I follow what the author says. Where you put your investments is very important.
Our equities and ETFs are in brokerage accounts. The fixed income part of our asset allocation is all in my IRA. When working I put my savings in tax deferred rather than Roth accounts (wasn’t available early on in lower earning days). I don’t think we qualified for Roths anyway because they had income limits.
The tax savings was great because of the higher tax bracket I was in. Now that I’m retired I’m in a much lower tax bracket so it turned out well. Converting to Roth accounts now would create too much of a tax consequence. The time to do it would have been after I retired and put off SS,which I did not do. I took it at FRA at 66.
In hindsight, I probably should have waited until age 70 and converted some IRA to Roth accounts. Our income is 2 SS checks and RMDs, along with capital gains (very moderate) generated from the taxable account, This is more than enough to pay our bills. We planned it so that we have no fixed bills other than our real estate tax. No mortgage, no auto loans, etc.
We are nowhere near the $212k IRMAA limit, which will be raised to $218k in 2026.
The taxable IRA is quite large, but we only take out the RMD requirement. When we pass, our kids will have to pay taxes on the inherited IRA, but our taxable trust accounts are much larger and all the gains will be tax free to them. In an ideal world they would be inheriting a Roth with no taxes.
To each his own. Seems like you found what makes you happy. But that lifestyle seems like a lot of work to me. We retired and moved to a bigger house back up north. We have lots of cherished things that we have good memories about. We don’t keep a lot of junk but we also don’t worry about being minimalists. We are ‘content’, even though we do not have little.
Agree about Florida. It is no longer the inexpensive place to live. There are cheaper places, but you wouldn’t live in them anywhere else, so why there?Homeowners insurance is costly if you can get it. Auto insurance is extremely expensive as well. From May to October the heat and humidity is unbearable, even on the coasts. If you like cockroaches and fire ants, there are plenty of them there. Not only is traffic bad, but try to get into a restaurant in season. Get there before 5pm or after 8:30 to eat.
In Massachusetts: With the help of a computer algorithm, the state’s biggest health insurer says it will scrutinize doctors who frequently bill it for the most expensive patient visits. It will then unilaterally cut payments to physicians it concludes charged too much.
Targeting what it described as a small percentage of “outliers,”blue cross blue shield plans to roll out a new program around Nov. 3. The insurer says health care costs at their fastest rate in more than 20 years and that it has a duty to help control them for its 3 million members.
But the move has angered some doctors, particularly those who often see older patients in need of more care and time. They say Blue Cross’s initiative fails to recognize a simple fact of medicine: Patients and treatments don’t fit neatly into categories used by insurers and software developers.
The dispute represents another front in the battle over spiraling health care costs and who — insurers, providers, or patients — should bear the brunt of efforts to control them.
Wrong again Dick. The healthcare system is a problem if you cannot get timely treatment. You can be in great health, but incur an injury. It is because of the health care system we have. My doctors have told me their hospitals (biggest and best in Boston) cannot afford to hire more doctors, leading to big delays.
Dick, just because Connie gets great timely care doesn’t make you are right. Unlike you, many Americans do not have the ability to pay ‘one way or the other’. I live near Boston, and I cannot get a general practitioner from the biggest hospital system we have here. Many appointments are booked out months in advance over many medical specialties. So, regarding quality, if you have to wait months to see a podiatrist for foot pain, that is a quality issue.
Maybe your second statement about special needs makes sense, but not you first one where you reference abundance of hospitals. The problem is that even with all this abundance, you still are relying on approval for procedures by actuaries, not doctors. Medicare Advantage can cost more for those with serious illnesses due to higher out-of-pocket costs, network restrictions, and prior authorization requirements. While premiums are not higher based on health, costs increase when you need more care, such as frequent specialist visits, hospital stays, or certain medications, which plans may have higher copayments or coinsurance for.
It has nothing to do with being a patriot. The quote ‘patriots’ running the government are getting donations for their campaigns from insurance companies to continue the status quo. So much for patriotism. The also do not care about the federal deficit based on their recent actions
Not overstated at all. A doctor should make the decisions, not someone who is paid to increase profits for insurance companies. I’m surprised you say this
I’ve used Fidelity, Schwab and Vanguard. I manage my own money, and I moved everything to Vanguard years ago because I like their products. I own 2 Schwab ETFs, which I transferred to VG, and have some stocks and VG ETFs. I’ve done RMDs and QCDs at VG with no problem. We kept our brokerage account at Fidelity and keep money in their core MM to pay our bills. My wife handles that and uses Billpay with no problems. I oversee the investments at VG. I think if you are a do it yourselfer VG is just as good as the others. They also offer advisors, who I don’t use. I can buy anything at VG with no trading fees. When I’ve taken my RMDs they put the money in my taxable brokerage account with no problems. If you want to interact with customer service or a rep frequently and are not a do it yourselfer, maybe Fidelity or Schwab is better, although Schwab does offer advisors services. I used to work as a financial rep at a Fidelity Investor Center, and we were mostly sales people with the requisite licenses. We were were not investment experts. I know Fidelity offers advisor services, but if you are dealing with a rep who simply goes over your portfolio and. gives you advice or suggestions, that person is not an investment advisor.
