Posted on 02/27/2016 1:15:20 PM PST by SkyPilot
According to financial research firm ICI, total retirement assets in the Land of the Free now exceed $23 trillion.
$7.3 trillion of that is held in Individual Retirement Accounts (IRAs).
That’s an appetizing figure, especially for a government that just passed $19 trillion in debt and is in pressing need of new funding sources.
Even when you account for all federal assets (like national parks and aircraft carriers), the government’s "net financial position" according to its own accounting is negative $17.7 trillion.
And that number doesn’t include unfunded Social Security entitlements, which the government estimates is another $42 trillion.
The US national debt has increased by roughly $1 trillion annually over the past several years.
The Federal Reserve has conjured an astonishing amount of money out of thin air in order to buy a big chunk of that debt.
But even the Fed has limitations. According to its own weekly financial statement, the Fed’s solvency is at precariously low levels (with a capital base of just 0.8% of assets).
And on a mark-to-market basis, the Fed is already insolvent. So it’s foolish to think they can continue to print money forever and bail out the government without consequence.
The Chinese (and other foreigners) own a big slice of US debt as well.
But it’s just as foolish to expect them to continue bailing out America, especially when they have such large economic problems at home.
US taxpayers own the largest share of the debt, mostly through various trust funds of Social Security and Medicare.
But again, given the $42 trillion funding gap in these programs, it’s mathematically impossible for Social Security to continue funding the national debt.
(Excerpt) Read more at sovereignman.com ...
0 - 0 = 0
FUG
1. Tax-deferred income that you contributed to your retirement plan.
2. Matching contributions from your employer(s).
3. Tax-deferred growth is the third element of your retirement plan.
I'm not a lawyer or a CPA, but a good one should be able to provide some guidance on this.
> “I have heard the IRS often doesn’t track the cashed-out 401Ks.”
Not exactly right. I cashed out two IRA’s when I quit a job in December several years ago. After I moved to a new job (out of state), I rolled them over at my new location (it was about a week under the time limit). Shortly after April 15th that year, I got a letter from the IRS threatening me for cashing out my IRA’s, not rolling them over, and not paying a huge penalty for keeping the money. I eventually proved to them that I had rolled them over and within the time limit. It took several letters.
So, I would say that they very definitely track when you cash out an IRA. They don’t seem to track when you legally roll them over, however.
Not true.
The IRS tracks this very closely and your plan will result in you needing a lawyer.
The company that holds your IRA does not want trouble with the IRS so they make sure they are covered six ways from Sunday. It is after all, their business. They know all the tricks.
Let me assure you that 401(k) redemptions are one of the easiest things for the IRS to track. When you cash out your 401(k), the administrator of your 401(k) account will file a form with the IRS that reports the exact amount you have cashed out. If you roll it into an IRA it is reported as a tax-exempt rollover on one type of form (a 1099-R, I believe). If you take the money out completely, it is reported as a 401(k) distribution on a different form.
The forms that the administrator files with the IRS have your Social Security number on them, so cross-checking between your tax return and the 401(k) distribution form your plan administrator files is so easy that the IRS uses a computer program to do it.
And which candidate is LEAST LIKELY to do this? I’ll give you a hint......it ain’t Trump.
I'm assuming that what triggered the IRS response is that the 401(k) distribution was done in one year, and the rollover was completed in the first month of the following year. So for Year 1, the IRS received a notice of a 401(k) distribution with no corresponding rollover transaction.
I love these idiots who don't know a simple definition.
Insolvent: unable to pay debts owed.
What debts does the Fed owe? They pay 0.5% on bank reserves. The bonds they hold pay 2%-4%.
The bonds they hold are guaranteed. They turned over more than $100 billion to the US Treasury last year.
MyRA Act, which would charge a penalty to employers whose workers don’t have a retirement account.
MyRA was created for people who don't have an employee plan. There is no penalty involved.
If you borrow against your 401 K they will not be able to take your money....all that is in the account is “a note”.
Are elected and appointed criminals immune to the long standing violations of fiduciary responsibility/obligations laws?
Bump for reference.
I believe that anyone with their own retirement accounts will be punished with reduced Social Security payments (this is already done when applying for financial aid for college; those with PARENTS with assets don’t get anything); they will also continue to underreport inflation to stifle cost-of-living increases. They will also continue to raise the age for eligibility (in my case, 67 instead of 65); fewer people will live long enough to collect it.
Raising the minimum wage will also force higher SS contributions (and income and Medicare and unemployment taxes)...
No new “currency” from what I understand. The negative interest rates will make banks want to go total digital so you have nothing in hand to withdraw. No currency to hide under the mattress. Plus you will have to pay them (the negative) to bank. There is some big giant gold foil hats at work here.
http://www.infowars.com/economist-u-s-banks-preparing-to-charge-customers-for-deposits/
Breitbart and FR thread:
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/3400827/posts
Zerohedge and FR thread:
http://www.zerohedge.com/news/2016-02-11/war-cash-about-go-hyperdrive
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/3395867/posts
The bastards hate it when you work hard and save money so you won’t be a burden. They want it, to give it to lazy slobs who give them votes.
The other possibility is requiring a small percentage, to start, of all retirement accounts to be invested in “safe” government bonds, because stock market swings destroy people’s retirements.
Then they slowly ramp up the mandatory percentage.
I know I am so tempted to retire and take a lump sum and keep it in safe at home.
This is the first I have heard of the MyRA Act. This is not my area of expertise, but I did find the following. Check out page 3.
https://www.govtrack.us/congress/bills/114/hr4491/text
Not sure if folks know this rule about early withdrawal.
If you have a 401K, 403B, and you are eligible to retire from your employer and are not 59 1/2, you will not be penalized if you withdraw.
However, this law does not apply if you have IRA.
I am eligible to retire via my work(age plus years worked needs to equal a certain number), however, I am 56. I can retire and withdraw all of it and just owe the taxes, but no penalty. It’s all in 403B.
This is true. I find it ironic how the IRS tracks this and knows every withdrawal however, they can’t seem to have a computer system that sends up a red flag when 1,000 tax refunds are sent to the same address, like here in Michigan few years ago.
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