Retirement calculators are powerful tools when used properly, but they are weapons of mass deception when used incorrectly. In episode #10 of the Financial Mentor podcast, Darrow Kirkpatrick and I reveal the tricks and traps to using retirement calculators right. This topic is much bigger than just retirement planning. This is about engineering your way to wealth and using retirement calculators as a handy tool to make the math easy. There are many nuances and little-known creative strategies that can help you achieve financial security much earlier than you ever imagined possible. And there are many potholes you must avoid so you don’t make foolish decisions…
FM 009: How To Convert Your Volatile Investment Portfolio Into Automatic Income With Wade Pfau
How do you convert a volatile portfolio into a stable, automatic income stream? After all, your investment portfolio goes up and down like a roller coaster, but your retirement spending requires a reliable income that you will never outlive. Traditional financial planning provides an oversimplified answer in the 4% Rule, but the latest research into safe withdrawal rates has revealed surprisingly different conclusions that can dramatically impact how you plan your retirement savings strategy…
FM 001: The Truth About Retirement Income & Dave Ramsey’s Shocking ROI and Safe Withdrawal Rate Assumptions with Wade Pfau
In this first episode of the Financial Mentor podcast, professor Wade Pfau reveals the truth about retirement income and investment return assumptions so you can plan your financial future with confidence. All research and facts are contrasted with Dave Ramsey’s unsupportable claims that you can realistically expect 12% investment returns and an 8% safe withdrawal rate in retirement. The result is deep knowledge about sound retirement planning strategy practices so you can build your financial security with confidence and peace of mind…
Retirement Planning Is Dead
Traditional retirement planning is dead. It’s an old world model in need of a major facelift. The problem is baked into how the the system is designed—it’s not realistic. The skills and knowledge required to execute a traditional retirement plan are beyond most worker’s abilities. But there is an alternative…
The Smart Alternative To Retirement Planning
It’s so “old-skool” to work like a dog for 40 years scrimping and saving so you can retire and do nothing of substance for the remaining 30 years. That’s no prescription for happiness. It makes no sense. Increasing longevity has changed every aspect of retirement planning – from asset allocation to life fulfillment and everything in between. It is time to retire the word “retirement” and redefine our lives toward fulfillment – which means…
Retirement Planning Myths Revealed – 2 “Must Know” Formulas
Retirement planning isn’t the precise science you would like it be. Uncover the myths that risk undermining your financial security, and learn the two simple formulas that can make order out of all the confusion…
Is It Safe To Withdraw 4% From Retirement Savings?
How much can you withdraw from retirement savings each year without jeopardizing your financial security? Conversely, how much money do you need to retire so that you can afford your current level of spending? In this post I overturn the conventional rules of thumb and offer you another viewpoint…
Retirement Planning For Two – Overcoming The Challenges
This week in the “Ask Todd” section of web site Kathleen wanted to know how to resolve the challenges inherent in using a single retirement calculator to plan retirement for two people. Should she combine both their numbers into one or run two separate retirement plans and add them together? Surprisingly, my answer is “none of the above” because…
Retirement Savings Statistics Are Ugly
I’m always amazed when I see the retirement savings statistics. It’s a scary picture. A recent newsletter from professor Robert Shiller (Yale University and “Irrational Exuberance” infamy) provided some amazing stats showing a fast approaching disaster in retirement planning and what you must do to not be part of the problem…
Retirement Life Expectancy – Yikes!
How does rising longevity and the “age of biology” affect retirement planning? Denis, a reader with a background in biology and genetics, posts this question: “… my parents may live to 80-90 years after retiring in their 60s but my siblings and I are probably going to live 120+ years and work well into our 70s. This completely tranforms the savings/retirement equation. I was curious to know how you factor that in to retirement planning…”
