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Also in Your Newsletter: Severance Offers and Family Gifting

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Hi Reader,

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Travel is one of the most common goals we hear from clients as they prepare for or enter retirement, and summer is often the perfect season to bring those plans to life.

If travel is on your mind, you're not alone. A survey from IHG Hotels found that 40% of retirees have taken—or plan take—a trip to celebrate being retired. Nearly 60% say they plan to travel more in retirement than during their working years.

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Each year, we see clients travel across the globe—from extended European stays to once-in-a-lifetime adventures farther afield. With that excitement often come important financial questions—especially around healthcare, insurance, and managing money while overseas. In this month’s newsletter, we’re highlighting five key considerations to help ensure your international travel plans are as smooth and well-prepared as the rest of your financial life.

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Read on for details about our upcoming webinar on the best places to keep cash today. We also have an updated blog post on evaluating severance and early retirement offers, and finally we highlight recent articles in the media we have helped contribute to.

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Here are 5 common questions retirees have about how their finances and health insurance work while overseas:

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​1. Does Medicare cover me overseas?​
Original Medicare (Parts A and B) does not cover most medical care outside the U.S. Some Medigap (Plans F, G, and N to name a few) or Medicare Advantage plans may offer limited emergency coverage, but it is not comprehensive. This PDF by Medicare explains how Medicare coverage applies to overseas travel in more detail.

If you want full coverage, you may need a separate short-term travel health insurance policy to be fully protected abroad. Contact your current insurance provider to see what they offer. Many of the largest insurance companies offer short-term plans that offer more thorough coverage if you are concerned.

2. Should I buy travel insurance?​
If you're pre-paying tens of thousands for a trip, protecting it may make sense. Travel insurance can protect you from cancellations, delays, sickness, injuries, or a host of other interruptions. The costs will vary depending on the number of travelers, your age, and other factors. But as a rough estimate you can expect to spend between 5% and 15% of the total trip cost to be fully insured. This article in Forbes compares your options and compares costs among several insurance companies.

3. How can I avoid foreign transaction fees?​
Carrying cash is always an option, but exchange rates at convenient locations (like your bank, or an airport currency exchange kiosk) can come with very poor exchange rates. Not to mention the potential risk of carrying around large amounts of cash as you travel.

Today, many travel-focused credit cards waive any foreign transaction fees, and can also offer you more protection than carrying a pocket full of cash. If your current cards do not waive foreign transaction fees, consider adding a better option to your wallet to use on your trip.

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4. What’s the safest way to manage my money while abroad?​
You may need to notify your bank and credit card companies before you travel, and set up account alerts.

Also, verify you have a trusted contact established on your financial accounts. This person should have an itinerary of your trip, and be knowledgeable about the dates of your vacation. FINRA has a flyer on the importance of a trusted contact here for more information.

5. Is travel a realistic part of my long-term retirement budget?​
Being hesitant to spend in retirement is very common. If you find yourself questioning how much you can safely spend, or what a sustainable travel budget should be, let us help. We can walk through our guardrail analysis to show you not only sustainable withdrawal amounts, but how that could change if the market goes up or down significantly.

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Also worth noting: We are reviewing the recently signed "One Big Beautiful Tax Bill" and will have a newsletter and webinar on the topic in the next couple of weeks. If you have any specific questions about the bill, simply reply to this email and we will do our best to answer.

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Have a wonderful rest of the month,

The Arnold & Mote Team

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Next Webinar: The Best Place to Keep Cash Today

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With interest rates higher than they’ve been in years, many savers are rethinking how and where to hold their cash. In this webinar, we’ll break down today’s top options for earning interest—comparing the rates, risks, and features of various cash accounts and short-term investments.

Whether you're holding cash for emergencies, near-term goals, or simply to reduce portfolio volatility, understanding your choices can make a meaningful difference.

We’ll also cover timely topics, such as what to do with Series I Savings Bonds purchased during the recent inflation spike, and highlight important factors beyond yield—including liquidity, safety, and tax efficiency.

This session is designed to help you make more informed decisions about one of the most overlooked parts of a financial plan: your cash.

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In this session, we’ll discuss:

• What interest rates to expect to receive on cash today
• Pros and cons between different types of accounts and cash-like investments
• What to do with series I savings bonds (I Bonds) you may have purchased in the past
• Key factors beyond yield—such as safety, liquidity, and tax efficiency

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Join us for the live broadcast at noon Central Time on Friday July 11th, streamed on our YouTube channel here:

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Want a reminder before we go live? Click the button above and subscribe to our channel to be notified as the webinar begins:

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If you can't attend live, a replay of the webinar will be accessible immediately after and available alongside recordings of all previous webinars on our YouTube channel.

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If there are questions you'd like to have answered, simply reply to this email and let us know!

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Last Month's Webinar Recording

If you missed last month's webinar, here is the recording of "Guide to Target Date Funds"

From the Blog: Evaluating an Early Retirement or Severance Offer

Whether it’s from large national companies like Microsoft and Google, or local employers such as Collins Aerospace, we’ve unfortunately been hearing more news about layoffs. If you—or someone you know—has been affected, or if you're concerned your company may offer early retirement packages soon, this post is for you.

We outline the key decisions you may face—and how your financial plan could be affected—by an early retirement or severance offer.
If you've recently been affected, or are simply concerned about what a job change could mean for you, we’d be happy to talk. We can walk through your financial plan and help you evaluate the options that make the most sense for your situation.

Arnold & Mote Featured in the Press

Investopedia: Tax Smart Ways to Gift Money to Family​

We were interviewed for this Investopedia article on the tax consequences of giving money to friends and family, and how to avoid common pitfalls.

There’s often confusion around gift and estate tax rules—especially regarding how much you can give before triggering IRS reporting requirements. The article outlines current gifting limits and offers strategies to reduce the tax and paperwork burden for those considering sizable gifts to family.

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See our other recent press mentions on our Press Page.

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Looking for Something From a Prior Newsletter?

As a reminder, you can now find the last 12 months of our newsletters here:

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Whether you’re new and want to browse newsletters you missed or are trying to follow up on a topic from a few months ago, we’re now publishing all newsletters at the link above. We'll also keep this link at the bottom of all future newsletters.

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Quinn and the Arnold & Mote Wealth Management Team

(319) 393-4020

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The information herein was obtained from various sources. Arnold & Mote Wealth Management does not guarantee the accuracy or completeness of such information provided by third parties. The information given is as of the date indicated and believed to be reliable. Arnold & Mote Wealth Management assumes no obligation to update this information, or to advise on further developments relating to it. This is for informational purposes only. Investing may involve risk including loss of principal. Past performance is no guarantee of future results.