Mattson Financial Services - June 2018

F I N A N C I A L S E R V I C E S , L L C

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www.MattsonFinancial.com

June 2018

AGE IS MORE THAN A NUMBER — IT’S A MILESTONE HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO ME!

Happy birthday tome! Yes, it’s that time again. My birthday is in June, and I’m turning the wonderful age of 62. Now I get to ask that age-old Social Security question: Should I or should I not? At age 62, I amnow eligible for Social Security benefits. I have to decide if I should begin taking themnow or if I should hold off. It’s a question millions of Americans have faced as they reach this age. But 62 is just one of the ages along the journey we call the“milestones of retirement.” The first major milestone is age 50 . Not only are you a half-century old, you have the privilege of adding additional funds to your retirement accounts, called catch-up contributions. For example, you can contribute an additional $6,000 to your 401(k) or an additional $1,000 to a traditional or Roth IRA. Next up is age 55 . This is when, if you stop working with your current employer, youmay be able to access your tax-deferred accounts without the 10 percent penalty. At age 59 1/2 , you are considered old enough to retire in the eyes of the IRS. Congratulations! You can access retirement money in your IRAs and 401(k)s without having to pay any sort of penalty. Then it’s the big 60 . If you are a widow or widower, youmay be eligible to withdraw Social Security benefits early, though at a reduced rate. Now comes age 62 . You can begin to receive Social Security, though you will receive the lowest standard rate.

At age 65 , many employers will let you access your full pension benefits. You should be able to qualify for full Medicare benefits, as well. When you reach 66 and 67 , you arrive at the (current) full retirement age for most baby boomers. You can finally take advantage of full Social Security benefits. When you reach age 70 , Social Security benefits become serious. If you delayed taking your benefits and let them accrue for eight years with compounded cost-of-living adjustments, this is when they max out. This is the year you want to start taking Social Security nomatter what. Finally, we hit the last retirement milestone: age 70 1/2 . This is the year Uncle Sam is ready for you to take your required minimum distributions

(RMDs). Your RMDs come from your tax-deferred plans so the IRS can start collecting taxes on those distributions. I have to admit, I have never wished to be whisked away to any of my previous birthdays. Every year brings fresh opportunities and new joy. With that, I suggest you take some time to consider each of these milestones. Make sure you take the opportunity tomaximize each and every area of your financial plan. And remember, just as you’re careful not to singe your eyebrows on your birthday candles, don’t let your financial plan singe your retirement. –Gary Mattson

Published by The Newsletter Pro • www.thenewsletterpro.com

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HONE IN ON HONEY

NATURE’S WO

Honey is a wonderful all-natural sweetener. Despite being sweet, it comes with actual health benefits — something you can’t say about other types of sugar. But some honeys are better than others, so it’s important to buy the right kind. Raw honey may help your body heal itself more effectively. One study in BMC Complementary and Alternative Medicine pointed to raw manuka honey as an effective way to speed up the time it takes wounds to heal while also reducing risk of infection. Simply apply manuka honey to a wound and let it do the rest. One of the best types of honey you can buy is raw, unfiltered, local honey. While it isn’t known to decrease the healing time of wounds, it can reduce symptoms related to allergies. Raw honey contains trace amounts of pollen, as well as other allergens

from grasses and weeds. Local honey contains many of the pollens and allergens you would normally breathe in on an average day. The pollens in local honey are just enough to kick your immune system into gear. As a form of immunotherapy, raw, local honey helps your body become acclimated to those allergens. But these three points — raw, unfiltered, and local — are crucial. When honey is processed and filtered, it loses practically all of its allergy-fighting power and becomes an ordinary sweetener. Most experts advise finding honey that was produced as close to your home as possible, preferably within 20 miles. The closer, the better. Keep in mind that it can take several weeks before you feel results. Of course, you won’t find a more delicious way to combat allergies.

‘THE ORIGINS OF HAPPINESS’

Changing Our Ideas of Success

Listed as one of the top five books Business Insider was excited about for the year 2018, “Origins” does not disappoint. If you want to better understand your own happiness or the happiness of others, you’ll find the book to be an enlightening page turner. Even though it’s based on years of research and filled with graphs and >Page 1 Page 2 Page 3 Page 4

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