Why I Have Avoided Municipal Bonds and Funds
July 16, 2012 by MJP
Filed under Investing for Retirement
None of our retirement investments are in municipal bond and funds. This is a deliberate decision on our part. I wrote about the questionable future of muni bonds eighteen months ago. Conditions may become worse.
Stop Betting Your Retirement on Your Employer’s Stock
July 13, 2012 by MJP
Filed under 401(k) Plans
There are many large businesses that subtly encourage their employees to own company stock inside their retirement accounts. This is a big mistake in my opinion. In practical effect you are doubling down on the future success of your employer. First, your income depends on a continuation of your job. Second, your retirement depends – at least in part – on the strategic decisions of upper management. Bad decisions by management can cost you your job and cause your stock to tank. Folks working at Wall Street’s “too big to fail” banks have learned this lesson the hard way
Monitoring Year to Date 401k Performance
June 2, 2012 by MJP
Filed under 401(k) Plans
I wrote recently that I am trying to be more active and vigilant in managing our retirement investment holdings. In particular, I want to be sure that (a) there is a reason that we own each of the particular investments in our portfolio and (b) that I have targets for selling if necessary. Part of the vigilance is monitoring the performance of our portfolio in comparison to overall market conditions. If and when the market tanks, I don’t want our portfolio to suffer an identical fate.
Does Buy and Hold Work for Today’s Boomers?
June 1, 2012 by MJP
Filed under Investing for Retirement
For me, the last four years of economic turmoil have exposed many personal finance rules of thumb as rules of dumb. One of those may be the entrenched principal of “buy and hold” as a retirement investment strategy.
Purchasing a CD Ladder in a Retirement Account
May 30, 2012 by MJP
Filed under Certificates of Deposit
I just purchased a CD ladder inside my 401(k) account. I know this sounds strange but I have my reasons. I’ll explain my logic.
Baby Boomers Investment Returns Will Be Constrained
May 19, 2012 by MJP
Filed under Investing for Retirement
Will baby boomers cause our own investments to decline? According to one researcher, the answer is yes. There are so many of us that our collective retirement investing and spending plans are destined to negatively impact investment returns for everyone. How can this be?
Why Are We Avoiding Stocks?
March 11, 2012 by MJP
Filed under Investing for Retirement
We own stocks, stock mutual funds, and stock ETFs in our retirement portfolio. But the degree of equity exposure in our investments has gradually declined since late 2009. And, even though the market indices have rebounded, I am not inclined to change our exposure. I’m not the only one that feels that way. So why are Americans avoiding stocks?
Is Retirement Investing Dead?
January 17, 2012 by MJP
Filed under Investing for Retirement
I both laughed and cried when I read a recent Forbes article listing five reasons why investing is dead. I laughed at the title but cried when I realized that each of the reasons listed had validity.
Your Retirement Plan in 2012: Stocks Up or Doomsday?
December 27, 2011 by MJP
Filed under Investing for Retirement
So have you thought about what changes 2012 might bring to your retirement nest egg and income plan? I haven’t posted in a while but that doesn’t mean I haven’t been thinking about our economic future. Indeed, I have been contemplating what moves to make, if any, between now and the end of the year to plan for what lies beyond.
Vanguard Enters the Guaranteed Lifetime Income Space
Lots of insurance companies sell variable annuities. Because the fees are high, they make a lot of money in the process. Baby boomers who are approaching retirement are a huge market for annuity companies. However, a lot of us have been (finally) educated about the negative aspects of variable annuities and have resisted buying. Then came the Guaranteed Lifetime Withdrawal Benefit (GLWB) rider. This changed the annuity landscape.
