When blue states and cities continue to run massive pension deficits—and do nothing to ease the pressure of meeting over aggressive return expectations—you can see the destruction of reverse compounding. And no one wants to do anything about it. Your Retirement Life: Let the Slow and Steady Be Your Way of LIFE When the average loss is 8%, it’s bad. And that’s not including private equity numbers, which lag by a quarter and aren’t included in this latest fiscal year. There is no way out of this without either a) higher taxes or b) fewer services. Biden Wants to Make the IRS Great … [Read more...]

OK, let’s get right into this. I’m not a huge fan of goals when it comes to money. I don’t like the pressure a goal can have on investors trying to reach a certain “number.” “Well, if we can make it to $2 million, we’ll be all set. That’s our goal,” says a 55-year-old with less than a million in savings. That type of goal, in his most important earnings years—the last ten before retirement—is a loaded gun. The pressure to push, push, push and reach, reach, reach for the “goal” borders on reckless. It’s why Your Survival Guy eschews financial engines where you plug in your financial … [Read more...]

Years ago, Your Survival Guy was at a cocktail party in Newport. (Yes, it happens. I don’t live in a cave.) This was at a time when markets were in freefall. A fellow guest asked me about the markets and how busy I must be talking with clients. My response, like it always is, was “My phone doesn’t ring,” Time and again, investors are surprised when markets fall. My phone doesn’t ring because I’m already in touch with my clients on a regular basis. And because you know me from Your Survival Guy, you know that I work to help you keep what you make. I don’t need to sell you on how to become … [Read more...]