The GOP’s new tax bill – the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (TCJA) – is far from a done deal (see the GOP’s failure on healthcare reform). Still, the author of today’s article advises that “those living in retirement and saving for retirement should start to review their sources of income, their expenses, prior tax returns, and conduct what-if analyses…
“REITs are your ally in retirement,” advises the author of today’s article – and, in fact, a report from last year noted that real estate investment trusts have a “dramatic” effect on retirement portfolios. As such, the author proceeds to highlight five REITs that may be particularly attractive picks, as each offers the prospect of both income and growth for…
When it comes to building retirement wealth, the author of today’s article points out that “one of the best strategies is also the simplest: Buy shares in great companies, and hold forever.” “Great”, however, doesn’t necessarily mean flashy and exciting. The author proceeds to highlight three stocks that may be considered rather boring, but which could nonetheless be helpful in…
When it comes to calculating your “magic number” for retirement (how much you need to save in order to retire comfortably), various formulas have been suggested (Fidelity, for example, recommends that you save the equivalent of 10 times your final salary). The author of today’s article, however, sees this approach as “fatally flawed” and recommends using a “magic dividend number”…
Retirement is a time for “Steady-Eddie” dividend-paying stocks and not a time for growth stocks (and the volatility that is inextricably linked to them). Such is the common wisdom. However, the authors of today’s article believe that not all growth stocks should be painted with the same retirement-incompatible brush – and they proceed to highlight two growth stocks (which also…
The market’s sequence of returns matters – having weaker returns come early in one’s life cycle (when the amount invested is smaller) and stronger returns come later in one’s life cycle (when the amount invested is much larger) puts one in a much better position going into retirement than the reverse scenario. Unfortunately, while the sequence of returns matters a…
When it comes to determining how much to spend from a retirement portfolio each year, the author of today’s article states that, while there is no perfect strategy, “there are many perfectly fine spending strategies. So the goal is to understand the pros and cons of each strategy, then pick the one that suits you and move on with your…
Health savings accounts. More employers offering a Roth option in their retirement plans – and reducing the overall number of investment options employees have to choose from. The growth of index funds – and workplace financial wellness programs. These trends – as well as some additional developments – have the author of today’s article declaring that “it’s a brave new…
Steady income, conservative growth and diversification are the key offerings of the three exchange-traded funds for retirement highlighted in today’s article. The first ETF is a defensive dividend play, the second offers the prospect of conservative growth through broad exposure to the tech and telecom industries, and the third – a real-estate investment trust ETF – offers diversification thanks to…
“One of the trickier decisions of saving for retirement is determining which accounts to prioritize with your savings,” notes the author of today’s article. As such, he proceeds to outline a general recommended order when it comes to saving for retirement. Number one in that order is, of course, investing enough in your 401(k) to at least get any employer…