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Make sure you can Retire Ready with Kyle Hammerschmidt, the President of MOKAN Financial in Overland Park, KS. Kyle will teach you on each episode how to properly plan for retirement and your financial future. Learn about IRAs, 401ks, pensions, Social Security, and much more. Contact Kyle with any questions at https://mokanwealth.com or by calling 913-257-3991.
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Send us a text In this episode, Kyle dives into a critical yet often misunderstood aspect of retirement planning: the taxation of Social Security benefits. Many assume these benefits are tax-free, but the reality can be a costly surprise for retirees. Kyle breaks down the basics of Social Security taxation, explains how your income impacts tax thre…
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Send us a text Podcast Description: In this episode of Retire Ready with Kyle Hammerschmidt, we’re tackling one of the most critical steps in your retirement journey: applying for Social Security benefits. Whether you're planning to claim at 62, hold out until 70, or fall somewhere in between, this episode has you covered with actionable advice. Ky…
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Send us a text In this week’s episode, host Kyle Hammerschmidt dives into a detailed case study of "John and Mary," a married couple from Kansas, both aged 59, preparing to retire in five years. Kyle breaks down their financial landscape, including $1.7 million in tax-advantaged retirement accounts, Social Security strategies, and their goals of ma…
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Send us a text Planning for retirement is a journey, and choosing the right financial advisor is one of the most critical decisions you'll make. In this episode of Retire Ready, host Kyle Hammerschmidt unpacks the essentials for finding the perfect advisor to guide you through the complexities of retirement planning. 🔑 What You'll Learn: - The Six-…
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Send us a text In this episode, Kyle dives into a real-world retirement planning case study featuring a pre-retiree couple in their early 60s with diverse income streams, including Social Security, pensions, rental income, and investments. This discussion addresses three main concerns: maximizing Social Security, implementing a strategic Roth conve…
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Send us a text In this episode, we’re diving into a topic that’s going to impact everyone’s finances in the coming year: the new 2025 federal income tax brackets. The IRS recently announced adjustments to the tax bracket ranges to keep up with inflation, helping taxpayers avoid "bracket creep" — the phenomenon where inflation alone pushes you into …
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Send us a text In this episode, we explore essential retirement strategies through a real-life case study. Topics include: Crafting a sustainable retirement income plan Roth conversion strategies and how they can benefit retirees Maximizing Social Security to enhance income Tax-efficient withdrawal strategies for lasting savings Navigating retireme…
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Send us a text In today’s episode, we’re diving deep into the 2025 Social Security changes that will impact your retirement plans. We’ll cover the essential updates, including: 2025 COLA Increase Earnings Limits for Working Retirees Impact on Your Benefits Holistic Retirement Planning Whether you're already retired or planning your retirement, this…
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Send us a text In this episode, Kyle covers Roth conversions and how they can revolutionize your retirement strategy. Key topics include: The "five golden windows" for optimal Roth conversions How Roth IRAs and conversions work, including income limits and tax benefits Understanding backdoor Roth IRAs for high-income earners Strategies to minimize …
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5 Reasons Risk Tolerance Shouldn't Drive Your Investment Portfolio: A Holistic Approach to Retirement Planning
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Send us a text Join Kyle as he dives deep into the critical distinction between risk tolerance and risk capacity, two essential components for building a successful retirement strategy. In this episode, Kolin explains the emotional and rational sides of risk and how they influence investment decisions. Discover real-world examples and learn why und…
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Send us a text In this episode, we dive into the top concerns for individuals nearing retirement, such as how to maximize Social Security benefits, implement tax-efficient strategies, and develop a comprehensive retirement plan that goes beyond just investments. Discover overlooked strategies that can help you keep more of your income and minimize …
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Send us a text Are you feeling overwhelmed by Medicare and healthcare coverage? Join Kyle Hammersmith, where he breaks down the essentials of Medicare into nine easy-to-understand tips. From the basics of Medicare parts A, B, C, and D to crucial enrollment periods and cost considerations, this episode empowers you to navigate your healthcare benefi…
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Send us a text Today, Kyle Hammerschmidt dives deep into the crucial topic of tax planning for retirement, focusing on Roth conversions, tax diversification, and essential strategies for those within 10 years of retirement. Tax planning is a vital, yet often overlooked, part of retirement preparation. By understanding how to manage your taxes effec…
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Send us a text This episode of Retire Ready with Kyle Hammerschmidt is your ultimate guide to maximizing Social Security benefits for married couples. Whether you’re approaching retirement or just starting to plan, you won’t want to miss these crucial strategies that could put thousands of extra dollars in your pocket. In this episode, you’ll learn…
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Send us a text Welcome to the Retire Ready Podcast! In this episode, hosts Kolin and Kyle explore essential tips to avoid common retirement planning mistakes. Key topics include: Emotional Investing: How letting emotions drive your investment decisions can impact your long-term financial health. Social Security Timing: The consequences of claiming …
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Send us a text In this episode, Kyle and Kolin dive into the crucial topic of control in retirement planning. They discuss three aspects you can’t control, such as tax rates, inflation, and market volatility, and how to navigate these challenges effectively. They also explore three critical elements you can control, including withdrawal rates, risk…
