I made my own end-of-life document. It is three single-spaced pages with annually-reviewed sections on: general info (former and current address, date of birth, ssn); employer info and supervisor contact (I am retired with a part-time job); health/insurance policies; financial accounts; donor advised fund account and successor trustee; credit accounts; memberships; hardware ids and passwords; software accounts; location of important documents; safe deposit box contents; and notifiy upon death (friends and family). Most sections contain contact information, for individuals and/or customer service. As for books on investing, I confess to reading only one, and that was decades after beginning my investing journey: The Prudent Professor, planning and saving for a worry-free retirement from academe, by Bridges and Bridges. I took away from it that keeping retirement funds in fixed income at TIAA is a reasonable proposition and that TIAA annuities are well structured and can be tailored to fit one's needs.
The act of building a budget, as I see it, is important in reinforcing and/or revising one's life goals. When I worked, I loved that I had to demonstrably link line items to institutional goals. It was a great planning tool. Now I like to see similar budget mapping by the non-profit for which I am treasurer. Do I do the same in my own life? To some extent, yes. My personal goals fit into the categories of "healthy, happy, responsible, prudent" and my budgets are guides to achieve the goals. The budgets themselves are less important for their dollar amounts than for how they fit the bigger -- and longer term -- picture.
With each IRMAA premium, I remind myself of the bargain that Medicare is compared to individual health insurance. I pay less now, despite being in a high IRMAA tier, than I did for private insurance in the first two years of retirement without Medicare. Even adding in premiums for supplemental, Medicare Part D, dental, and long term care insurance, my annual costs are still less than I would have had for individual health insurance alone.
Thanks for asking, Jeff. The one decision I would change was signing a phased, three-year retirement contract. Half time work in phased retirement was essentially full time work at half salary, amplified in part due to the pandemic and having to find new ways to do existing tasks. Had I been at full salary, I could also have delayed withdrawing from savings for at least one year longer.
A little off topic, but one of us must surely have answers... should the winner after claiming elect to give the money away, would that result in gift taxes later to their estate? Alternatively, could the winner, prior to claiming, gift the entire ticket to charity? What would be the tax situation then?
I urge all involved in this college decision to check out the government's college scorecard. Not only will the site provide information about the average cost of attendance (and therefore, perhaps, some leverage with the admission and financial aid offices) but also data regarding returns on investment for specific majors and degrees and graduation rates. I had the privilege of attending a top-ranked private college in the 70s when costs were low. Full-freight, including room and board, was $26K in inflation-adjusted dollars. Every bit of the college experience was exciting and it opened doors to graduate school. As a career academic, I found, however, that my initial college choice made little difference in return on investment. Honestly, passion and dedication to subject matter seem to matter most. Were I starting out today, I would likely attend community college first and transfer to a state university.
At Fidelity, I could elect withholding by selling shares. Indeed, that is Fidelity's default option. Instead, I pay estimated taxes either directly to the IRS, or through withdrawals from a 403(b) account that is all fixed income. Though it may sound complicated, in practice it's easy (TIAA allows up to 100% of a withdrawal to go federal and state withholding). I'm five years away from RMDs in the TIAA account, but must take them in an inherited account.
I agree, William, with your thoughts about DRIP except regarding RMDs. So often I read that taking cash out of retirement accounts is necessary to satisfy RMDs, even if that cash will subsequently be reinvested in a taxable account. Transferring out invested assets without selling is instead entirely possible. No "need to pull principal from investments at poor times", rather, just have the investments transfered out in kind. Transfers in kind are helping me transition my tax sheltered accounts from stocks to fixed income. As I am now past the need for growing my retirement accounts, keeping fixed income tax sheltered accomplishes two things. For one, it makes upcoming RMDs more predictable, and for another, it is more tax efficient, as interest is no longer taxable income.
I've been with the same insurer (State Farm) for 35 years. My auto policy, with one claim, now has double the original liability coverage and about four times the vehicle coverage, yet is only 2.6 times its initial cost. With inflation alone and no increase in coverage, its cost should have risen 2.4 times. Another insurer (Progressive) routinely invites me to get estimates, but their advertised premiums are always higher than my current ones. My renter's insurance has decreased 27% over the 30 years I've had it (same coverage and one claim). I wish I could say the same for umbrella coverage; it rose 48% last year after years of only small increases and no claims, similar to Bill's experience below.
Three years into retirement, and structure, purpose, commitment and gratitude still shape and color my life. What an unexpected gift, this stage of life. And I love that the answer to "what do you do?" no longer must tangentially address expectations of measuring up. No anxieties on my part, other than an overriding sense of the preciousness of time and the uncertainties ahead of becoming infirm. My financial journey has brought me to this time, and I am thankful for it.
Comments
I made my own end-of-life document. It is three single-spaced pages with annually-reviewed sections on: general info (former and current address, date of birth, ssn); employer info and supervisor contact (I am retired with a part-time job); health/insurance policies; financial accounts; donor advised fund account and successor trustee; credit accounts; memberships; hardware ids and passwords; software accounts; location of important documents; safe deposit box contents; and notifiy upon death (friends and family). Most sections contain contact information, for individuals and/or customer service. As for books on investing, I confess to reading only one, and that was decades after beginning my investing journey: The Prudent Professor, planning and saving for a worry-free retirement from academe, by Bridges and Bridges. I took away from it that keeping retirement funds in fixed income at TIAA is a reasonable proposition and that TIAA annuities are well structured and can be tailored to fit one's needs.
