“Though some people end up spending less in retirement than they estimated, odds are you won’t be in this group,” cautions the author of today’s article. In order to avoid spending more in retirement than estimated – and thus drawing down your nest egg more quickly than planned – the author recommends beginning to live the retirement life well before…
There are over 8,000 mutual funds and the average participant in a workplace retirement plan has 28 investment options to choose from. However, the author of today’s article advises that “you can create a smart, diversified portfolio with just a handful of mutual funds” – and she proceeds to highlight some model “lazy portfolios” to do just that. To learn…
While the primary casualty of the fiduciary rule – which began to take effect in June – is intended to be conflicts of interest on the part of financial advisers when it comes to their clients’ retirement accounts, today’s article identifies another potential casualty of the rule: the number of mutual funds offered by brokerage firms as they seek to…
FANG stocks are certainly sexy, exciting and have been incredible performers in recent years. However, if your key investment objective is dividend income, the author of today’s article argues that you should be focusing on a different (albeit far less sexy and exciting) acronym: TRUE. While the FANG acronym represents four specific stocks, TRUE represents the four stock sectors that…
In the wake of their failure on health care reform, Republicans in Washington are determined to pass tax reform – and as today’s article notes, “among the tax reform proposals currently being discussed is one that would convert part or all of workers’ tax-deferred 401(k) contributions to Roth 401(k) contributions, which are made after taxes have been removed.” What would…
That baby boomers face a retirement crisis is a widely accepted fact. But what caused it? It may seem that the answer to this question must be complicated, but the author of today’s article has a relatively simple explanation, stating that “If I had to point to one variable that could explain why so many are so ill-prepared for retirement…
When it comes to saving for retirement, the author of today’s article states that “although there are no shortcuts to saving – you just need to get on an automatic program and save as much as possible – there are some quick routes to finding out the right numbers.” Among those “quick routes” are retirement calculators which, while not perfect,…
A significant percentage of Americans are not saving enough (or at all) for retirement – and the U.S. government seems to be doing everything it can to exacerbate this problem. The latest example of this is the Treasury Department’s canceling of the Obama-era myRA program for individuals who did not have access to a 401(k) or other retirement plan at…
Among the myriad of potential issues to contend with in a divorce is the splitting of qualified retirement accounts between you and your ex – a transaction that the author of today’s article cautions, if done without the proper due diligence, can result in a very expensive tax trap: “You can divide up tax-favored retirement account money the tax-smart way…
While traditional pension plans are largely becoming a thing of retirement past, 25% of pre-retirees are still fortunate enough to participate in one – but the author of today’s article warns those individuals not to get too comfortable with their apparent advantage when it comes to funding their golden years, cautioning that “there’s a good chance your pension plan is…