5 Retirement Saving Strategies You Should Know About

Don’t wait until you are near retirement age to plan for your future. Retirement planning services from QNB Bank will help you secure your finances and keep your savings intact as you enter your golden years. Amassing wealth for retirement is only half the work you need to do in order to ensure financial freedom during your later years. You also want to safeguard what wealth you have acquired and make sure that you have a solid strategy in place to make your savings last. More importantly, your money has to keep generating income even when you are no longer entitled to an actual paycheck. Here are some tried and tested retirement saving strategies you should consider on top of retirement planning services from QNB Bank:

1. Tax deferral on your retirement savings

It is possible to defer income tax liability on the money that you save for retirement in an IRA (up to $5,500) and a 401(k) (up to $18,000). Employees ages 50 and above can temporarily exclude from their tax dues an additional $1000 and $6000 in an IRA and 401(k) account, respectively. Income tax will not be due on the money until it is withdrawn from the account, and being in a lower tax bracket during retirement will effectively reduce your lifetime tax bill.

2. Tax-free retirement income

Since you’ve already paid income tax on money contributed to a ROTH IRA and ROTH 401(k), this money will accrue without taxes as long as they stay in the account. If you take distributions after the age of 59½ from an account that’s at least 5 years old, you will never have to pay tax on its investment earnings, so the money you gain is essentially tax-free.

3. Buy annuity

To safeguard retirement assets and make sure that they can carry you through your retirement, consider investing in one or several annuities. It is even possible to pay more and get your annuity checks adjusted based on inflation over time.

4. Saver’s credit.

Subscribing to retirement planning services will open your world to other retirement saving strategies and options like saver’s credit, wherein you can acquire tax credit between 10 and 50 percent of your 401(k) contribution upon qualification.

5. Tax-preferred investments

Other types of investments receive what is known as preferential tax treatment. For instance, long-term capital gains are taxed at lower rates than short-term gains and regular income. Taking investments that are able to generate long-term capital gains in a retirement account means never having to pay tax on it while in the account, although ordinary income tax on the investment gains will take effect upon their withdrawal from the account.

5 Ways To Protect Yourself Against Debit Card Fraud

It is reported that debit card fraud has hit its all-time high. ATM's have become more vulnerable than ever before.  In a credit card fraud, you may decline any suspicious charges before making a final payment, but fraudsters take money directly from your account with a  debit card.

It's time to learn how to protect yourself from  phishing, skimming, and other types of debit card fraud by following these tips:

• Never disclose your PIN to anyone, and this includes friends, family, law enforcement agencies, and even financial intuition employees. Remember, that a bank can never ask your PIN for any matter concerning your account.

• Always keep your debit card in a safe place. Do not lend your card to anyone. If any point of time you feel that your PIN number's safety is compromised, call your financial institution immediately to cancel your card.

• It's never a good idea to choose a PIN with obvious numbers like your date of birth, name, telephone number, address,  or your social security number. Choose something that is hard to guess. This increases the security of your card, and you can prevent a debit card fraud.

• Do not write down your PIN to remember it. Always memorize your PIN. If you must write it down for your family members for an emergency, keep it well disguised, by substituting other numerals or symbols.

• If your debit card is stolen, lost, or retained by an ATM, contact your financial institution and let them know what has happened. If you find any unauthorized transaction, let your financial institution know immediately.

Debit Card Fraud

When using  your debit card to purchase goods or services:

• Keep your debit card always in your sight. Always swipe the card yourself, and if you cannot do it on your own, ensure that you are watching when the card is getting swiped.
• Watch out for people who read your PIN as you enter it. These people are called 'shoulder surfers, ' and they are adept in a debit card fraud.
• If you feel that someone is watching you as you enter a PIN, use your body or hand to shield the pin pad and prevent people from visualizing your PIN.
• Use your debit card at the places where you feel secure.
• After completing a transaction, never forget to retrieve your card.

These handy tips will help to make your debit card more secure and prevent a debit card fraud.