It's the question every Boomer needs to answer. Rich or poor. Whether you'll need Social Security to make ends meet or whether you intend to use it to fund an investment program for yourself or, say, your grandkids' education. Or anything else in between. Unfortunately, the answer to that question is complicated. The accumulation phase …
Continue reading “When Should I File for Social Security Benefits?”
By Glenn Ruffenach When it comes to retirement planning, women need to “out-plan” men. That’s the lesson at the heart of a new report from the MetLife Mature Market Institute and the Scripps Gerontology Center at Miami University. The study asserts that women – given the unique financial risks they face during their working years …
Continue reading Women Live Longer, But Aren’t Planning Longer
(As an immigrant myself, having come to this country in 1950 and gained citizenship in 1959, I think I have some standing in this discussion. TK ) Nick Schulz, writing for Forbes Magazine The pathetic American economy could use a boost right now. But everything being considered in Washington comes with a high price tag. …
Continue reading Yes, There Is Such Thing As A Free Lunch: It’s Called Immigration
By Mark Williams Gold is losing its glimmer. Last month, gold prices dropped more than $300 an ounce – the largest short-term fall in more than 20 years. This suggests that a decade-long bull market is ending. Gold’s recent volatility is spooking investors and destroying demand. The last bull market for gold ended in 1980, …
This post has to do with Global Economics and our financial future. That’s both YOURS and MINE. It deals with an interview done by a Kate Welling talking with Paul McCulley, the recently retired director of PIMCO. You may have heard of PIMCO. It is a global investment solution provider, headquartered in Newport Beach, CA. …
Continue reading Greatest Moral Hazard, Says Paul McCulley, Is Austerity Here And Now
A very old man lay dying in his bed. In death's doorway, he suddenly smelled the aroma of his favorite chocolate chip cookie wafting up the stairs. He gathered his remaining strength and lifted himself from the bed. Leaning against the wall, he slowly made his way out of the bedroom, and with even greater …
There are three basic investment principles to which I adhere and one realization. The three principles are: 1. Seek to minimize losses; 2. Seek to minimize fees; 3. Diversify. Diversification can mean different things to different people. To me, it is not a blind "spread it across all asset categories" approach. Although this is what …
I tried to promise that I would be loss gloomy going forward but it’s turning out to be a difficult task. One positive thing we have going for us is the investment platform that I started using for virtually all clients in the past couple of months. While market crashes are always traumatic, if you …
Continue reading Expect Nasdaq’s erratic rally to end in tears
Given current economic pressures, many people are trying to erase debt from their financial picture and focus on saving and safer investments. Americans are paying down their credit cards and cautiously borrowing money. Not surprisingly, paying down the home mortgage has become an attractive option for people in a financial position to do so. However, …
Continue reading The Pros and Cons of Paying off Your Mortgage Early
Lin Yifu, a chief economist with the World Bank, says maybe. Many financial advisors, working to help their clients accumulate enough money for retirement, are painfully aware of the investment risk associated with the “lost decade” that Japan suffered through recently. The sagging economies of the developed world still account for 60% of the combined …
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