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Send us a text In this episode of the Retire Ready Podcast, Kyle and Kolin dive into the common investment pitfalls that can derail your retirement planning. From the risks of confusing short-term and long-term investments to the dangers of letting emotions and media hype dictate your decisions, they cover essential strategies to help you stay on t…
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Send us a text In this episode of the Retire Ready Podcast, hosts Kyle and Kolin delve into the crucial questions you need to consider before entering retirement. Whether you're planning to retire soon or just starting to think about it, this episode is packed with practical insights and advice to help you prepare. The hosts cover seven essential q…
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Send us a text Are you nearing retirement and wondering when to start claiming Social Security? In this episode, Kyle and Kolin dive deep into one of the most crucial financial decisions you'll make in retirement. They discuss: Timing Your Claim: When is the best time to start claiming Social Security benefits? Should you take it early, at full ret…
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Send us a text Summary The conversation discusses the importance of tax diversification in retirement planning. It explains the concept of tax diversification and how it can help individuals control their taxes over their lifetime. The conversation also explores the three tax buckets: non-qualified taxable money, tax-deferred money, and tax-exempt …
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Send us a text In this episode, Kolin and Kyle discuss a case study of a married couple who retired with $1.5 million in tax-deferred accounts. The couple had several concerns, including when and how to claim Social Security, the need for more comprehensive financial planning, uncertainty about how much they could spend in retirement, adjustments n…
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Send us a text In this episode, Kolin and Kyle continue their case study of a married couple with $2 million in assets who are close to retirement. They discuss the income plan, tax planning, and investment strategies for the couple. The income plan includes exploring spending options, maximizing Social Security benefits, and choosing a withdrawal …
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Send us a text In this episode, Kolin and Kyle discuss a case study of a married couple in their mid-50s who are planning for retirement. The couple has a desired retirement age of 61 for the husband and 62 for the wife. They currently have an income of $270,000 and a desired retirement income of $144,000 per year. Their assets include $3.1 million…
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Send us a text Summary In this episode, Kolin and Kyle walk through a retirement income plan for a couple who are planning to retire in the next few years. They discuss the couple's income levels, assets, and spending capabilities. They also explore different strategies for maximizing social security, tax planning, and investment planning. The epis…
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Send us a text In this episode, Kolin and Kyle discuss nine misconceptions about Roth conversions. They debunk the idea that Roth IRAs are always better than IRAs, explaining that the choice depends on individual circumstances. They also emphasize the importance of comprehensive tax planning and caution against winging it or converting large amount…
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Send us a text In this episode, Kyle and Kolin discuss a case study of a married couple near retirement. The couple plans to retire in 12 months and has a planning life expectancy of 90 for the wife and 85 for the husband. Their primary insurance amount for Social Security is $2,800 and $2,200 per month. They have a net essential spending goal of $…
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Send us a text Summary In this episode, Kyle and Kolin discuss three common retirement portfolio income strategies: spending portfolio income, the 4% rule, and risk-based income guardrails. They explore the pros and cons of each strategy and provide examples to illustrate their application. The conversation delves into the nuances of each strategy,…
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Send us a text This episode goes into the intricacies of investing in retirement, focusing on long-term S&P growth, sequence of returns risk, and bucket approaches. It emphasizes the impact of market volatility on retirement income and the importance of strategic investment decisions. The episode concludes with a call to action for seeking professi…
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Send us a text Summary In this episode of the Retire Ready podcast, Kolin and Kyle discuss investing in and near retirement. They start by explaining the difference between accumulation and decumulation phases and the importance of focusing on decumulation as retirement approaches. They then dive into the concept of 'naked investing,' where many pe…
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Send us a text Summary In this episode, Kolin and Kyle discuss steps five and six of a tax-efficient retirement plan. Step five involves deciding whether to pay taxes now or later, considering factors such as income levels, deductions, and retirement account contributions. Step six focuses on the ongoing management of the plan, including diversifyi…
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Send us a text Summary In this episode, Kyle and Kolin discuss steps three and four of a tax-efficient retirement plan. Step three focuses on understanding the order of withdrawals, which involves categorizing money by tax impact and developing a withdrawal strategy. The goals of a withdrawal strategy include maximizing retirement spending, minimiz…
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Send us a text Summary In this episode, Kyle and Kolin discuss the three tax funnels that can be used to build a tax-efficient retirement plan. The first funnel is the tax later bucket, where contributions are made with pre-tax dollars, such as employer plans and IRAs. Distributions from this account are taxed as income. The second funnel is the ta…
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Send us a text In this episode, Kolin and Kyle discuss step number one of a tax-efficient retirement plan: provisional income. Provisional income is used to determine whether a portion of your Social Security benefits are taxable. The four components of provisional income are non-taxable interest, ordinary income, dividends and capital gains, and h…
