Episode Air Date: July 19, 2025

Are you approaching retirement with a portfolio you don’t truly understand? In this week’s Financial Hour, Kentucky retirement planning experts Tom Dupree and Mike Johnson reveal why knowing what you own could be the difference between a secure retirement and financial uncertainty.

Retirement as we know it is changing dramatically. As Tom explains, “Retirement, as it’s defined today, really didn’t come about until the 1930s to 1970s.” With people living longer and facing late career job losses, the traditional retirement model no longer works for many Americans.

Unlike large firms that assign you to an “investment counselor,” Dupree Financial Group provides direct access to portfolio managers who understand your unique situation. As Tom emphasizes:

“When we’re looking at a company, we’re not owning it because it’s a large growth stock. We’re owning it because we like the company. It’s got characteristics, the cash flow of the investment.”

Many pre-retirees don’t realize their “conservative” investments have become riskier due to recent Morningstar style box reclassifications. Mike Johnson explains how supposedly stable large blend funds now carry higher volatility:

“Large blend funds have become more like a growth fund. Value funds have become more like a blend fund, which means you actually have higher volatility.”

This means your retirement portfolio may be taking on more risk than you realize.

The mechanics of mutual funds work against long-term retirement investors. When you own individual stocks through separate account management:

As Tom notes: “Your money is always your money, and there are no penalties to get it back.”

The numbers are only half the retirement equation. Tom shares insights about clients who were financially prepared but emotionally unprepared for retirement:

“They hadn’t been planning for the emotional part of it. They looked at it like it was an engineering problem. But it wasn’t. It’s a human being problem.”

Don’t retire with a portfolio you don’t understand. At Dupree Financial Group, we provide complimentary portfolio reviews to help you understand exactly what you own and whether it aligns with your retirement goals.

Ready to take control of your retirement planning?

Schedule Your Free Consultation | Call (859) 233-0400

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