Retirement Watch Weekly
The Next Bear Market
It is time to plan for the next bear market and recession. I’m not predicting that either is imminent. In fact, the reliable lead indicators of recessions aren’t issuing any warning signs yet. The best time to plan for bear markets and recessions is when they don’t seem to be on the horizon. Most people […]
Be on the Lookout For the Next Change in Trends
Investors need to be wary of the “recency effect,” which regularly costs people a lot of money. Under the recency effect, people tend to remember best the facts and ideas to which they’ve most recently been exposed. In investing and economics, people believe the future will be very similar to the recent past. It’s a […]
Solving the Long-Term Care Conundrum
Long-term care expenses are one of the great retirement fears. For many people, the cost and uncertainty of long-term care are only one reason for the anxiety. Even more anxiety is triggered by trying to sort through the options to fund potential long-term care expenses. Comparing the choices baffles even many financially savvy people and […]
7 Key Retirement Questions You Need to Answer When You’re 50 or Older
Successful Retirement has a blueprint. Whether you already are retired or retirement is years away, you can follow the blueprint to enhance your financial independence. You should have a written retirement plan. Developing a plan requires you to carefully consider key issues, and surveys of retirees show those who had written plans are more satisfied. […]
Waiving the Penalty for RMD Mistakes
The IRS likes to catch people who made mistakes with the required minimum distributions (RMDs) from their retirement plans. It’s no wonder. The penalty is a steep 50% of any amount that was supposed to be distributed but wasn’t. Owners of traditional IRAs and other qualified retirement accounts must begin minimum annual distributions after age […]
Should Estate Planning Ever Be Put On Hold Because of Potential Estate Tax Changes?
Tax reform proposals slowly are being developed in Congress, including changes in the estate tax. People are asking, “Should I delay my Estate Planning until the new law is clear?” We’ve been down this road before, and the answer is: You shouldn’t delay. Congress is looking at changing only the federal estate and gift taxes, […]
PIMCO’s Intermediate Stock Market and Economic Outlook
Every year PIMCO conducts what it calls a Secular Forum at which the firm’s staff plus invited outside speakers discuss broad economic and investment issues. At the end, PIMCO derives an outlook for the next three to five years and uses this outlook to influence investment decisions. The 2017 forum concluded a few weeks ago, […]
All-Time Highs and Stock Prices – Does Momentum Investing Work?
People are asking, “Should I avoid stocks since the indexes are hitting all-time highs?” One way to answer that question is to point out that stocks have been reaching all-time highs for a while, and then they continue to hit new all-time highs. This article presents that information in a more sophisticated way. It’s basic […]
