Bonds and Your Retirement Portfolio

Are bonds part of your retirement portfolio? If not, they probably should be. The question is how to properly use bonds in your portfolio.

If you are closing in on retirement, now is a good time to learn more about the proper place for bonds in your nest egg, particularly on the income generating side. Read more

Low Risk Municipal Bond Funds

Municipal bonds and muni funds remain a source of concern for investors. Baby boomers and retirees like the tax-free income but significant risks remain. Although we like to think that a municipal bond fund balances those risks out through diversification, some funds apparently are doing a better job than others at managing risk. Read more

Taxes and Your Retirement Planning Agenda

Most pre-retirees assume that their tax burdens will decrease in retirement.  Baby boomers no doubt have the same concept.  Not so fast.

First, a review of where federal income taxes are coming from, pre-Obama.  This interesting data is from a 2008 staff report from the Congressional Joint Committee on Taxation: Read more

What’s Gone Wrong With Municipal Bond Funds?

Many investors preparing for retirement have become concerned about the drop in market value of municipal bonds and funds in 2008 and 2009. Let’s take a closer look. Read more