I love the idea of maxing out your 401(k) until retirement because old school pensions are hard to come by. But turning your 401(k) into an annuity at retirement is a fool's errand. You’re faced with nosebleed inducing fees and limited access to your money while the insurance companies bank on your early demise. Not exactly a healthy relationship. It’s concerning that BlackRock, the world's largest money manager, is pushing for 401(k) annuities to grow its assets at the price of those who cannot afford to lose them and deserve better. Dawn Lim reports on the troubling development at … [Read more...]

Running out of money during retirement is the greatest risk people take when they decide to stop working. The World Economic Forum has published new research that shows Americans aren't saving enough to cover the last decade or so of their retirement. That pales in comparison to the Japanese, who fail to save enough for the last two decades of their retirement. The only problem here for Americans though is that a big portion of that savings disparity comes because Japanese people are living so much longer, not because Americans are simply saving that much more. Bloomberg's Ben Steverman … [Read more...]

A scary statistic was recently uncovered in a survey conducted by LendEDU. Nearly 40 percent of Americans fear they will never save enough money to retire. Bloomberg reports: That’s despite nearly one in five Americans who said having enough money saved to be able to retire is their most important financial goal, according to a survey of 1,000 adults conducted by LendEDU in May. More Americans said saving for retirement is more important versus those that indicated paying off credit card debt or building an emergency fund, according to the survey. However, slightly more respondents said … [Read more...]

Yesterday I explained to you how even frugal retirees can have their savings sunk when unexpected health care costs arise. Running out of money in retirement is not something anyone wants. Many Americans end up working through what should be their retirement years because they failed to plan properly. If you want to better formulate a plan that includes provisions for health care costs in retirement, read through this guide from Fidelity. If you are like most Americans, health care is expected to be one of your largest expenses in retirement, after housing and transportation costs. But unlike … [Read more...]

Across America, parents are spending their retirement savings to pay their children's bills. Student loans, insurance, credit cards, and healthcare costs are just some of the bills Americans are paying for their adult children. The extra burden is forcing parents to reduce their savings each month, or even dip into their nest eggs. Megan Cerullo reports at CBS News: Half of American parents have cut back on their retirement savings to help pay their children's bills, a Bankrate.com study shows. Parents are putting their kids' car insurance, cell phone bills, credit card debt and health … [Read more...]

The answer to the question of whether long-term investing is dead or alive comes down to my favorite three letters in the alphabet: Y.O.U. When I speak with investors, most of our conversation is about what’s going on at that moment in their lives: Driving to their second home, getting ready for an exercise class, recovering from hip, knee or shoulder surgery, running to a meeting, running (walking) to rehab, or winding down from a busy work trip or a European tour. With so much attention today given to robo-advisors, financial planning and one stop investing, it’s hard to know which way … [Read more...]