Most folks think investing is about picking stocks and dodging in and out of the market before the roof falls in. Maybe with play money. In real life, investing is about figuring out your life goals, how to pay for them, and then designing an investment approach that will get you to a successful outcome, […]
You know that the fees you pay to invest your savings matter, and that these costs, even tiny percentages, can significantly reduce your gains over a lifetime of saving and investing. You are probably also aware of the rise of “robo-advisors,” web-based automated do-it-yourself investment management sites like Wealthfront and Betterment that provide sophisticated, algorithmic […]
Inescapably the time comes to consider that spending from savings is different from saving from income. You survey your savings and investments, scattered across a number of accounts, and the question arises, how best to manage this money to get the best lifetime outcome for the household when you are no longer earning a high […]
There is an ongoing discussion in personal finance about the differences between safety-first and probability-based approaches to managing money, especially money for retirement. You are (probably) familiar with the probability-based approach from hearing some of these well-known rules of the thumb: [list style=”orb” color=”green”] You can withdraw 4% a year and (probably) not run out […]
I’ve been busy the last few months enhancing the planning tool I’ve developed, R-Map Planner, and building a home for it on the web where planners and civilians alike can find out about it and license it. So I’ve been a bit absent here from posts recently (no cheering!), part of the time division that […]
In part three of this series, we discussed how to create a low-cost portfolio invested in the global economy that reliably returns market returns, less costs, year in and year out while diversifying away the risk of picking and owning stock in individual companies. We discussed how to set up two indexed sub-portfolio one for […]
There are all kinds of approaches to investing, from various long-term investing strategies to some pretty rarefied and/or hair-brained schemes for winning big by beating the market. Managing savings and investments through employer sponsored plans and IRAs to meet a long-term retirement goal is the antithesis of fast money schemes aimed at beating the market […]
In Part One of this two-part post, I reviewed the most common retirement income strategy, systematic withdrawal and “the 4% rule” which is its hallmark. We noted that among other concerns, the current low-interest rate climate threatens the success of this approach, which slowly spends down your portfolio throughout a 30-year retirement. A recent and […]
Saving for retirement is the long, slow (hopefully boring) prelude to the real show—turning your savings into secure retirement income that will last for the rest of your life. Watching your expenses and saving regularly during a lifetime of employment is crucial, but it may not be enough. You need a plan based on your […]
Sure, it’s only money, but it’s your money, and it isn’t getting any easier to get more of it. Zvi Bodie is a Boston U professor and advocate of risk-free retirement income and retirement planning. He and co-author Rachelle Taqqu have a new book out, Risk Less and Prosper, and he was interviewed recently by […]