as well as family support services.
Although Torrid Tech’s RetirementView software is not military specific, it can be used by anyone to plan their retirement savings and to determine when you will run out of money in retirement. Since 1993 Torrid Technologies has offered their software to the public to help people plan for their retirement. The latest version of the software, RetirementView 2013, is available for consumers and professional financial advisors. It’s billed as a “Quick, Simple, and Visual” retirement income planning tool that anyone can use to create a basic retirement plan, even those that are not that good with a computer.About Torrid Technologies:
Torrid Technologies was founded in 1993 and provides easy-to-use financial planning software to consumers, financial advisors, and financial companies including Pacific Life, JANUS, MassMutual, Sentry Insurance, and AXA. You can contact Torrid at:
Torrid Technologies Inc.
For More Information on RetirementView software, please visit:
http://www.torrid-tech.com
Address: 1860 Sandy Plains Rd., Suite 204-129, Marietta, GA 30066
Tel: (888) 333.5095
For More Information on the Wounded Warrior Project®, please visit: www.woundedwarriorproject.org

Press Contact:
Miji Pearse
Phone: (888) 333-5095 x47
###

Retirement Software Company Donates 25% of Memorial Day Sales

Retirement Co. Donates to Help Wounded Warriors

Memorial Day Flag Salute

Torrid Technologies, Inc. announced today that it will donate 25% of all sales of RetirementView software that occur over the Memorial Day weekend directly to the Wounded Warrior Project® (WWP)

(Newswire.net — May 24, 2013) Marietta, GA — Torrid Technologies, Inc. announced today that it will donate 25% of all sales of RetirementView software that occur over the Memorial Day weekend directly to the Wounded Warrior Project® (WWP).

Video from Torrid Tech explains their Memorial Day Donation Effort
Memorial Day, the American holiday observed on the last Monday of May, honors men and women who died while serving in the U.S. military.  Many cities and towns hold parades on Memorial Day in honor of military heroes, as well as current military personnel and members of veterans’ organizations.

In honor of our veterans and military personnel, Torrid Technologies decided not to just have another Memorial Day sale, but decided to find a way to truly help some of our veterans that are still living.  This lead to Torrid Tech’s decision to donate 25% of its Memorial Day weekend sales to the Wounded Warrior Project®.  The Wounded Warrior Project website outlines its vision “To foster the most successful, well-adjusted generation of wounded service members in our nation’s history.”

The Wounded Warrior Project’s stated purpose is to raise awareness and enlist the public’s aid for the needs of injured service members, to help injured service members aid and assist each other, and to provide unique, direct programs and services to meet the needs of injured service members.  Some of the programs it offers to serve warriors and their families include a “Combat Stress Recovery Program”, job training and transition, as well as family support services.

“The Wounded Warrior Project has so many great programs to reach out and help our American war veterans,” says Tim Turner, one of the founders of Torrid Technologies. “We wanted to do something real to help those that have served our great country, but have been wounded from that service.  Our company is proud to honor our injured service members by giving a portion of our sales over the Memorial Day weekend to the Wounded Warrior Project.”

Although Torrid Tech’s RetirementView software is not military specific, it can be used by anyone to plan their retirement savings and determine when you will run out of money in retirement.  Since 1993 Torrid Technologies has offered their software to the public to help people plan for their retirement.  The latest version of the software, RetirementView 2013, is available for consumers and professional financial advisors. It’s billed as a “Quick, Simple, and Visual” retirement income planning tool that anyone can use to create a basic retirement plan, even those that are not that good with a computer.

“Although we aren’t selling grills and barbecue items, just retirement planning software, we feel that every little bit helps.  Even though we are a software company, we want to do our part to help our wounded warriors on Memorial Day,” he adds.

About Torrid Technologies:
Torrid Technologies was founded in 1993 and provides easy-to-use financial planning software to consumers, financial advisors, and financial companies including Pacific Life, JANUS, MassMutual, Sentry Insurance, and AXA. You can contact Torrid at:

Torrid Technologies Inc.
For More Information on RetirementView software, please visit:
http://www.torrid-tech.com
Address: 1860 Sandy Plains Rd., Suite 204-129, Marietta, GA 30066
Tel: (888) 333.5095

For More Information on the Wounded Warrior Project®, please visit: www.woundedwarriorproject.org

Press Contact:
Miji Pearse
Phone: (888) 333-5095 x47

###

The official NewsWire.net Press release is located here.

What are your Social Security Options?

There are a number of “Social Security Options” that you need to consider.  The biggest of course is “when to apply” to start receiving your retirement benefits.

However, there are other options.  When should your spouse file for benefits?   Can my spouse start benefits before I start benefits?  If so, how do you do that?

How can we maximize our Social Security benefits?  What does it mean to “file and suspend” your benefits?

This article from Investments News by Mary Beth Franklin discusses a number of “does and don’ts” related to your Social Security options.

Click here to go to her article called “Social Security: No double dipping allowed”

Pensions are Getting the Ax

Every week we see new stories about getting the pensions AXED by their employer, the bankruptcy court, or by government.  Many times this is happening to people ALREADY RETIRED that have already been receiving their pensions.

How is this possible????

Well, one way is when the Pension Benefit Guarantee Corp (PBGC) takes over the pension because the employer has gone bankrupt, or the pension has been declared bankrupt.  In many cases the pension was “underfunded” because the promises made to the workers were too lucrative and impossible to pay.

The problem is compounding when the pension funds are invested in the market, and the funds suffer losses in the market.  It makes it difficult if not impossible to recover those losses because they are so huge.

Many times city, county and other local governments promise specific pension benefits, only to later have new administrators change the plans in order to balance budgets.  Once again, promises made that were too generous are later retracted.

We will post links to some of these stories as we find them, but just beware of relying too much on “pensions” and “social security” or you could find your retirement becoming a real nightmare.

Social Security Administration – SSA

I think most everyone knows this, but the Social Security Administration (SSA) is in charge of your Social Security benefits.   So you want to visit the Social Security Administration website to do things like:

  • Apply for your benefits
  • Learn more about Social Security
  • Run some basic benefit calculations
  • Learn about Survivor benefits
  • Learn about disability benefits

You can also learn about the history of Social Security and how it came about in the 1930s under President Roosevelt’s “New Deal”.

Click here to go to the Social Security Administration Website

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