Comments
I follow what the author says. Where you put your investments is very important. Our equities and ETFs are in brokerage accounts. The fixed income part of our asset allocation is all in my IRA. When working I put my savings in tax deferred rather than Roth accounts (wasn’t available early on in lower earning days). I don’t think we qualified for Roths anyway because they had income limits. The tax savings was great because of the higher tax bracket I was in. Now that I’m retired I’m in a much lower tax bracket so it turned out well. Converting to Roth accounts now would create too much of a tax consequence. The time to do it would have been after I retired and put off SS,which I did not do. I took it at FRA at 66. In hindsight, I probably should have waited until age 70 and converted some IRA to Roth accounts. Our income is 2 SS checks and RMDs, along with capital gains (very moderate) generated from the taxable account, This is more than enough to pay our bills. We planned it so that we have no fixed bills other than our real estate tax. No mortgage, no auto loans, etc. We are nowhere near the $212k IRMAA limit, which will be raised to $218k in 2026. The taxable IRA is quite large, but we only take out the RMD requirement. When we pass, our kids will have to pay taxes on the inherited IRA, but our taxable trust accounts are much larger and all the gains will be tax free to them. In an ideal world they would be inheriting a Roth with no taxes.
Post: Asset Location Decisions
Link to comment from November 29, 2025
To each his own. Seems like you found what makes you happy. But that lifestyle seems like a lot of work to me. We retired and moved to a bigger house back up north. We have lots of cherished things that we have good memories about. We don’t keep a lot of junk but we also don’t worry about being minimalists. We are ‘content’, even though we do not have little.
Post: Frugality, Minimalism, and Aligning Values
Link to comment from November 15, 2025
Agree about Florida. It is no longer the inexpensive place to live. There are cheaper places, but you wouldn’t live in them anywhere else, so why there?Homeowners insurance is costly if you can get it. Auto insurance is extremely expensive as well. From May to October the heat and humidity is unbearable, even on the coasts. If you like cockroaches and fire ants, there are plenty of them there. Not only is traffic bad, but try to get into a restaurant in season. Get there before 5pm or after 8:30 to eat.
Post: Coastal Retirement? Have You Considered These Costs?
Link to comment from November 1, 2025
In Massachusetts: With the help of a computer algorithm, the state’s biggest health insurer says it will scrutinize doctors who frequently bill it for the most expensive patient visits. It will then unilaterally cut payments to physicians it concludes charged too much. Targeting what it described as a small percentage of “outliers,” blue cross blue shield plans to roll out a new program around Nov. 3. The insurer says health care costs at their fastest rate in more than 20 years and that it has a duty to help control them for its 3 million members. But the move has angered some doctors, particularly those who often see older patients in need of more care and time. They say Blue Cross’s initiative fails to recognize a simple fact of medicine: Patients and treatments don’t fit neatly into categories used by insurers and software developers. The dispute represents another front in the battle over spiraling health care costs and who — insurers, providers, or patients — should bear the brunt of efforts to control them.
Post: Don’t make the wrong Medicare decision
Link to comment from October 26, 2025
Wrong again Dick. The healthcare system is a problem if you cannot get timely treatment. You can be in great health, but incur an injury. It is because of the health care system we have. My doctors have told me their hospitals (biggest and best in Boston) cannot afford to hire more doctors, leading to big delays.
Post: Don’t make the wrong Medicare decision
Link to comment from October 26, 2025
Dick, just because Connie gets great timely care doesn’t make you are right. Unlike you, many Americans do not have the ability to pay ‘one way or the other’. I live near Boston, and I cannot get a general practitioner from the biggest hospital system we have here. Many appointments are booked out months in advance over many medical specialties. So, regarding quality, if you have to wait months to see a podiatrist for foot pain, that is a quality issue.
Post: Don’t make the wrong Medicare decision
Link to comment from October 26, 2025
Maybe your second statement about special needs makes sense, but not you first one where you reference abundance of hospitals. The problem is that even with all this abundance, you still are relying on approval for procedures by actuaries, not doctors. Medicare Advantage can cost more for those with serious illnesses due to higher out-of-pocket costs, network restrictions, and prior authorization requirements. While premiums are not higher based on health, costs increase when you need more care, such as frequent specialist visits, hospital stays, or certain medications, which plans may have higher copayments or coinsurance for.
Post: Don’t make the wrong Medicare decision
Link to comment from October 26, 2025
It has nothing to do with being a patriot. The quote ‘patriots’ running the government are getting donations for their campaigns from insurance companies to continue the status quo. So much for patriotism. The also do not care about the federal deficit based on their recent actions
Post: Don’t make the wrong Medicare decision
Link to comment from October 26, 2025
Not overstated at all. A doctor should make the decisions, not someone who is paid to increase profits for insurance companies. I’m surprised you say this
Post: Don’t make the wrong Medicare decision
Link to comment from October 26, 2025
I’ve used Fidelity, Schwab and Vanguard. I manage my own money, and I moved everything to Vanguard years ago because I like their products. I own 2 Schwab ETFs, which I transferred to VG, and have some stocks and VG ETFs. I’ve done RMDs and QCDs at VG with no problem. We kept our brokerage account at Fidelity and keep money in their core MM to pay our bills. My wife handles that and uses Billpay with no problems. I oversee the investments at VG. I think if you are a do it yourselfer VG is just as good as the others. They also offer advisors, who I don’t use. I can buy anything at VG with no trading fees. When I’ve taken my RMDs they put the money in my taxable brokerage account with no problems. If you want to interact with customer service or a rep frequently and are not a do it yourselfer, maybe Fidelity or Schwab is better, although Schwab does offer advisors services. I used to work as a financial rep at a Fidelity Investor Center, and we were mostly sales people with the requisite licenses. We were were not investment experts. I know Fidelity offers advisor services, but if you are dealing with a rep who simply goes over your portfolio and. gives you advice or suggestions, that person is not an investment advisor.
Post: Disappointed (and annoyed) with Vanguard.
Link to comment from October 25, 2025