“It’s not what you make that counts!” Exhorts friend and mentor Ed Slott in an interview we recently conducted. “It’s what you keep – after taxes!” Ed Slott has a top-rated show on public broadcasting called ‘Retire Safe and Secure.’ Ed’s message about retention is in sync with the current preference among retail investors for [...]
Which method will serve you better in retirement? Those approaching or in retirement may seek the highest returns possible for many reasons, such as leaving behind a large legacy or traveling around the world. Sometimes it may be just to stay ahead of rising healthcare costs, inflation, and taxes. At this stage of life, [...]
The fear of outliving one’s money typically generates the most amount of anxiety among pre-retirees and retirees alike. In his 1937 bestseller Think and Grow Rich, Napoleon Hill cited the fear of poverty as having the most common appearance of all the six basic fears every human possesses. The American Institute of CPAs (AICPA) [...]
Should auld acquaintances be forgot, And never brought to mind? And never brought to mind, as some stock and bond market investors would prefer? Certain trends that began last year will likely carry over into 2019. These were four horsemen that made their acquaintance last year (listed in chronological [...]
As time goes by it is your personal perspective that matters Finding stunt people over the age of 55 is rare. Jackie Chan, who holds the Guinness record for most stunts by a living actor, turns 65 next year and amazingly still does some of his own stunts. But Jackie is the exception, rather [...]
Americans’ top worries about crime are “having your personal, credit card or financial information stolen by computer hackers” and “being the victim of identity theft” according to a Gallup survey published in late 2017. In a world that is going increasingly digital, we must all adapt, and retirees are no exception. A few years back, [...]
“Life insurance is the only tool that costs pennies and guarantees dollars,” said the legendary industry salesman Ben Feldman. This powerful leveraging factor along with permanent life insurance’s ability to allow someone to accumulate funds tax-free are two reasons why properly structured insurance can be a powerful financial planning tool. Cash value inside a permanent [...]
For decades, Americans considered 65 years old to be the year of retirement. Over the past decade or so, we have witnessed a transformation in the views towards retirement and retirement ages due partly to demographic changes in the population (notably longer life expectancies) as well as economic conditions. Even while the market’s bull run [...]
As it applies to our daily lives, the word ‘structure’ normally has a positive connotation. Merriam-Webster’s defines the word as a “coherent form or organization.” In a world that seems increasingly chaotic every day, it would be desirable then to have more coherency and organization. When it comes to planning our finances, structured notes and [...]
