Cheap Places to Retire – A Foreigner’s Perspective

Lots is being written here in the U.S. about inexpensive retirement locations in foreign countries. Sometimes it is more interesting to read the commentary of those outside the U.S. about retiring in other countries, including the U.S.  The London Daily Telegraph has done just that. Read more

Adding Five Year TIPS to the Portfolio

Yesterday I bought some Treasury Inflation Protected Securities (TIPS) with a five year maturity at the U.S. Treasury Auction. I did this using a broker through my self-managed 401k brokerage account. This follows my purchase of 10 year TIPS last month. It was an interesting auction to be sure. Read more

The Problems with Working Longer and Retiring Later

Some Social Security reformers want to increase the retirement age from age 66, perhaps even to age 70. I don’t think this would work for many, if not most American workers. This cost saving strategy is based on the assumption that increasing the retirement age would cause folks to work longer. I see two problems with this theory. Read more

Separating Retirement Wants from Retirement Needs

I’m guessing that when not-yet-retired baby boomers dream ahead into their retirement future, they spend much of their time thinking about retirement “wants.”  I’m referring here to travel, hobbies, entertainment, and other activities that we expect to bring us pleasure in our retirement leisure but also cost money.

Thinking about retirement “wants” is fun and motivating but not if retirement needs are short-changed. I’ll explain my thought process on this.

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Compare Your Retirement and Financial Planning with Other Boomers

I’ve found another online tool that enables comparisons between your personal finances and retirement savings to others in your peer group. I think it’s worth your time to visit. It won’t cost you anything except a few minutes of Q&A. In fact, you may win something from me just for reading on.
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Risk Management Adjustments in Our Retirement Portfolio

Several months ago I changed the asset allocations in my 401k plan. The prior allocations were based on the Ten Speed portfolio published by Scott Burns. I simplified our holdings into another of Burns couch potato portfolios, a slightly modified version of the Four Square. One of my reasons for doing this was improve my ability to control risk . Shortly thereafter, I entered stop loss orders for our major holdings. This morning, I made some further risk management adjustments.  Read more

Private Sector Pension Benefits are at Risk for Retirees

A big part of retirement planning is risk control and management. By this I mean identifying and understanding the bad things that can happen to your money, your job, your health, and life in general. Then you must try to build into your plan as much protection against these risks as you can afford. Unfortunately, it seems we must add private pension benefits to the list. Read more

Appliance Outlet Store Shopping Success

We are just a few weeks from closing on our condo in Long Branch Lakes. These are brand new condos and we were the first buyer.  The developer put together a standard appliance package with some upgrade selections. We did not find a refrigerator option that we liked so we asked if we could buy our own and get credit against the final purchase price. The developer was agreeable. Read more

Retirement Asset Correlations

Asset correlation is a concept of critical importance to a retirement investors. I have spent a lot of my own time studying correlations as they pertain to our retirement portfolio. I have found a new online tool that makes this job easier. First, a brief refresher on the subject. Read more

Basic Principles for Getting on Track for Retirement

Bill McNabb, the CEO of Vanguard Funds, recently gave a speech that focused on certain principles all investors should follow to get their retirement plan on track . His speech was adapted and published as a column on Vanguard’s site. I am generally a fan of Vanguard compared to other fund companies so I try to follow their commentary and advice. I have some feedback to share about the five retirement principles summarized by McNabb. Read more

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