Retirement Milestone Cheat Sheet
In this issue:
- Latest in Retirement Savings & Personal Finance: OBBB Tax Changes, More Debt Among Millennials, Adult Children Living at Home
- Retirement Milestone Cheat Sheet
- Tools & Tips: Main ETFs You Can Use
- Market Overview
Latest in Retirement Savings & Personal Finance: OBBB Tax Changes, More Debt Among Millennials, Adult Children Living at Home
One Big Beautiful Bill Tax Change
CNBC gives the following infographic table to succinctly summarize the tax changes:
Some interesting standouts: Auto loan interest deduction and charitable deduction for non-itemizers. Of course, $40,000 SALT is all good for high cost of living state people. Finally, no social security benefit tax deduction as many have mentioned.
More Debt Among Millennials
Ramsey Solutions highlights that 53% of millennials have more debt than retirement savings.
Other statistics:
- 53% of U.S. adults live paycheck-to-paycheck.
- 33% report being in financial crisis or struggling.
- 66% expect to work past age 65, with 33% saying it’s not a choice .
We all know that retirement future for many is not as rosy as it looks. The question is: can you do better?
Adult Children Living at Home
Here are some statistics:
- Among adults aged 18–30, approximately 42% lived with at least one parent, driven by economic and social factors .
- Between 2007 and 2023, parental co-residence rose across all young adult age groups, peaking around 2020 and remaining elevated:
- 18–24: ~57%
- 25–29: ~21.7%
- 30–34: ~12.1%
Covid-19 and economic pressures are the two major factors behind this: high housing costs, student debt, and stagnant wages make independent living tough.
Coastal and Southern states lead in multigenerational living, with New Jersey (42.7%), Connecticut (39.6%), and California (38.6%) topping the list .
As always, there are pros and cons:
Pros
- Cost savings and easier debt repayment .
- Improved family bonds—52% report a positive experience
Cons
- Slowed maturity: Lack of budgeting, discipline, and independence may hamper personal growth.
- Financial strain on parents: 38% say adult kids living at home hurt their retirement savings, and 39% find it affects their short-term goals.
- Family tension: Regression to childhood dynamics is common, necessitating boundary-setting.
Retirement Milestone Cheat Sheet
The following cheat sheet for key retirement ages could be useful for those who are near or in retirement. But also could be useful for those who are planning for the future. Watch for this page for any updated in the future.
⚡ Age 50: Standard Catch-Up Contributions
At 50, you can start making extra contributions to boost your retirement savings:
- 401(k), 403(b), and most 457 plans: Extra $7,500 per year
- Traditional and Roth IRAs: Extra $1,000 per year
- SIMPLE IRAs: Extra $3,500 per year
- Solo 401(k): Eligible for the same $7,500 catch-up as regular 401(k) plans
- SEP IRA: No catch-up contributions allowed
This is a great opportunity to increase your retirement savings if you’re behind.
🎯 Age 55: Rule of 55 (Not for IRAs or Solo 401(k))
If you leave your job in or after the year you turn 55, you can withdraw from your 401(k) or 403(b) without a 10% penalty.
🚨 Not available for IRAs, Solo 401(k), or SEP IRA.
🎉 Age 59½: Penalty-Free Withdrawals Begin
At 59½, you can withdraw from 401(k), IRA, Solo 401(k), and SEP IRA without the 10% early withdrawal penalty. Regular income taxes still apply.
This is the first age when you can tap into your retirement accounts without extra costs.
💰 Age 62: Earliest Social Security Eligibility
You can start claiming Social Security at 62, but your benefits will be reduced compared to waiting until full retirement age (67).
If you can afford to wait, you’ll receive larger monthly payments.
🔝 Ages 60-63: Super Catch-Up Contributions (Not for Solo 401(k) or SEP IRA)
Starting in 2025, those aged 60 to 63 can contribute the greater of $10,000 or 150% of the regular catch-up to their 401(k) or 403(b).
🚨 Solo 401(k) and SEP IRA are NOT eligible for this super catch-up.
⛑️ Age 65: Medicare Enrollment
Your initial Medicare enrollment period starts 3 months before and ends 3 months after your 65th birthday.
Missing this deadline could mean late penalties—so don’t delay!
⌛ Age 67: Full Retirement Age for Social Security
If you were born in 1960 or later, 67 is when you can claim 100% of your Social Security benefits, which is 30% more than if you claimed at 62.
Waiting even longer (until 70) increases your monthly check.
