Helpful Articles
Planning,
Post Retirement
These are articles that were written to help develop ideas for journalists that work for The Wall Street Journal, Business Week, Kiplinger’s, Smart Money, AARP, newspapers, financial web sites, etc. They’ve been used as a source of quotes for these publications.
Pay off our mortgage at retirement? There are many things to consider in this decision. This article may help you reach a more objective decision.
The Simplest Retirement Plan for Retirees. Some people are computer challenged and/or don't have Microsoft Excel which is the engine for the computer programs on this site. Here is a simple planning method that requires only a few steps with a hand calculator to help retirees know how much they can afford to spend from retirement income consisting of Social Security, a pension, taxable (or tax-exempt) investments, deferred-tax investments such as an IRA, and a house. (It also considers debts.) This affordable spending amount generally will increase each year to help compensate for inflation and ensure that investments last a lifetime.
An Appeal for Better
Planning. Most modern
planning methods, including those using
Retirement Risk. Financial analysts focus on the risk of security returns when, in fact, retirees often face things with much greater risk that demand more attention than they get in conventional plans, even plans developed by professionals in the field.
Are You Planning on Living to 100? This article discusses some of the ways to have a better physical and financial life during retirement. It stresses the
importance of physical and financial planning and the fact that you are likely to underestimate how long you will live.
Retirees Need Conservative Planning (PDF File)*. Most planning forecasts ignore the costs of owning securities, the need for reserves, possibilities of longevity, and ignore "reverse" dollar-cost-averaging for retirees. Most people know about the benefits of dollar-cost-averaging that comes from making regular savings deposits. This article helps quantify the reverse-dollar-cost-averaging which comes from regular withdrawals.
Financial Planners Have a
For Retirees Only. The article explores different methods used by retirees to determine how much they can spend. These include: spend just dividends and interest, withdraw the same percentage from funds every year, buy an immediate annuity, use some simple tailored formulas, use financial payment equations like a professional, use J.K. Lasser’s Your Winning Retirement Plan, or try a comprehensive computer plan.
Bad Assumptions (PDF File)* . This article shows what would have happened if a person retired in 1965 and had used the advice of several of today’s current planning professionals. They should know better.
Put Your Retirement Planning on Autopilot! (PDF File) *. The financial industry is completely oblivious of modern control theory that can be an immense help in retirement planning. It is analogous to an airplane autopilot that helps guide the airplane to a smoother flight through gusty air, only in retirement we’re trying to guide the retiree through gusty market conditions. The article shows the benefits of the simplest kind of autopilot.