One-Third of Scam Victims are Over Age 65

None of us believe we will ever fall victim to a scam.  We are smart, educated, have common sense and we have decades of real-life experience.  There is no way that someone could fool us.  Right?  Unfortunately, professional scammers are working day and night to come up with new ways to cheat us out of our hard-earned money and, I'm sad to say, many of them have gotten really good at it.

According to the AARP and the National Council on Aging, people over age 65 comprise only about one-eighth of our population; however, they are the victims in approximately one-third of all scam cases.

If we are going to make sure our retirement savings last the rest of our lives, it's not enough to be certain that it is invested well.  We must also be sure that no one can trick us into turning some of it over to a fraudulent business.

Seven Common Scams Against Senior Citizens

Sweepstakes:  Beware of letters, emails and phone calls announcing that you have won a contest or sweepstakes, especially one that you do not remember entering.  If the contest administrators ask for money to pay them money in advance to cover taxes, insurance or other fees, it is almost certainly a fraud, since honest contests are not allowed to do this.  Call your local sheriff's office or county prosecuting attorney's office.

Online Dating:  If you put your profile on a dating site, be cautious if, after weeks or months of pleasant messages, the person you have connected with online begins to express a need for money.  They may say they want the money so they can afford to visit you or because they have a medical or personal emergency.  Frequently they will ask that you send the money in a wire transfer.  American women over the age of 50 are the most common victims of these scams.  They lost a reported $34 million in 2012, while American men lost approximately $5 million.  It is believed that many more cases go unreported because the victims are too embarrassed to tell anyone.  Each incident costs the victim an average of $10,000. 

Phony Charities:  I have repeatedly listed on this blog that people need to thoroughly vet any new charity before they make donations to it.  Never give your credit card information to someone who comes to your door or calls you with a charitable request.  Be skeptical of any charities that you have never heard of.  Check them out with the Better Business Bureau Wise Giving Alliance, CharityNavigator.org, or a similar charity evaluator.  Otherwise, stick to charities that you have dealt with in the past and trust, such as your religious organization, the Red Cross, United Way and similar well-known non-profits.

Grandparents Scam:  Two personal friends of mine have fallen victim to this scam.  Both of them were intelligent women who never thought they would fall for something like this.  Both of them discussed the situation with their husbands before sending money.  One of them is married to a retired Deputy Sheriff and even he was fooled.  In this scam, a upset "grandchild" or other relative calls, desperately begging for money and sobbing at the same time, so it is hard to recognize their voice.  Think you wouldn't be fooled?  People in the United States have reported losing $110 million a year to this scam ... and many more may not have reported it!

Home Repair Scams:  These scams happen most often after a major catastrophe that damages homes in your neighborhood; however, they can happen at other times, as well.  Someone may show up at your door offering to repair your gutters, fix your driveway, replace roof shingles or make other home repairs.  They can cheat you in one of two ways: either they ask for an upfront fee and then disappear; or they make shoddy repairs and keep asking for more and more money to fix new "issues" they find (or create).  Get recommendations for contractors from your friends, neighbors or insurance company before you use anyone.  Make sure they have a contractor's license.  Never hire anyone who unexpectedly shows up at your door.

Healthcare Thieves: This has been going on for a long time, but it is expected to become worse for a while because so many people are confused about the new Affordable Care Act.  A stranger, pretending to be a consultant, may offer to help you get free medical supplies or to help you understand changes to your insurance.  What they are really trying to do, however, is steal your identity, get medical care under your name, and leave you with the bill.  A woman here in Orange County, California, where I live, was arrested a few years ago for stealing another woman's medical identity and using the other person's identity to get several elective surgeries, including cosmetic surgery!

Investment Scams:  Unfortunately, these types of crimes did not end with the arrest of Bernie Madoff.  I have known several people who have fallen for these types of smooth-talking crooks.  One elderly couple we know lost nearly all their savings and were stunned when they discovered that "the nice young man" they trusted had actually stolen from them. This scam may start with a free-lunch seminar or some other special program set up under the guise of helping seniors find "low-risk" investments. People can be wiped out before they realize there is a problem.  Once again, stick with major investment firms or those that you know very well.

If you believe you have been a victim of a thief or scammer, contact your local police department, sheriff's department or the prosecuting attorney's office.  Keep any evidence you have that will help them identify the person behind the scam.

Other scams that often target senior citizens are counterfeit drugs, funeral scams, anti-aging products, and deceitful practices involving financial services such as reverse mortgages.  Always discuss major outlays of money with other family members as well as trusted financial advisers.

Bottom line:  Be careful.  Be skeptical.  Rely on all those years of experience that have kept you safe during your younger days.  You do not want to give away your hard-earned savings to criminals.

Whether you are already retired or about to retire, you may enjoy reading some of the other articles available on this blog.  Simply use the tabs at the top of the page to find the topics of most interest to you.  The tabs contain links to hundreds of additional articles.

You are reading from the blog:  http://www.baby-boomer-retirement.com

Source: 

http://www.ncoa.org/enhance-economic-security/economic-security-Initiative/savvy-saving-seniors/top-10-scams-targeting.html

AARP Bulletin, Fall, 2013.

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Do You Think You Are Ready to Retire?

Retirement is your key to easy street. Right? It's not unusual for people to believe that all they need to do when they start thinking about retirement in their 60's is to decide when they want to quit their job and then do it.  It sounds simple enough.  However, if you want to save yourself time, frustration and money, there are a few things you really need to figure out BEFORE you turn in that letter of resignation.

