Another Creative Retirement Strategy for Married Couples

Are you on track to max out your retirement plan contributions this year? If so, that’s great news. You’re preparing for your future, while also earning a valuable tax deduction. You might feel satisfied knowing that you’re doing all you can to save for retirement, or you might be wondering if there are additional ways to stash some more cash for the future. Either way, you might be interested to learn of another strategy that could help you.

When you are still working, there are a number of strategic savings opportunities available to you.  If you are married, there are often even more ways to creatively save for the future.  A spousal IRA is one of them.

If you open and fund a spousal IRA, you can set aside even more money for retirement. This is true whether or not your spouse works outside the home. After all, you’re both going to need retirement income someday!

You might have heard a lot about the “wage gap” between men in women. It can become an emotional subject, but factually speaking, we know that women tend to take off more time from their careers than men. This can result in lower wages for women when they reenter the workforce after spending many years at home, caring for their families. But of course, the reverse situation is sometimes true when the husband is the one who cares for the children.

Whichever situation applies to you, one of you probably earns less income than the other and that means one of you is less able to save money for retirement. A spousal IRA is a terrific way for the higher-earning spouse to set aside additional funds for the future, and in reality it can provide both of you with a more comfortable lifestyle one day.

A spousal IRA is subject to certain rules and guidelines, just like any other tax-advantaged retirement savings account. Call us if you’re interested to learn more. We can provide you with all of the details and help you to decide if opening a spousal IRA is right for your household.