Retirement Watch Weekly
The 2018 Market and Economic Review
Almost everyone’s 2018 predictions were wrong. But that’s almost always the case. We had another year of unexpected and startling changes in the economy and markets. Trends couldn’t have been much better than they were at the end of 2017. The economy was surging across the board, and U.S. stock indexes were moving steadily higher. […]
9 Required Minimum Distribution (RMD) Strategies Every Retiree Should Know
Every retiree wants to trim taxes, and maximize benefits. But very few know how to approach this the right way. Today, I’ll share how you can maximize your benefits from Required Minimum Distributions (RMDs), and reduce your tax bill. Required minimum distributions from IRAs weren’t simplified or changed in the new tax law. Taxpayers ages […]
Bob’s Journal (12/20/2018)
Recent inflation data are sending a warning to the Federal Reserve, but the Fed doesn’t seem to be heeding it. About a year after the financial crisis hit bottom, I presented a workshop to a group of individual investors. One of the group members gave me a hard time. I had said inflation would stay […]
The Power of Framing
Dear Reader: Would you rather spend $3 a day for something or $1,095 a year? Which makes you more likely to pay for something by a certain date: a 20% discount for early payment or a 20% penalty for paying later? The answer to both these questions is supposed to be that it doesn’t matter. […]
The Scope of Retirement Success
Some years ago, I was a speaker at a conference in the Cayman Islands. Most of the speakers dressed casually and enjoyed the local attractions when we weren’t making presentations. One afternoon, I ran into one of the other speakers in the hotel lobby. He was dressed in a suit and tie. While wiping away […]
Your Retirement Blueprint: 7 Key Questions for Ages 50 and Older
Successful retirement has a blueprint. Whether you are already retired or retirement is years away, you can follow the blueprint to enhance your financial independence. For starters, you should always have a written retirement plan. (Surveys of retirees demonstrate that those who have written plans are more satisfied.) Developing a plan requires you to carefully […]
Where Will the Fed Drive the Economy Next?
The markets now seem to realize what the Fed has been up to, but the markets probably still are behind the curve. Investors as a group made two of their recurring mistakes during most of 2018. They projected that the recent past would continue indefinitely, and they focused on short-term news, or noise, instead of […]
Beat the Latest Scams To Steal Your Identity
The world’s thieves constantly are changing their methods, and you have to keep up with them to protect yourself. Not long ago, the major scam involved IRS imposters demanding immediate payment over the phone using gift cards. That scam largely is shut down. The IRS issued a number of alerts warning about the scam. Also, […]
