My Comments: They’ve been around for some time now, but because they cause you to use after-tax money, there’s always been a cloud around them. That’s a shame since they make sense when it comes to tactically allocating your retirement income among different sources and types of accounts. That retirement, assuming you live a normal …
Category: Investment Planning
When Will (or IF) The Next Recession Hit?
My Comments: The current chaos in the markets is symptomatic of many variables that existed long before the coronavirus appeared and indeed, long before Trump was elected President. That they are happening now does not necessarily presage a recession, but for me, it’s looking more and more likely one will appear. For any number of …
10 Questions A Couple Should Ask BEFORE Retirement
My Comments: These ten questions deserve answers. However, they assume an existing readiness to retire that may not exist. In my world, there are 8 critical questions that precede these such that a couple, or anyone for that matter, must first ask of themselves, and answer. With millions of Americans arriving at their retirement date …
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When You Retire Could Make A Huge Difference
There is a risk associated with when you retire that’s sometimes the fault of your parents. It’s something over which you had absolutely no control. Specifically, when you were born. Let’s assume you’re now well into middle age, have a job that pays well but the idea of retirement is increasingly on your mind. You …
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New Risks We Face In Retirement
How much of life is dependent on luck? Personally, I consider myself very lucky. I’ve had good personal relationships, I’ve managed to live a productive life, my wife of 5 decades is still with me, our children are grown and have given us grandchildren. Life is good. Many of my days are spent sharing insights …
National debt surpasses record $23 trillion
On Friday, October 25, 2019, the U.S. national debt surpassed $23 trillion, per the Treasury Department and the Peterson Foundation. Why it matters: The national debt met the $22 trillion mark just nine months ago and has soared $3 trillion since Trump took office, when it rested at $19.95 trillion. The White House projected in …
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Income Allocation vs Asset Allocation
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 …
Relief for 40 million Americans without 401(k) plans
My Comments: Accumulating funds to be used in retirement is not easy. An incentive provided by the IRS is to allow you to set aside money today and pay income taxes on it later. Meanwhile, the theory goes, a larger amount grows to become even larger, and you find yourself in a lower tax bracket …
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Consumers may have carried markets as far as they can
My Comments: lost in the news cycles now heavily invested in the Ukraine/Trump matters, is the state of our economy. While correlation is never 100%, there is a relationship between the state of the economy and the performance of the stock and bond markets. And those markets are where millions of us have money invested …
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Retirement and the 4% Rule
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 …
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