In fact in some cases, such as deciding when to collect your Social Security or where you are going to live, making a decision too hastily can cost you thousands of dollars.  While you can change your mind regarding some issues such as where you want to live, there are other decisions, such as those you make regarding Social Security, that are permanent.  Once you have begun collecting checks, you can't go back and say "I didn't know I could have chosen another option that would have paid me more."  You are stuck with the first decision you made.

Consequently, I recently wrote an article on Squidoo called, "What You Really Need to Know Before You Retire!"

This article gives you information about the decisions you need to make before you quit your job, and it also gives you links to the best books to help you get the detailed information that you will need in order make the smartest decisions for you and your family.

Even if you are already retired, you may still want to read this article because some of the information in it can help people even after they have retired, especially if they are thinking about moving to a new location or they are trying to determine how to invest their savings in order to maximize their income.

As the official "Retired and Loving It" Contributor for the online magazine Squidoo, I frequently write articles for them on topics that I believe will also interest my readers here at Baby-Boomer-Retirement.com.  As an added benefit for my blog followers, I post links here on this blog to interesting Squidoo articles that I or my fellow contributors have written regarding topics such as retirement, aging and health issues.

Here's another link to my Squidoo article:

http://www.squidoo.com/what-you-really-need-to-know-before-you-retire


You can also find additional retirement information by checking out the tabs at the top of this blog. They contain links to hundreds of articles about where to retire in the United States and overseas, medical issues for seniors, financial planning, family relationships and more.

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Warren Buffet's Retirement Advice

There are probably very few investors in the world who are better known or more successful than Warren Buffett.  His Berkshire Hathaway fund, headquartered in Omaha, Nebraska, has done very well over the decades.

According to the Motley Fool investment advisers, at a shareholder's meeting in 2004, Mr. Buffett was asked by a participant how to invest their retirement savings.  Here is a summary of his comments:

*  First, he said, he and his associates never recommend that people either buy or sell shares of Berkshire-Hathaway.

*  Instead, they recommend that nearly everyone should invest their money in low-cost index funds, and spread the investment out over a ten year period of time, buying a little at a time.  According to Mr. Buffett, people who do this will be more successful than 90% of the people who try to pick individual stocks.

* According to Mr. Buffet, by spreading out your investment in an index fund out over ten years, you are also taking advantage of dollar-cost averaging, which means that your investment costs will be averaged out over years in order to have an average cost that is as low as possible.

* In this particular interview, the only company that he specifically mentioned was the Vanguard Index Funds, because they are cheap and reliable.  Vanguard has a variety of funds, including an S&P 500 ETF (exchange traded fund), a Vanguard FTSE All-World ex-US ETF, and a Vanguard Total Bond Market ETF.   If you invest in a little of each, you will have an extremely balanced investment portfolio.  According to Mr. Buffett, these actions will give you "diversification across assets and time, two very important things."

*  In addition,  he recommended that investors read books by John Bogle.  He said that any investor in funds should read them.  To aid the readers of my blog in finding them, here is a link to the correct Amazon.com page:  John Bogle's books on Amazon.com.

*  Mr. Buffett discourages investors from keeping all their money in cash.  While everyone should have some cash on hand for emergencies, according to Mr. Buffett cash will lose value over time, while the majority of businesses held by exchange-traded funds will become worth more over time.

If you are still at the stage of your life while you are saving for retirement, you may wish to read the books mentioned above, do your own research, and decide for yourself if you wish to follow Mr. Buffett's advice.  While no one investment decision is right for everyone, it is always a good idea to read the opinions of successful investors.  At the very least, Mr. Buffett's advice is likely to be far safer than some of the more risky investments that often tempt us with their promises of high (and often un-realized) returns.

Disclaimer:  I am not in the investment business; all recommendations mentioned in this blog are only presented here in attempt to present my readers with some of the options available to them.  All final investment decisions are purely the decision of my readers.

Source:

http://www.fool.com/investing/general/2013/12/30/warren-buffetts-super-simple-retirement-advice.aspx#.UsGQybS3ikw

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Resources for Retiring in the United States

Are you trying to decide where you want to retire in the United States after you retire?  It can be a difficult decision.  Should you live near your current home, near your adult children or in an entirely new location?  Do you like winter sports, or are some empty beach chairs calling your name?

Your first step will be doing your research.  Do you know what the cost of living is in the different locations you are considering?  What is the weather like there?  Will your Social Security be taxed?  What about your other retirement income?  How much are the property taxes?

In the states that you are considering, which towns are the most affordable?  What types of sporting events, museums, golf courses and other entertainment options are available in the area?

If you are in the process of making up your mind about where you would like to live, you will want to be sure to check out the book review I wrote for the online magazine Squidoo about "Where to Retire: America's Best and Most Affordable Places."

This article also has links to a couple of other excellent books that will be useful in helping you find the perfect place to retire.  It's far easier, and cheaper, to do your research from the comfort of your current home than it is to drive all over the place or, worse, to move and realize that your new community is not what you expected.

If you are planning your retirement, you will also want to use the tabs at the top of this page to check out more articles about retiring in the United States or other countries, medical issues, financial concerns, and more.

You are reading from the blog:  http://www.baby-boomer-retirement.com

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