Post: Your two best investing books—and do you also keep an End-of-Life “family binder”?
Link to comment from January 5, 2026
The act of building a budget, as I see it, is important in reinforcing and/or revising one's life goals. When I worked, I loved that I had to demonstrably link line items to institutional goals. It was a great planning tool. Now I like to see similar budget mapping by the non-profit for which I am treasurer. Do I do the same in my own life? To some extent, yes. My personal goals fit into the categories of "healthy, happy, responsible, prudent" and my budgets are guides to achieve the goals. The budgets themselves are less important for their dollar amounts than for how they fit the bigger -- and longer term -- picture.
Post: Can a budget do all that?
Link to comment from January 2, 2026
With each IRMAA premium, I remind myself of the bargain that Medicare is compared to individual health insurance. I pay less now, despite being in a high IRMAA tier, than I did for private insurance in the first two years of retirement without Medicare. Even adding in premiums for supplemental, Medicare Part D, dental, and long term care insurance, my annual costs are still less than I would have had for individual health insurance alone.
Post: Enough with IRMAA complaining
Link to comment from December 30, 2025
Thanks for asking, Jeff. The one decision I would change was signing a phased, three-year retirement contract. Half time work in phased retirement was essentially full time work at half salary, amplified in part due to the pandemic and having to find new ways to do existing tasks. Had I been at full salary, I could also have delayed withdrawing from savings for at least one year longer.
Post: If You Could Rewind 5 Years Before Retirement… What Would You Change?
Link to comment from December 27, 2025
A little off topic, but one of us must surely have answers... should the winner after claiming elect to give the money away, would that result in gift taxes later to their estate? Alternatively, could the winner, prior to claiming, gift the entire ticket to charity? What would be the tax situation then?
Post: The House Always Wins
Link to comment from December 27, 2025
I urge all involved in this college decision to check out the government's college scorecard. Not only will the site provide information about the average cost of attendance (and therefore, perhaps, some leverage with the admission and financial aid offices) but also data regarding returns on investment for specific majors and degrees and graduation rates. I had the privilege of attending a top-ranked private college in the 70s when costs were low. Full-freight, including room and board, was $26K in inflation-adjusted dollars. Every bit of the college experience was exciting and it opened doors to graduate school. As a career academic, I found, however, that my initial college choice made little difference in return on investment. Honestly, passion and dedication to subject matter seem to matter most. Were I starting out today, I would likely attend community college first and transfer to a state university.
Post: $92,000 a year is quite an investment. The ROI is real, but maybe not.
Link to comment from December 12, 2025
At Fidelity, I could elect withholding by selling shares. Indeed, that is Fidelity's default option. Instead, I pay estimated taxes either directly to the IRS, or through withdrawals from a 403(b) account that is all fixed income. Though it may sound complicated, in practice it's easy (TIAA allows up to 100% of a withdrawal to go federal and state withholding). I'm five years away from RMDs in the TIAA account, but must take them in an inherited account.
Post: You DRIP?
Link to comment from December 9, 2025
I agree, William, with your thoughts about DRIP except regarding RMDs. So often I read that taking cash out of retirement accounts is necessary to satisfy RMDs, even if that cash will subsequently be reinvested in a taxable account. Transferring out invested assets without selling is instead entirely possible. No "need to pull principal from investments at poor times", rather, just have the investments transfered out in kind. Transfers in kind are helping me transition my tax sheltered accounts from stocks to fixed income. As I am now past the need for growing my retirement accounts, keeping fixed income tax sheltered accomplishes two things. For one, it makes upcoming RMDs more predictable, and for another, it is more tax efficient, as interest is no longer taxable income.
Post: You DRIP?
Link to comment from December 9, 2025
I've been with the same insurer (State Farm) for 35 years. My auto policy, with one claim, now has double the original liability coverage and about four times the vehicle coverage, yet is only 2.6 times its initial cost. With inflation alone and no increase in coverage, its cost should have risen 2.4 times. Another insurer (Progressive) routinely invites me to get estimates, but their advertised premiums are always higher than my current ones. My renter's insurance has decreased 27% over the 30 years I've had it (same coverage and one claim). I wish I could say the same for umbrella coverage; it rose 48% last year after years of only small increases and no claims, similar to Bill's experience below.
Post: Home, Auto & Umbrella Insurance—“Longevity Benefit”?
Link to comment from December 8, 2025
Three years into retirement, and structure, purpose, commitment and gratitude still shape and color my life. What an unexpected gift, this stage of life. And I love that the answer to "what do you do?" no longer must tangentially address expectations of measuring up. No anxieties on my part, other than an overriding sense of the preciousness of time and the uncertainties ahead of becoming infirm. My financial journey has brought me to this time, and I am thankful for it.
Post: Happy Hour, or The Panic Button? Why Early Retirement Anxiety Is Real.
Link to comment from November 30, 2025