With the Dow DJIA, -1.62%, S&P 500 SPX, -1.72% and Nasdaq COMP, -1.80% indexes dipping into the red right now, looking at your retirement portfolio may have your heart racing. Retirement Tip of t...
Tag: Retirement planning
I’m a trustee for my brother: How should I handle his assets in a bear market?
Dear Harry, As a trustee for my brother, I am concerned with the current bear market and wondering if I should get out of the market altogether and place the funds in a money-market account until thin...
Don’t panic about your 401(k)
I’ve been doing this—writing about the stock market and investments—for a quarter of a century. It’s been a heckuva turbulent ride, including Russian defaults, emerging market crises, dot-com disaster...
How to get a guaranteed return of 1.3% per year above inflation
TIPS in recent months have become an increasingly attractive option for the fixed-income portion of your retirement portfolio. I’m referring, of course, to the Treasury’s Inflation-Protected Securitie...
The Fed raised rates — retirees and near-retirees should do this
Retirees have to watch their spending, especially after the Federal Reserve’s latest rate hike announced on Wednesday. For the third time in a row, the Federal Reserve said on Wednesday it would rais...
Thinking about a Roth conversion? If you have an IRA, consider this ‘bear market bonus’
If you’ve been thinking about converting a traditional IRA to a Roth IRA, here’s the good news: This year’s market turmoil may be giving you a golden opportunity to do it. That’s because the stocks an...
3 Ways Retirees Can Inflation-Proof Their Portfolios
Rather than vanishing with the final days of summer, inflation has proven stickier than anticipated. For retirees, that means not just higher daily prices, but also the chance that their savings won’t...
The worst year in U.S. history for the 60:40 portfolio
This year is not shaping up to be the worst in U.S. history for a balanced 60% stock/40% bond portfolio. It’s important to point this out not just to correct the misleading historical narrative that h...
2 things too many of you get wrong about the 4% rule
Plus, what the 4% rule might look like in practice. Getty Images/iStockphoto In July, I wrote this column about a man who was working with a financial planner and withdrawing 4% from his investment ac...
Pro athletes Isaiah Thomas and Dexter Fowler dish about top money tips
Malerapaso | Istock | Getty Images HUNTINGTON BEACH, Calif. — Professional athletes are faced with a difficult task early in their careers — learning to deal with big sums of cash as they’re thr...
‘This is never factored into the equation.’ One big thing people forget to consider when thinking about how much they need to retire
I’m sure you’ve pictured it: on the beach mid-weekday, gently lapping waves falling on white sand, sipping an umbrella drink — and you no longer have to check your email, other than to confirm your di...
He’s won 18 Grammys and is worth an estimated $320 million, but Foo Fighters frontman Dave Grohl does this ‘smelly’ thing with his money (and psst: pros say you should too, with a twist)
It’s a simple way to save money, too. Getty Images/iStockphoto It’s times like these you learn to save again. That’s certainly what pros are telling Americans: Suze Orman, for example, recently upped ...
With inflation, many retirees will pay more federal income taxes
The federal income tax is generally indexed for inflation. Most particularly, the income brackets to which the marginal tax rates apply are increased in line with the “Chained CPI-U.” While the chaine...
Preferred stocks can offer hidden opportunities for dividend investors. Just look at this JPMorgan Chase example.
This is shaping up to be a brutal year for bank stocks. But a deeper look can highlight an opportunity for income-seeking investors to make money on banks’ preferred stocks. But the S&P 500 SPX, +...
We earn $7K a month, have $798K in retirement and will get pensions. But we want to help our child buy a house, and my wife wants to retire at 55. Do we need professional help?
How to find the right financial adviser for you Getty Images/iStockphoto Question: As teachers, my wife and I bring home $7,000 a month combined. We save 20% of our income in pre-tax 403(b) contribut...
When It Pays to Have a Mortgage in Retirement—and When It Doesn’t
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How much cash you need in an emergency fund at every career stage
Nirunya Juntoomma | Istock | Getty Images If you’re feeling unsteady amid stock market volatility, high inflation and rising interest rates, you may wonder how much cash you really need to have ...
ETF or mutual fund — which is better?
Q.: I have read that one should always use ETFs instead of regular mutual funds and I’ve read one should never use ETFs and read that it doesn’t matter. What is your viewpoint on funds v ETFs? —Ted in...
5 tips for retiring in a volatile market
Retiring is usually accompanied by celebrations and relaxation, but recent market volatility is adding a measure of doubt for those nearing or at the start of their retirement. That volatility, couple...
IRS Says It Exposed Some Confidential Taxpayer Data on Website
WASHINGTON—The Internal Revenue Service inadvertently posted what is normally confidential information involving about 120,000 individuals before discovering the error and removing the data from its w...
How much do I need to retire? 11 big retirement questions answered
I spend a significant amount of time reading the viewpoints of people who are planning for retirement or who are already retired. My frequent reaction: What are they thinking? When I review retiremen...
Here’s What a $2 Million Retirement Looks Like in America
For many Americans, retirement advice is limited to encouragement to save more or warnings that they haven’t saved enough. But most people get little guidance or give little thought to what to do with...
Why TIPS might be a smart place to park some money right now
Inflation is running at 8% or higher, depending on how you count it (and who’s counting). The Federal Reserve is clearly panicking. And the markets are clearly panicking too. So at this point, Uncle S...