Retire Texas Style!

The sixth richest man in the world ($104 billion net worth) enjoys a simple, frugal life.  Buffett still lives in the same starter home he bought in 1958.  He begins the day with a McDonald’s breakfast and even clips coupons.  And Buffett doesn’t splurge on expensive hobbies.  In fact, he told CBS Sunday Morning that he plays bridge about 8 hours a week! How important is it for retirees to stay frugal as they spend their nest egg? 

When you log into your financial accounts, what’s the number that needs to be on the bottom of the page before you’d feel completely comfortable about retiring?  Three-fourths of Americans responding to a MagnifyMoney survey say one-million dollars would do the trick.  On the other hand, a fourth of baby boomers surveyed say there’s no amount of money that would make them comfortable!  What are your thoughts on what it takes for someone to feel confident about being able to retire?

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The National Financial Educators Council did their annual study asking people how many used a financial advisor.  Of those 55 and up, the number is now at 41%.  That seems to be a modest improvement.  Hear why Steve thinks more people are seeking help from a financial professional! 

Researchers say they’ve zeroed in on the perfect time to fall asleep.  They found it’s between 10 and 11 p.m.  Outside of that hour, your circadian rhythm gets disrupted enough that your risk of cardiovascular disease goes up.  If that’s the “sweet spot” for sleep, what is the right amount when it comes to contributing to your 401(k) or retirement plan?

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Congress needs to raise the debt-ceiling from time-to-time so the government can pay its bills.  We keep hearing about the downside of not raising the limit:  like interest rates going up and the market getting spooked.  Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen even tells CNBC it could also delay Social Security payments. So we’ve heard this song before, and we’re likely to hear it again.  Is this something clients need to pay attention to?  Hear how Steve is guiding his clients and how he can help you.

Then, how often do you check your smartphone?  A survey by the tech care company Asurion found Americans look at theirs 96 times a day.  That’s about once every 10 minutes while you’re awake!  That number is up 20% from a similar poll two years ago.  Jittery investors tend to check their financial standing a lot. Think about it, how often do you check on your income plan?  

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Hear Steve talk about the "Income For Life" tool that he uses to help his clients, and how he can help you. Then, President Biden is pushing trillions of dollars in new spending … and his supporters in Congress are considering several different tax hikes to pay for it all.  One of them is a so-called “death tax” … that’s a tax that your family has to pay whenever they inherit something from you.  But former U.S. Senator Heidi Heitkamp, a Democrat, tells CNBC that would be a big mistake. Hear Steve share his thoughts on where this is going and how he can help you protect your  assets from Uncle Sam.  

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While a lot of talk surrounds the fear of inflation pushing us into another recession, an expert says we may already be in one.  Dartmouth College professor David Blanchflower points to two major indices of consumer confidence that have dropped more or just as much as they did ahead of the 2008 crash.  He believes that the U.S. will firmly be in a recession at the end of this year.  That’s scary.  What steps should be taken to safeguard the savings for those who are nearing or have just entered retirement?

Then, has the pandemic changed your retirement date? Asset Manager Penny Pennington spoke to Yahoo Finance and said for many, it has. Have many of your clients moved their retirement dates up?  What goes into that kind of planning? Hear Steve explain! 

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Believe it or not we’re already in the fourth quarter of the year!  And Morningstar’s Christine Benz says that means it’s time to take stock of your investments…what are some other things we might want to look at as we approach the end of another year? Do you have any retirement accounts that you’re not aware of?  Don’t laugh, there’s a lot of them out there.  CNBC says that’s why there’s legislation pending in Congress that would create an online “lost and found” database for 401(k) and pension plans.  Is it a good idea for the government to get involved in this? Hear how Steve helps clients track down any plans they’ve lost track of or didn’t even know existed!

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One of the most basic retirement planning questions people have is  “How am I doing?”  We want to know if we’re on track for a comfortable retirement, or if we might need to change something.  To help, Fidelity came up with some so-called “benchmarks” for how much money we should have set aside, by certain ages.  Are these kinds of things generally helpful, or is there a better way of determining how we’re doing?

There’s a term that occasionally pops up in the financial media “lifetime income.”  Market Watch cited a survey in which one-in-three people believed they could get lifetime income from a mutual fund.  And one-in-five thought it comes from a target date fund.  Let’s try to clear this up: First, is there really such a thing as lifetime income, or is that just some kind of marketing term?  And if there is, how does it work? Hear Steve explain! 

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Liz Weston, a personal finance writer for Nerd Wallet, says you can gain … or lose … as much as $100,000, just by the way you claim Social Security!  And she says you never want to make your claim based on something a Social Security employee tells you.  But if we can’t rely on someone who works there to give us good advice, who can we turn to?

It’s November and Investopedia says you don’t want to wait ‘til the last minute to do your year-end tax planning.  So, what do we need to do and how do we get started? 

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Fidelity says the average IRA balance is up 21% from a year ago, while the average 401(k) balance is up 24%!  And the total number of million-dollar retirement accounts has nearly doubled over the same period!  Obviously, we have the markets to thank for that.  But before we celebrate too much, remember what those same markets did to our retirement accounts back in 2008! We know that we have zero control over the markets – but does that necessarily mean we don’t have any control over what happens to our retirement savings?  And is there anything we can do to maybe lock in some of these gains we’ve enjoyed over these last 12 months? 

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I know we’re supposed to put 3-to-6 months worth of living expenses in an emergency fund, but where do we keep that money?  Wouldn’t it earn more in a Roth IRA than in a regular savings account?  Is that a good idea, or would you advise against it?

This may surprise you:  A new report from the Credit Suisse investment bank estimates that nearly 1 of every 10 American adults is now … a millionaire!  That’s great news but I’m sure a lot of those new millionaires are wondering, “Now what?”  How do we make sure we’re still a millionaire (or better) by the time we hit retirement?

Hear Steve discuss how he can help you create income in retirement and never run out of money!  

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