A recent survey of 401(k) participants found that almost 70% believed they would be able to save enough for a financially secure retirement. The problem? Two-thirds of those surveyed believed that returns going forward will be in line with – or higher than – returns in the past, while most analysts expect that returns will be lower – perhaps significantly…
“When it comes to important life transitions like retirement, perspective, judgment and objectivity are vital to prevent mistakes that can lead to disaster,” asserts the author of today’s article. The problem? Too many people forego the aforementioned in favor of overly simplistic (and overly optimistic) “back-of-the-envelope” planning. What are some critical steps many people fail to take – and important…
The statistics outlined in today’s article regarding baby boomers and retirement aren’t all disconcerting, but most of them are (90% to be exact!). Nonetheless, the author believes these are facts that boomers planning on retiring in the not-so-distant future need to be aware of. What “pretty scary” amount does the average boomer have saved for retirement? What percentage of 65-year-olds…
According to a recent report from the Employee Benefit Research Institute, almost half of retirees end up leaving the workforce earlier than they had planned – and while this is often involuntary (the result of a layoff or illness), in a third of cases individuals make an early exit by choice, having achieved financial independence. Achieving early retirement is not…
In this case a race to the bottom is a good thing: In an effort to attract new customers and increase market share in an extremely competitive business, mutual fund companies are battling it out for who can offer the lowest-cost ETF – and the resultant rock-bottom fees are great news for retirement savers. The author of today’s article highlights…
The oft-cited figure for how much you need to build up in your nest egg in order to retire comfortably is $1 million – with some experts advocating a $2 million target! However, the author of today’s article believes that, “while that theory might seem reasonable on paper, in practice, it leaves a lot to be desired” – and he…
“It doesn’t take brilliant investing to retire early as I did,” states the author of today’s article, a former software engineer who retired at age 50 despite making a number of investing blunders over the years – some of which involved tens of thousands of dollars. For his reflections on how he got to early retirement – including the big…
With high-dividend-yielding stocks feeling the pain as interest rates rise, the author of today’s article argues that, while older investors should not scale back on their dividend holdings, “the challenge is to pick the right dividend stocks and funds” – and the right dividend stocks and funds right now might not be the usual suspects! As such, she proceeds to…
Think you’re financially and emotionally ready to retire? According to today’s article, you may still have to postpone retirement, thanks to the House Republicans’ proposed Obamacare replacement bill – the American Health Care Act – and its provision that would allow insurers to charge older customers five times as much in premiums as younger customers – compared to the three-to-one…
In some (rare) positive retirement news, Wells Fargo’s 2016 retirement study found that the average 401(k) balance is at a new high – $92,000. So, with Americans looking to improve their financial futures and steering more dollars into their retirement accounts, how should they be investing these additional funds? In aggressive stock plans? Conservative bond funds? Low-cost index funds? To…