(Money Manager) - Teacher retirement systems are offered by individual states, for the purpose of offering pension and retirement benefits to teachers and other qualifying education system employees. These systems can vary widely from state to state in the way they are funded and how the contributions are made. There are also differences in how the percentage of the teacher's final salary is calculated according to the plan and how a teacher qualifies for the pension. There are also differences in the portability of the pension benefits.

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(Michael Schwartz) - I think it’s safe to say that most of us can’t imagine the pain and burden that is placed on a surviving spouse in the event of the untimely death of their mate. Not only do people not think that far in advance, but because it’s such an unpleasant thought, most people try to avoid addressing the issue at all cost – until, of course, it is forced upon them. But, imagine for a moment –what would happen if the death of your spouse ended a monthly income that you had come to depend upon?

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(Money Manager) - We all want to live comfortably in retirement. We also know that in order to do that, we must save. There are many options for savings plans: personal investments, company-sponsored retirement savings plans and pensions or combinations of all or some of those. The question we must answer however is how much do we need to save. Most experts agree on the rule of thumb that an optimum of 70-80 percent of your pre-retirement income will be required if you wish to live at approximately the same comfort level. Simply put, if you're earning $75,000 when you retire, you'll need an income of at least $50,000-$60,000 every year after you retire. How you spend that post-retirement money may well decide how high up on your comfort level you will rise to.

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