It’s all well and good for people like to me tell you to save more money. That’s great but how do you make it happen? Many people I talk with are already stretched, and when I suggest they put more money aside every paycheck, I get the evil eye. So let’s step back a minute. …
Continue reading Ways To Accelerate Your Savings For Retirement
Asset Allocation appeared as concept in the world of investment management in 1986. Three people, Gary P. Brinson, L. Randolph Hood, and Gilbert L. Beebower published groundbreaking research that demonstrated an arguably better way to manage money. Here’s the gist of what they said: “…by replacing active choices with simple asset classes worked just as …
Mindful that much of the Revolutionary War was fought in order to not pay taxes to the British in the 1760’s, it’s obvious that if our nation is going to sustain itself, money has to come from somewhere. I'm not going to dig into the weeds and talk about all the different kinds of taxes …
The definition of “fiduciary standard” I prefer to use goes like this: to conduct oneself legally, ethically, and morally when giving advice and acting on behalf of others. It means I’ll act in someone’s best interest at all times. It implies the duty of good faith and trust at all times when performing duties on …
Continue reading Fiduciary Standards, Retirement, and Politics
For decades I’ve been reading about the 4% Rule and what it has to do with retirement. The 4% Rule says that when you stop working for money and start creating an income from your savings, it’s the upper limit of what you should withdraw every year from your savings and investments to make sure …
Studies today suggest only three in ten people surveyed said they were very confident about their ability to sustain their standard of living as long as they live. I say good for them. However, if you’re among the other seven in ten people surveyed who are less than very confident about their financial future, what …
Continue reading Steps To Take To Gain Confidence About Your Financial Future
Imagine my surprise to see this headline a few days ago, just a few days before I turned 78. And it got better: the author says he’s been married to the same woman for 50 years, they are the proud parents of two children, and have two grandchildren. As for me, my wife and I …
According to the AARP, about 10,000 Americans turn 70½ every day of the year. If you’re in that group, and have money parked somewhere that you’ve identified as a retirement account, get ready to start making withdrawals if you’ve not yet done so. We’re talking about Required Minimum Distributions or RMDs. Some of you reading …
Continue reading Using Required Minimum Distribution Rules to Benefit Charities
I’ll say it once again: Social Security is a fundamental source of retirement money for millions of Americans every month. To the extent those of us receiving money from the system want and need it to continue, we represent a massive voting block to make sure it continues to benefit us as before. My source …
We are currently experiencing a fundamental disruption of the values I’ve lived with for the past 70 plus years. As someone on the leading edge of Baby Boomers, my values may subtly differ from yours if you’re a millennial, or somewhere in between. That’s OK and normal. The societal disruption we’re now experiencing under the …
Helping Define Your Financial Future 