In one of his comedy routines, Chris Rock drops a funny and I assume true story about bullies, most notably in his daughter’s private school. He says, “. . .bullies do half the work. Teachers do the other half, but it’s the bully half that you’ll actually use in the real world.” When the principal assured him there …
Another obvious financial myth, this title “Just Ignore Mail from the IRS” is true only if you want your life to become more difficult and expensive. In one of dozens newsletters I subscribe to, this one entitled IRS Tax tips provides a list of what To Do and Not To Do with IRS correspondence. (By …
I don’t believe the title of this blog is true, any more than the Internet was ever just a fad. Crypto and and hard & soft technology underlying it is simply too deep, complex, varied and vast to just disappear. This article by Gritt Trakulhoon (love that name) is the most realistic, reasoned take I’ve …
There’s a lot going on in the world right now. I thought this was going to be about the $3.5 trillion budget deal or what to do with any child tax credits that may be heading your way. But then global markets jolted on fears of new viral variants. Is the sky actually falling? Could …
The title of this blog is indeed a solid myth. Before I project asset growth and income flow in Retirement Analyzer I have analyzed the client’s current portfolio and compared it to my recommended allocation. To their disappointment, I routinely reduce the assumed rate of return (ROR) by half while keeping the same volatility. So, for example, …
It Is Reasonable To Expect 8-12% Market Returns Over The Next Ten Years Read More »
Yes you can! Another easily disproved myth. In their study “Why Annuities Work Like a License to Spend” David Blanchett and Michael Finke* conclude:. . .every $1 of assets converted to guaranteed income will result in twice the equivalent spending compared to money left invested in a portfolio. The size of the effect is large enough …
You Can’t Spend More Than 4% of Your Retirement Savings Without Going Broke Read More »
The title of this blog post is, in my opinion, a solid myth. Good proof of that are recent bills in Congress intending to end binding arbitration because, in general it is: Unfair. The process is heavily biased in the industry’s favor Which is probably why the Securities Industry and Financial Markets Association (SIFMA) is against reforms. …
The truth of this blog heading depends, of course, on the health and wealth of the individual. But it is still rarely true. In the plans I’ve developed, Taxes usually exceed projected health care costs 3 to 1. I think a lot of health care cost calculators are unjustifiably alarmist for the purpose of selling insurance. …
MYTH: Healthcare Will Be Your Biggest Retirement Expense Read More »
As David Lenok points out in his excellent article, [1] the fact that crypto is called a “currency” confuses people. Normally, if you take cash out of your savings account that isn’t a taxable event. However, crypto currencies like Bitcoin and Ether are not considered currencies by IRS. They are in effect commodities and subject …
Just for the sake of variety, this post is NOT a myth. We all need to be aware of and successfully discourage prejudice, not only by others but especially by ourselves. None of us is innocent. “The problem with the world is that the intelligent people are full of doubts, while the [rest] are full …