Friday, April 19, 2024
Dear Reader, A recent Wall Street Journal article, “The Rules of Retirement Spending Are Changing,” did not bring good news. Instead, the article clearly reveals that traditional financial planning rules for retirement will not work for those who have diligently saved to fund a comfortable life after decades of work. I want to propose a […]
My friend Tim Plaehn never ceases to amaze me with his research. He recently wrote about stocks with a declared dividend, plus a variable dividend on top of it. Sounds cool…but…. I called him to share a bad experience. Right after the 2008 bailout, a mining company offered a guaranteed dividend increase based on gold […]
Recently, Bloomberg highlighted a research report on retirement investing that found a large percentage of relatively affluent Americans believe it will take “a miracle” for them to be able to stop working and retire. Part of me was shocked, but the other part understood those feelings on retirement investing. The Bloomberg article sourced a 2021 […]
The Senior Citizens League reports, “Social Security COLA (Cost of living adjustment) For Next Year Could Be 6.2%.” Mary Johnson, a Social Security policy analyst tells us: “With one third of the data needed to calculate the COLA already in, it increasingly appears that the COLA for 2022 will be the highest paid since 1983 when […]
When it comes to guarantees, don’t assume anything! A guarantee is a promise or assurance. While a written contractual guarantee strengthens your legal position, it’s only as solid as the person, government, company, insurer and court system standing behind it. In our article “How Good Is Your Comfortable Retirement Guarantee?”, I assumed some investments were guaranteed, […]
I was failing and didn’t understand why. In 1970, I started my career as an adult educator. My classes were predominantly male. That quickly changed in 1972 with the passage of the Equal Rights Amendment; my clients rightfully complied with the law. My historically excellent course critiques were tanking. The tipping point was when a […]
My email inbox regularly fills with questions about how to reach a certain level of monthly retirement income. The notes typically come from retired or nearly-retired individuals who realize their retirement savings at the financial advisor-recommended 4% annual withdrawal rate will not produce the amount of income wanted or needed. I want to share one […]
Retirement planning starts with goals. Once you understand the cash flow you will need when you retire, you can start looking for investments that can provide it. In this article, we’ll go over 12 safe retirement investments, reviewing potential returns and risks. We’ll start with the most conservative investments that have safe, yet low returns […]
One-stock retirement. Those three words can stop you in your tracks, right? Is it a scam? A gimmick? Is it just click-bait? Well, not exactly. Over the years, several financial advisors floated this idea and once in a while it gets some traction. The concept suggests that investing modestly in just one stock could be […]
There’s no one-size-fits-all to retirement planning. In this guide, we’ll explain the best investments for retirement that you can consider.
