Pensions - What Should I Do ?

Hazel asked:


Hi there…I think I have been doing our taxes incorrectly for the last couple of years.

We have one income, my husbands. He has been putting money into a pension and an annuity. Shouldn’t I have received a form from the bank that holds these two accounts saying what he put in there for the year of 2007? And if so, wouldn’t that bring my gross income down for the year, perhaps making my refund even larger?

Bartolome

Brian asked:


I am trying to do some long term planning as to how much money I need to retire. Some people have told me that Social Security is not taxed. Others have said that a government pension is not taxed. I understand the taxes around 401K’s and IRAs. But the tax question around SS and government pensions will make a huge difference in my planning calculations.

Savannah