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Send us a text Summary In this episode of the Retire Ready Podcast, Kolin and Kyle discuss the importance of tax planning in retirement. They highlight the underappreciation of tax planning by pre-retirees and their financial advisors, and emphasize that the lack of tax planning can result in paying more taxes than necessary. The hosts provide six …
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Send us a text Summary In this conversation, Kyle and Kolin discuss the mistakes people make when hiring a financial advisor. They highlight 6 key mistakes and provide advice on how to avoid them. The mistakes include ignoring the importance of tax planning, not having a strategic investment plan, confusing fee-based and fee-only advisors, focusing…
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Send us a text This week on the show, we’re diving into the mailbag to answer some recent listener questions that have landed in Kyle’s inbox. He will share his thoughts on these inquiries and share helpful tips for those of you who might’ve found yourself in a similar situation. Stay tuned to see what you can learn! Here are the questions we tackl…
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Send us a text “Learn from the mistakes of others. You can’t live long enough to make them all yourself.” – Eleanor Roosevelt… Ever wish you could foresee financial missteps before they happen? In today’s episode explore some real-life stories of regret and arm yourself with the essential dos and don'ts to ensure your money works for you, not again…
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Send us a text The retirement planning world is filled with plenty of advice and suggestions, but there are critical questions lurking in the shadows – the unasked, the overlooked. These are the questions that can help define the comfort and security of your retirement future. In this episode, we unearth and tackle these hidden, but essential quest…
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Send us a text Retirement is a unique journey for each of us. The thought that there's a one-size-fits-all solution is a myth, but what if we told you there are certain universal truths that can guide every retiree? We’ve split this list of 10 truths into two episodes, and part one focused on income planning, long-term care, investing, longevity an…
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Send us a text Retirement is a unique journey for each of us. The thought that there's a one-size-fits-all solution is a myth, but what if we told you there are certain universal truths that can guide every retiree? Dive deep in this episode, where we juxtapose the individuality of retirement plans with the foundational principles that remain consi…
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Send us a text In this episode, we’re tackling some common complaints and fears that can arise during the retirement planning process. These complaints often include concerns about advisors taking too much risk, dissatisfaction with account growth, high fees, worries about Social Security not being enough to retire on, and more. We'll discuss which…
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Send us a text In today's episode, we'll explore the sensitive and significant process of transitioning from one financial advisor to another. We'll cover how to recognize when your current advisor may no longer be serving your financial needs effectively, the right questions to ask, and crucial factors to consider when searching for a new financia…
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Send us a text Picture this: You're at your retirement party, finally ready to enjoy your golden years, but worries caused by some bad money habits have robbed you of fully enjoying the sweetness of the day. It happens to more people than you think, which is unfortunate because, with just a little bit of modification, you can rid some of the worst …
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Send us a text Don’t get us wrong. In many cases, your 401(k) can be your best investment vehicle, offering numerous benefits and tax advantages and many times a 100% return on some of your contributions (also known as an employer match). However, it's important to recognize that it might not always be the optimal choice for everyone. Join us in th…
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Send us a text We’ll be debunking common myths about Social Security and answering the questions you might be curious about. Since we have a list of 10 to break down, we’ll divide it up into two episodes so make sure you check out both. In part two, we’ll focus on who is eligible for benefits, how they get calculated, and how working will affect yo…
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Send us a text In this episode, we'll be debunking common myths about Social Security and answering the questions you've been curious about. Since we have a list of 10 to breakdown, we’ll divide it up into two episodes so make sure you check out both. Here are the myths we’ll discuss today: The Social Security Administration will help you make the …
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Send us a text Are you aware that not all retirement accounts are created equal? It's crucial to understand the purpose and advantages of each type of account to make the best choice for your future. In this episode, we'll delve into the different types of retirement accounts, including 401(k)s, IRAs, Roths, and several other examples. Here are a f…
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Send us a text Retirement can come with a lot of tax questions and concerns. From understanding the tax implications of withdrawing from your retirement accounts to minimizing taxes on investment income, it can be overwhelming. In today’s episode, we’ll break down the top ten tax questions retirees are asking in 2023. Join us today as we discuss th…
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Send us a text Today, we're walking you through "The Smart Tax Roadmap" – six steps to building a tax-efficient retirement plan. Ultimately, we'll help show you how your different types of retirement income are taxed in different ways. Here's an overview of the steps: Master provisional income Categorize your money by tax impact Order your income w…
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Send us a text A Roth conversion is a process of moving funds from a traditional Individual Retirement Account (IRA) or a qualified retirement plan (like a 401k) to a Roth IRA. This conversion means that the account holder will owe income taxes on the converted amount, but once the conversion is complete, all future earnings and withdrawals from th…
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