From managing your income as a contract employee to managing your income in retirement, Eric answers three questions from the mailbag in today’s episode of the podcast.

On today’s show we have three questions from the mailbag all about managing their money well. How can you get the greatest advantage from your income, be it in retirement or in your working years? Find out what Eric has to say in response to these three listener questions.

Anthony from Coralville has an option to go from a full-time employee to an independent contractor. He’d make more money but would lose benefits and the company retirement plan. Is it worth making the switch? What kind of risk will be shifted onto you? Eric talks about the key things to consider when deciding.

Maria in Marshalltown and her husband have separate bank accounts and don’t really know about each other’s spending habits. How can they make a retirement plan together? Her husband will have a pension in retirement and she won’t. Will their separate accounts make retirement planning together more difficult? Eric shares what your retirement income may look like and how you can continue to cover your expenses. What do you need and how can you get the most advantage out of your accounts?

Simon in Norwalk is retiring soon but worried about the tax burden with all of his money in IRAs and a 401(k)s. How can he lessen his tax burden in retirement? If the tax rate gets raised, you will have to pay higher taxes when you withdraw from those funds. What would it look like to do a Roth conversion instead?

Listen to the entire episode or click on the timestamps below to skip ahead to a particular question.

0:47 – Mailbag: Should I switch to work as an independent contractor?

3:44 – Mailbag: Can we have separate bank accounts but still plan for retirement together?

5:33 – Does having separate accounts make it harder to plan for retirement?

6:35 – Mailbag: How can I lessen my tax burden in retirement?