When it comes to investing, keep it simple
Well-designed investment plans are simple, not complicated. Each investment complements the others and contributes positively to the portfolio’s performance. In simple terms, when an asset is added, it...
View ArticleThe reality of lower investment returns
Despite two major market declines in the last 14 years, the U.S. financial markets have been generous to investors and baby boomers have been perhaps the biggest beneficiaries. Over the 30 year period...
View ArticleGetting real about future investment returns
Despite two steep stock market declines in the last 13 years, baby boomers who are now retiring in droves have grown accustomed to earning strong returns on their savings and investments. Over the last...
View ArticleIt’s what you keep that counts
A major concern of investors worldwide is the expectation for low returns for the foreseeable future. The consensus among economists, academics and other investment experts is that today’s low interest...
View ArticleThe Illusion of Average Returns
In order to make smart financial decisions including how to invest and how much to spend today and save for tomorrow, investors need to develop average long-run return projections for stocks and bonds....
View ArticleA Crisis of Confidence
Since the depths of the financial crisis we have witnessed a stock market that has more than doubled and substantial improvements in other key measures of economic health. Yet a recent survey conducted...
View ArticleShould you convert to a Roth?
A Roth IRA conversion is the process of transferring funds from an existing traditional IRA to a Roth IRA. The decision to convert presents an interesting quandary for investors. When you convert to a...
View ArticleAvoiding a Roth Conversion Tax Surprise
The first article in this series discussed the principal differences between traditional and Roth IRAs. Last week we identified both the benefits and tax consequences of converting a traditional IRA...
View ArticleControlling Investment Risk
It’s been a very good year for stock investors. The Standard & Poor’s 500 Index which serves as a proxy for the U.S. equity market is up over 25% in the last 12 months and stands close to an...
View ArticleLowering expectations can pay off
A modest but consistent savings program combined with a prudent investment strategy can yield astounding results when allowed to grow over a long period of time. This is the power of compound growth....
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