🚀 Age 70: Maximize Your Social Security Benefit
By 70, your Social Security payments reach their highest possible amount—about 77% more than if you claimed at 62 and 24% more than if you claimed at 67. There’s no advantage to delaying beyond 70, so claim it!
📉 Age 73: Required Minimum Distributions (RMDs) Begin
- Traditional 401(k), IRA, Solo 401(k), and SEP IRA: Must start withdrawing minimum amounts each year.
- Roth IRA: No RMDs for the account owner.
- Roth 401(k): RMDs required unless rolled into a Roth IRA.
The penalty for missing an RMD is 25% of the required amount, so make sure to take it on time!
Solo 401(k) & SEP IRA: Key Age-Based Rules
- No Rule of 55 withdrawals for Solo 401(k) or SEP IRA.
- No Super Catch-Up (60-63) for Solo 401(k) or SEP IRA.
- Solo 401(k) follows standard 401(k) rules for contributions, catch-up, and RMDs.
- SEP IRA does not allow catch-up contributions.
Tools & Tips: Main ETFs You Can Use
MyPlanIQ has curated a comprehensive list of best main ETFs in key investment categories (or so-called asset classes including US large cap company stocks, bonds, etc.). These ETFs are liquid and low cost and most of them are index funds. See ETFs in Asset Classes page.
The following, for example, is the list of major total return bond ETFs that could be extremely useful for fixed income investors:
| Name | YTD Return | 1Yr AR | 3Yr AR | 5Yr AR | 10Yr AR | 15Yr AR | 20Yr AR | Inception |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| BOND (PIMCO Active Bond Exchange-Traded Fund) | 3.50% | 4.92% | 3.46% | -0.16% | 2.05% | NA | NA | 8.45% |
| TOTL (SPDR DoubleLine Total Return Tactical ETF) | 3.29% | 4.86% | 3.11% | -0.14% | 1.54% | NA | NA | 7.29% |
| FBND (Fidelity Total Bond ETF) | 3.62% | 5.05% | 3.55% | 0.24% | 2.39% | NA | NA | 7.75% |
| HTRB (Hartford Total Return Bond ETF) | 3.11% | 4.08% | 3.44% | -0.35% | NA | NA | NA | 7.92% |
| GTO (Invesco Total Return Bond ETF) | 2.77% | 4.19% | 3.15% | -0.40% | NA | NA | NA | 7.83% |
| CGCP (Capital Group Core Plus Income ETF) | 3.26% | 5.10% | 3.56% | NA | NA | NA | NA | 8.08% |
| CGMS (Capital Group U.S. Multi-Sector Income ETF) | 3.74% | 7.51% | NA | NA | NA | NA | NA | 12.83% |
| BKAG (BNY Mellon Core Bond ETF) | 3.33% | 4.50% | 2.22% | -1.02% | NA | NA | NA | 6.31% |
| STOT (SPDR DoubleLine Short Duration Total Return Tactical ETF) | 2.85% | 5.71% | 5.07% | 2.40% | NA | NA | NA | 8.31% |
| PTRB (PGIM Total Return Bond ETF) | 3.39% | 4.66% | 3.67% | NA | NA | NA | NA | 8.57% |
We encourage our readers to visit the page for other ETFs when constructing their IRA and other long term investment portfolios. Income investors or those are concerned about risk could also check out MyPlanIQ Income Investors or Brokerage Investors pages.
Market Overview
Stocks continued to ascend to all time highs last week. However, investors have started to be concerned about the employment (though the headlines reported last week were strong, however, jobs from private sectors actually declined) and tariffs again.
The following table shows the major asset price returns and their trend scores, as of last Friday:
| Asset Class | 1 Weeks | 4 Weeks | 13 Weeks | 26 Weeks | 52 Weeks | Trend Score |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| US Stocks | 0.4% | 3.8% | 23.4% | 4.9% | 13.1% | 9.1% |
| Foreign Stocks | -0.6% | 1.4% | 23.1% | 16.4% | 15.3% | 11.1% |
| US REITs | 0.2% | 0.1% | 9.9% | 3.1% | 10.5% | 4.8% |
| Emerging Market Stocks | 0.2% | 2.1% | 20.5% | 12.0% | 13.5% | 9.6% |
| Bonds | -0.8% | 1.1% | 0.7% | 3.4% | 4.4% | 1.8% |
More detailed returns and trend scores can be found on MyPlanIQ.com Market Overview.
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