I think this man has found the secret to a successful retirement. Like Jerry, We live off of social security and an annuity I purchased with retirement funds. I try to invest in what I think are the best investments. I have never taken money out of the market.
One of the problems with DOGE is that it is not at all transparent. It has saved billions of dollars, but is it from contracts that were already cancelled or from laying off new hires which creates massive problems in a few years? Also, there is that catch phrase "waste, fraud, abuse". Which is it? Anyone prosecuted yet? DOGE should be a continuous process. Every administration should be evaluating all programs. Waste is in the eyes of the beholder. Is basic research waste because it does not produce a consumer product? Some of it turns out that way, but you never know.
I have quite a bit in money markets but have been buying municipal bonds on a dip (mostly 5 - 10 year). Everything is going to be volatile so long as policies are not consistent and rapidly changing. This is not a good market to invest in. Therefore mm and medium term municipals. I maintain investments in dividend paying and dividend increasing stocks. You might look at inflation adjusted bonds.
Most of us invest when we have the money. All things being equal, the more time in the market usually results in greater returns. So, lump sum investment would seem better. That being said, if I like a stock and think it is undervalued I tend to invest a little more when the price goes down.
We were fortunate enough to have helped our kids. We paid for college (although both worked) but not for graduate school. We helped with mortgages with low cost loans, but with contracts and mortgage agreements. This was designed to help them understand business. We have had very successful kids, who have always paid their bills and they have always had the security that we had their back. Some of our children's same aged kids were surprised that we had written financial agreements. It wasn't about trust but that we wanted them to understand the process, debt, and credit.
I look at a little differently. When I retired, I got social security and bought an annuity (my company had good rates) which pays for 15 years at a set rate. Basically, I treat these investments as bond funds. They are basically risk free income. As time has passed, individual bonds that I have owned in my portfolio have been called and the percentage of stocks in the portfolio has risen. When interest rates on bonds were low, the stock market was clearly the place to be. I was mostly invested in stocks, but with a strong position in cash. As interest rates have risen I have started investing in tax free bonds and CDs. I mostly buy dividend paying stocks, so if the stock market goes down, I have cash to buy more stocks. I really don't have to worry about income for about 10 years (at which point I may be too old to care much). I don't really worry about balancing a portfolio, just try to find the investment that will give me the better return over time with limited risk.
I have to admit that I get bummed about the IRMAA premium. Part of my issue is that I really don't earn that much money, but I am required to take RMD. Both my wife and I are avid savers and worked fairly late (I retired at 71 and she is still working at 75). So the government requires me to take money out of retirement (changing largely capital gains to income) that I don't really need so that I can pay higher tax rates than Warren Buffett and pay a premium for health insurance that I hardly use. Saving and staying healthy are better than the alternative, but it is not a great deal from a taxing standpoint. In retrospect, I should have transferred more money to a Roth when I was younger, but with two incomes, I always hated to pay more taxes. All in all, I don't mind paying to help others, but the required nature of it makes me feel that I am living to pay taxes.
Comments
I think this man has found the secret to a successful retirement. Like Jerry, We live off of social security and an annuity I purchased with retirement funds. I try to invest in what I think are the best investments. I have never taken money out of the market.
Post: Ask Me a Tough One
Link to comment from April 20, 2025
One of the problems with DOGE is that it is not at all transparent. It has saved billions of dollars, but is it from contracts that were already cancelled or from laying off new hires which creates massive problems in a few years? Also, there is that catch phrase "waste, fraud, abuse". Which is it? Anyone prosecuted yet? DOGE should be a continuous process. Every administration should be evaluating all programs. Waste is in the eyes of the beholder. Is basic research waste because it does not produce a consumer product? Some of it turns out that way, but you never know.
Post: The great uninformed and misinformed population worries Quinn
Link to comment from April 20, 2025
I have quite a bit in money markets but have been buying municipal bonds on a dip (mostly 5 - 10 year). Everything is going to be volatile so long as policies are not consistent and rapidly changing. This is not a good market to invest in. Therefore mm and medium term municipals. I maintain investments in dividend paying and dividend increasing stocks. You might look at inflation adjusted bonds.
Post: Buying Treasury Bond ETFs vs. MM Funds in this Moment
Link to comment from April 20, 2025
Most of us invest when we have the money. All things being equal, the more time in the market usually results in greater returns. So, lump sum investment would seem better. That being said, if I like a stock and think it is undervalued I tend to invest a little more when the price goes down.
Post: Dollar Averaging
Link to comment from October 12, 2024
We were fortunate enough to have helped our kids. We paid for college (although both worked) but not for graduate school. We helped with mortgages with low cost loans, but with contracts and mortgage agreements. This was designed to help them understand business. We have had very successful kids, who have always paid their bills and they have always had the security that we had their back. Some of our children's same aged kids were surprised that we had written financial agreements. It wasn't about trust but that we wanted them to understand the process, debt, and credit.
Post: How much financial help should parents give their children?
Link to comment from July 9, 2023
I look at a little differently. When I retired, I got social security and bought an annuity (my company had good rates) which pays for 15 years at a set rate. Basically, I treat these investments as bond funds. They are basically risk free income. As time has passed, individual bonds that I have owned in my portfolio have been called and the percentage of stocks in the portfolio has risen. When interest rates on bonds were low, the stock market was clearly the place to be. I was mostly invested in stocks, but with a strong position in cash. As interest rates have risen I have started investing in tax free bonds and CDs. I mostly buy dividend paying stocks, so if the stock market goes down, I have cash to buy more stocks. I really don't have to worry about income for about 10 years (at which point I may be too old to care much). I don't really worry about balancing a portfolio, just try to find the investment that will give me the better return over time with limited risk.
Post: A Dangerous Moment
Link to comment from June 24, 2023
I have to admit that I get bummed about the IRMAA premium. Part of my issue is that I really don't earn that much money, but I am required to take RMD. Both my wife and I are avid savers and worked fairly late (I retired at 71 and she is still working at 75). So the government requires me to take money out of retirement (changing largely capital gains to income) that I don't really need so that I can pay higher tax rates than Warren Buffett and pay a premium for health insurance that I hardly use. Saving and staying healthy are better than the alternative, but it is not a great deal from a taxing standpoint. In retrospect, I should have transferred more money to a Roth when I was younger, but with two incomes, I always hated to pay more taxes. All in all, I don't mind paying to help others, but the required nature of it makes me feel that I am living to pay taxes.
Post: Angry at IRMAA
Link to comment from May 29, 2023