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What Every Federal Employee's Financial Planner Should Know About Federal Retirement and Benefits
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Retirement
Internal Revenue Service
Wed Sep 23, 2009 7:40 AM
Post Reply
The government offices, federal, state, county need to allow their employees to draw their entitlement of social security when they retire. They have earned it.
The federal government needs to go back to one retirement plan. The old retirement plan and repeal the offset & windfall for those employees.
They need good workers and they are not going to get them if they cannot draw their entitlement of themselves or their spouses.
Many of the employees under the CSRS in the lower paid salary bracket can not live on their retirement funds as not be allowed to draw their Soc Sec entitlement.
For example: Entitlement to approx $500.00, when retire would draw less that $100.00 per month.
Would probably not draw enough to pay the medicare part B insurance. I do not know how that will work, probably have to pay the remainder each month.
Also, the medicare insurance should be primary upon retirement, I waiting for a change there, to eliminate that if you have private insurance.
Lump sum distribution in CSRS
DLA
Wed Sep 23, 2009 7:49 AM
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your article above states that NO lump sum distribution option is available in eithr CSRS or FERS. I am inCSRS and I always thought that upon retirement, I would be able to take a one time lump sum from CSRS and the remaining amount would be available in the form of an annuity. I also want to know if I can wait to start my annuity until age 72?
Re: Lump sum distribution in CSRS
ssa
Wed Sep 23, 2009 8:20 AM
I think you may be confusing this w/ TSP money. That is available as a lumpsum/annuity. as for your pension, that's an annuity paid until you expire.
Re: Lump sum distribution in CSRS
DLA
Wed Sep 23, 2009 9:33 AM
Re: Lump sum distribution in CSRS
DOD
Thu Sep 24, 2009 1:08 PM
Great advise for those who can afford a planner!
VA
Wed Sep 23, 2009 7:53 AM
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Thank you for this article, which serves as a reminder for all Feds. For the vast majority of Fed employees outside of the Beltway, this advice is for us and not our planners. Since the bulk of us make from $40-50,000, very few of us can afford to hire a planner.
Re: Great advise for those who can afford a planner!
DHS/ICE
Wed Sep 23, 2009 4:46 PM
These guys have saved my a lot of $$ by assisting with finacial decisions relating to TSP, Roth investments, retirement issues, etc. Heck, they even helped me refi my home, paying off some outstanding loans in the process, saving me all sorts of money.
Yes, it was an expensive outlay but so far well worth it.
Looking to Retire
DoD
Wed Sep 23, 2009 8:22 AM
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Even in the DC area, most financial planners I have spoken to are clueless about federal benefits and either CSRS or FERS. They seem to think we still need to plan like everyone else and pretty much ignore the fact that we will have a fairly decent pension (sorry about that, FERS folks) flowing in every month. The thing about lifetime health care eludes them also. You would think there would be some who would specialize in working with feds, but, even thos who say they are knowledgeable turn out not to be so.
What we needs are a few retired feds with an intimite knowledge of our benefits to become financial planners.
Re: Looking to Retire
Employee
Wed Sep 23, 2009 11:51 AM
Re: Looking to Retire
USDA
Thu Dec 3, 2009 8:31 AM
I, too, thought I was on track to have half a million dollars in my TSP account by the time I retired, until a couple of years ago. Not any more!!!!!! Unless I work for several more years, which at my age is probably what I will have to do. Hopefully you haven't been counting your chickens before they hatch, as the old saying goes.
What Financial Planners Need to Know
Forest Service
Wed Sep 23, 2009 8:30 AM
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You state "Our pension benefits are not dependent on the performance of stocks or bonds", but this is not entirely true for FERS employees/retirees. A significant portion of our retirement IS dependent on the stock market due to our retirement being a 'three-legged stool' with a large portion of our benefit coming from our Thrift Savings Plan earnings. FERS employees/retirees only have a portion of their retirement as a "good old-fashioned pension" since the stock market, and therefore the TSP, are not guaranteed.
Re: What Financial Planners Need to Know
Unamed Federal
Wed Sep 23, 2009 11:07 AM
The author presents these data in the article.
good comments
FED
Wed Sep 23, 2009 1:03 PM
Post Reply
There are alot of good comments here. The point of the article about financial planners not familiar with federal employee systems was driven home last week, when i caught part of Suzie Orman's show where she was answering a question from a couple about whether the husband, who works for the USPS and been offered a buyout should take it and retire. She got several aspects dead wrong and told him he couldnt afford to retire. She told him his pension would not be going up with inflation was a biggie. I pity the poor guy and his wife if they took her advice.
After Death
USPS
Wed Sep 23, 2009 3:45 PM
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Could you please advise, if a CRSR retiree dies, say in 10 years or less, and there is no survivor benifits, could his heirs be intitle to the amount of money that was not used, that he paid in thur the years. Only the amount that he contributed to the plan not the Gov. amount.
Re: After Death
DoD
Wed Oct 21, 2009 4:46 AM
It states: "Lump Sum Benefit is Payable
If an employee dies and no survivor annuity is payable based on his/her death, the retirement contributions remaining to the deceased person’s credit in the Civil Service Retirement and Disability Fund, plus applicable interest, are payable.
Payees for Lump Sum Benefits-
If a lump sum benefit is payable, it is paid to the first person eligible under the following order of precedence:
to the designated beneficiary;
if there is no such beneficiary, to the widow or widower; ... "
Might be best to double check with an 'expert' just to be sure.
Hope this helps.