The Retirement and IRA Show

Jim and Chris welcome back returning guest Dr. Phillip Snider for a Q&A episode that plays a little differently than usual. Listener emails open a broader discussion of healthspan and lifespan, (including how wealth, genetics, and lifestyle factors shape longevity), retirement planning for longevity, and Dr. Snider’s recommendation for additional tests to help assess your health risks.

(5:15) — George cautions that median longevity statistics are heavily influenced by wealth, genetics, and individual behavior, and shares CDC data showing life expectancy rises significantly once someone reaches age 65.

(29:45) — A listener asks Dr. Snider to discuss the value of the cardiac calcium score in assessing longevity. She also asks about the science behind statins, including their effect on plaque stability and a possible link to reduced dementia risk.

Show Notes:

Dr. Snider’s list of recommended tests:

CAC test (coronary artery calcium,) or heart scan – a noninvasive, low-dose CT scan that measures calcified plaque in your arteries to predict future heart attack risk.

hsCRP (high-sensitivity C-reactive protein) – measures inflammation in the body related to cardiovascular disease risk.

IL-6 (Interleukin-6) – elevated levels are associated with multiple conditions including cardiovascular disease, diabetes (insulin resistance), cancer, and autoimmune disorders.  The sample has to be frozen before sending to the lab for processing, so it may need to be collected at a hospital lab or free-standing lab facility rather than at a doctor’s office.

MPO (Myeloperoxidase) – measures an enzyme found in white blood cells (neutrophils and macrophages). It is a key biomarker of inflammation and oxidative stress. In the bloodstream, high MPO levels indicate that immune cells are actively attacking vessel walls, making it a powerful predictor of cardiovascular disease and plaque instability.

Lp-PLA2 (lipoprotein-associated phospholipase A2) – measures a specialized inflammatory enzyme highly concentrated in unstable, rupture-prone fatty plaques within your arteries. Unlike general inflammatory markers (like hs-CRP), Lp-PLA2 is specifically localized to inflammation of blood vessels.

The post Healthspan and Retirement Planning for Longevity with Dr. Snider: Q&A #2628 appeared first on The Retirement and IRA Show.

Chris’s Summary

Jim and I review a reader-submitted article on funding essential expenses in retirement, examining how one engineer split his portfolio into what we would call the Minimum Dignity Floor and Fun Number, using Social Security and a TIPS ladder. We compare that approach to our own income-based framework, discuss mortality credits from income annuities, and address reader emails about how long an essentials-only spending floor should realistically last.

Jim’s “Pithy” Summary

Chris and I get into a short piece a listener sent us, written by an engineer who approached retirement spending in a very engineer style way: building a model, gathering the data, and running the numbers. But he initially still came up short on peace of mind and ended up splitting his retirement into two portfolios, leaning on Social Security and a TIPS ladder for funding essential expenses, and landing on a lot of ground Chris and I have been covering for twenty-five years, even though he’s never heard of the show.

I’ve got some thoughts on that TIPS ladder approach, particularly around mortality credits and what happens when you’re the one holding all the longevity risk yourself instead of pooling it. It ties into what I call the See Through Portfolio, our approach to positioning assets so you can actually see what each dollar is doing for you rather than treating everything as one big undifferentiated pile. I also bring back my seesaw, the younger you on one side, the older you on the other, to work through what happens with whatever’s left once the essentials are covered.

We close out on a couple of relevant reader emails, including one from someone who put together twenty-five years of essential spending coverage on his own. Chris and I do some math on what that actually means for him, and I end up talking about fish schooling and birds flocking, because nature figured some of this out a long time before we did.

Show Notes: Humble Dollar Article

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Jim and Chris discuss listener emails on Social Security spousal benefit calculations, variable annuities in a 403(b), converting Inherited IRAs, and the Social Security child-in-care provision’s effect on spousal benefits.

(10:00) — A listener asks Chris to explain why his additional high-earning years increased his own benefit so little, due to Social Security’s bend point formula, and how that translated into only a small spousal benefit adjustment for his wife. He also asks whether Social Security stops recalculating a worker’s PIA once they reach age 70.

(28:00) — Georgette asks why her 403(b) funds are classified as variable annuities rather than mutual funds, and whether they function like other variable annuities sold on the open market.

(54:30) — The guys field a question about a non-spouse inherited IRA, where the account holder wants to know whether the required RMD must be taken before completing a separate Roth conversion.

(1:05:15) — Jim and Chris address whether the child-in-care provision removes the early-claiming reduction to a wife’s spousal benefit, in a case where she claims at 62 and her husband, the higher earner, waits until 65.

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Chris’s Summary

Jim and I continue our discussion on annuity insurer failures and state guarantee fund protections before turning to jointly owned annuities, examining how they differ from other jointly titled assets. We cover credited versus uncredited interest, mortality table calculations for annuitized contracts, and how a jointly owned annuity’s death benefit passes to named beneficiaries rather than the surviving owner. Contract language varies by insurer on how the surviving joint owner is treated relative to named beneficiaries.

Jim’s “Pithy” Summary

Chris and I pick up where we left off last week and close out our take on that NBC article about a woman whose annuity insurer ran into serious financial trouble. I get into the timing behind a related lawsuit, why I think the agent involved should have caught the warning signs, and why the insurance company itself deserves plenty of blame too. We also break down how state guarantee funds actually work once an insurer goes under, the difference between credited and uncredited interest, and what changes once you’ve annuitized and the fund has to figure out your payments using its own mortality tables.

Then we shift into jointly owned annuities, and this is the part worth paying close attention to. Most people assume a joint annuity behaves like any other jointly titled asset, where the survivor automatically ends up owning the whole thing. However, that is not always how it works. I walk through language from two different insurance contracts we have dealt with over the years, and the two companies handle a joint owner’s death in completely different ways. If you have an older jointly owned annuity with someone other than your spouse listed as primary beneficiary, this is worth looking into now, because what actually happens at the first owner’s death might not be what you expect.

The post What to Know About Jointly Owned Annuities: EDU #2626 appeared first on The Retirement and IRA Show.

Jim and Chris discuss listener emails on Social Security benefits for a disabled adult child, SPIA timing and funding, longevity assumptions, and QLAC planning.

(15:15) A listener asks why Social Security appears to be paying a disabled adult child benefit and child-in-care spousal benefit as a combined 50% of the worker’s PIA rather than 50% each, and how they might address the issue.

(32:45) The guys discuss whether to buy a SPIA now or wait until age 70, along with the pros and cons of purchasing one with pre-tax, Roth, or brokerage assets. They also address where a DIY investor may be able to purchase a SPIA.

(1:11:00) Jim and Chris respond to a listener considering whether expected AI-driven longevity advances should factor into the timing of a future SPIA purchase.

(1:19:15) A listener asks about using a QLAC to help accelerate Roth conversions and whether a special needs trust for a disabled adult child could avoid a large lump-sum tax hit if both parents pass early.

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