After 13 years of marriage and renting, David Teicher, 34, and his wife decided to take a break from retirement saving so they could buy a home. It had always been a goal of theirs, but they needed a little more free cash to make it happen.

The best time to prepare for being let go is while you’re still punching in at work. While employment overall has been rosy — the unemployment rate went down 20 basis points to 3.6% in April, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics — signs of job cuts are emerging.

Early in his career, Drew Parker’s goal was to retire at age 57—or at least be financially prepared to quit working by then. But three years ago, at age 55, his retirement came sooner than expected when his employer, Nordstrom, restructured and offered him a buyout.

The much-touted overhaul of the nation’s tax system has finally all but completed its debut performance, with the vast majority of country having settled up with Uncle Sam by April 15 under the new rules of the road.

You’ve filed your taxes, and now it’s time to make good on your promise to “spring clean” your finances. One key task is to throw away – or shred – old bank and credit card statements and aging tax returns that no longer give you joy. But there are other steps you can take to buff up your finances.

On March 29, the House Ways and Means Committee unveiled HR 1994, or the SECURE (Setting Every Community Up for Retirement Enhancement) Act. This is a bipartisan bill, co-sponsored by Rep Ron Kind (D-Wi), ranking member Kevin Brady (R-Tx) and Mike Kelly, (R-Pa). On April 1, the Senate, in a similar move, introduced a companion bipartisan bill, RESA (the Retirement Enhancement and Savings Act).