In 2011 we were hit by hurricane Irene and endured a fair amount of damage. Then of course last year we were walloped by Sandy which caused severe damage that will take years to recover from. Personally, my ...(more)
93% of American drivers rate themselves as better than average…which is a mathematical impossibility. (Source: Svenson, 1981)
This reveals something researchers have coined “Overconfidence Bias” which is “A ...(more)
Maybe it’s time for Fidelity, T. Rowe Price and BlackRock to come out of the closet.
But first, a re-cap:
The two main investment styles or philosophies are 1) indexing (sometimes referred to as passive management) ...(more)
“If It Bleeds It Reads”
This is an accepted maxim in the news biz; bad news sells more than good news. That’s how it has always been and how it will always be because it is human nature.
This shows up as much in ...(more)
Note: This post is only relevant if you are around age 60 and Married.
Before we get to the much talked about “file & suspend” strategy, let’s review the basics of social security retirement income:
You can ...(more)
With Americans living longer and less dependent on government entitlements and traditional pension plans, creating your own stream of retirement income that will not be outlived becomes the major theme of most financial ...(more)
There are certainly a lot of investments a pre-retiree can make that are worse than a variable annuity (Referred to from here on simply as “VA”). In fact, if an investor is well diversified across low cost ...(more)
In January 2011 CBS 60 Minutes aired a dramatic segment on 401-k fees.
At the start of the segment, a man with a coarse voice and visible bags under his eyes tells the audience “go back and track the growth in mutual ...(more)
Quick: A bat and ball cost a dollar and ten cents. The bat costs a dollar more than the ball… how much does the ball cost?
Got your answer?
Good.
The vast majority of folks who respond quickly (and confidently) say ...(more)
You probably have heard by now, that on May 18th Facebook (FB) did an initial public offering (IPO) which simply means they sold stock to the public for the first time and listed their shares on an exchange, in this ...(more)
In the first post of this series, I reminded business owners and 401(k) plan sponsors that new fee disclosure laws, years in the making, are around the corner. I stressed the importance of not taking these changes ...(more)
Finally.
The U.S. Labor Departments new 401(k) fee disclosure rules are about to take effect.
For years the 401(k) plan, to a certain extent, has been something that resembles a national disgrace; rife with conflicts ...(more)
We have some 77 Million baby boomers in the U.S., yet somehow about 25 Million of them have a net worth of less than $4,000, excluding the equity in their homes! (Source: Age Wave)
Does this data tell us that ...(more)
From 1980 to 2010, the population over age 90 tripled.
And it is expected that this demographic will quadruple over the next 40 years. (Source: Census Bureau study, “90+ in the United States”) Advancements in ...(more)
It's been said that "History repeats itself". And I believe it was Churchill who said "The further back you look, the further forward you see". Others have claimed "the only thing new is the history you don't know". ...(more)
The whole concept of retirement is changing.
In the past, retirement was sort of a “one time, one size fits all” event; The retirement party, a gold plated wristwatch gift, then banishing off to a condominium in the ...(more)
The origins of the concept of life insurance, as we know it, can be traced to ancient Rome. Caius Marius, a Roman military leader, creates a burial club among his troops in approximately 100 B.C, so that in the event ...(more)
As of this writing the 10 year treasury is yielding a mere 2.00% and it appears rates will stay low for a while; in a very unusual move, the Fed has vowed to keep its key benchmark interest rate near zero through mid ...(more)
Incredibly, as private colleges keep paying their to executives millions of dollars each year, they continue to hike tuition prices for thier students. And many are wondering if college is even a " good investment" ...(more)
Lets hop into a time machine. We’re back in 2007 and you’re sitting with your financial advisor. She offers you two investment options: One is a pool of U.S. backed mortgage securities packaged by a gigantic, powerful ...(more)
