It happens to many of us. You have a big expense coming up – perhaps a home purchase, wedding, or sending a child off to college – and while considering your financial options you wonder, “Can I borrow against my ASRS account?”

While it seems an easy and popular solution with upwards of one-third of Americans borrowing against their future retirement savings accounts, with regards to your ASRS pension, borrowing is, unfortunately, not an option. So what are your choices? And when can you access your retirement funds?

There can be a lot of costs to budget for when thinking about retirement, but have you ever looked into what your health insurance costs could be? If not, you’re not alone! Many people mistakenly think health insurance costs won’t change much when they retire, but that’s rarely the case. In fact, health insurance costs may impact when you’re able to retire or if you need to work after retirement.

What many don’t understand is that, while working and receiving health insurance benefits through their employer, their health insurance costs are partially subsidized by their employer. This means they aren’t paying the true full cost of their health insurance. Once retired and covering the total cost entirely, it’s easy to be caught off guard. Especially if you retire before you’re 65 and Medicare eligible.

The Arizona State Retirement System is modifying its payment process beginning January 2019. These modifications are expected to save approximately $1 million per year, further increase our security, and allow the ASRS more flexibility in payment processing.

While the impact to members is minimal, it is important to know what this change may mean to you.