How to retire as a couple

Here are three of the week's top pieces of financial advice, gathered from around the web:

Retiring as a couple

Teamwork is important for couples nearing retirement, said Elizabeth O'Brien, Kerri Anne Renzulli, and Penelope Wang at Money. Financial advisers say "spouses are often happiest if they retire within a couple of years of each other." But that might not always be possible, because of either a job loss or a health situation. One consideration for people retiring before age 65: where their health insurance will come from before Medicare kicks in. Relying on one spouse's workplace coverage "could go bad if that worker loses his or her job." To keep income flowing, both spouses should try to delay claiming Social Security to increase payouts. "If it isn't feasible for you to both delay claiming, the lower-earning spouse might file for benefits right away, while the higher earner waits till age 70."

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Trade college loans for mortgage debt

"A new home-loan refinance program allows borrowers to swap student loans for mortgage debt at today's low interest rates," said Ann Carrns at The New York Times. The program, called the Student Loan Payoff ReFi, is offered by nonbank lender SoFi and mortgage giant Fannie Mae. It allows homeowners who have student loans, or home-owning parents who cosigned student loans with their children, to refinance their mortgage and take out additional home equity as cash to pay off student debt. "The borrower is left with a new, larger mortgage, but at a lower interest rate." However, borrowers with federal student loans will lose protections like the option to defer payments and the repayment programs that tie monthly payments to income.

Military retirement is changing

"Major changes are coming to the military retirement system starting in 2018," said Kimberly Lankford at Kiplinger. Those who joined the military between 2006 and 2017 will soon be able to opt into a new "blended retirement system," while those who join in 2018 or later will automatically be enrolled. Under the current system, service members are eligible for a pension after 20 years of service, but receive nothing if they stay fewer than that. The new plan includes a pension after 20 years, but also allows service members to make matching contributions into a Thrift Savings Plan, which can be kept after just two years of service. The military offers matching contributions of up to 5 percent of base pay. "If you don't plan to stay in the military for 20 years, you'll come out ahead with the blended retirement system."