Retirement Watch Weekly
Why to Hate Stock Market Predictions and Forecasts
I don’t make many financial predictions and don’t make portfolio recommendations based on them. Yet, most financial and investment marketing these days seems to be based on predictions. Investors in general are captivated by predictions and spend a lot of time reading different forecasts and trying to determine which is right. Using predictions is a […]
$1 Million For Retirement Is Not Enough?
This article shouldn’t be news to anyone who reads Retirement Watch or my books, but it is news to The New York Times that a $1 million retirement nest egg might not be enough for most people. It lists all the mistakes people are likely to make: Investing only in bonds; underestimating life expectancy; forgetting […]
Some Professional Investors Beat The Stock Market Indexes
You’re exposed to a lot of discussion about how the average mutual fund or money manager underperforms selected stock indexes. But not many people are aware that over the years, studies demonstrated that the averaged defined benefit pension plan earns higher returns than the average 401(k) account. Here’s one discussion of that. One way to […]
June 2013
June 27, 2013 04:45 p.m. Your Retirement Finance Week in Review I hope each of you has a good July 4th. Because of the light schedule in the market and economic data next week, I probably won’t issue a report unless there is a significant surprise. If all goes according to plan, I’ll be back […]
Reviewing the Estate Planning Basics
Now, only the very wealthy have to worry about Estate Planning. That’s what many people believe after the latest estate tax law, and that belief could cause a lot of problems for them and their heirs. Estate planning is more than tax reduction. Estate planning ensures that your wealth is transferred to those you want […]
Exploding Myths About Long-Term Care
Americans are remarkably uninformed and misinformed about long-term health care and insurance to cover the expense. Only one question was answered correctly by a majority of respondents in a recent survey: 53% said they were not too familiar with long-term care insurance (LTCI) and another 26% said they were not at all familiar with it. […]
Holding Employer Stocks in 401(k)s
Employees who own company stock or other securities in their retirement plans should review their options. The American Taxpayer Relief Act of 2012 might have changed which is the best strategy for distributing the stock from the account. Many workers own shares of employer stock or other securities through 401(k) or other retirement plans. Few […]
Protecting Yourself from ID Theft
Identity theft isn’t making the headlines it did a few years ago. Yet, it’s still a problem. The FTC estimates that annually about 9 million Americans have their identities stolen, and this costs consumers about $5 billion. The FTC says fixing your credit after a theft takes about 175 hours and costs $1,173. In addition, […]
