My wife and I are fortunate that we've been able to live off dividends and interest and save whatever money I earn from self-employment for the last 5 years. I'm 60/40 Equity/Fixed in my taxable account. My IRA is 90/10 equity. All the fixed income in the IRA are individual TIPS purchased through Fidelity. The 40% in my taxable account was individual bonds...50% investment grade corporate, 50% muni (split 50% Michigan 50% national), all less than 7 year maturity. My short term was Treasuries < 6 months duration. I've been running this way for about 10 years. Starting last year, I take the money as the bonds mature and put in bond mutual funds. This is a simplification move for me. I will be 69 in January and will take SS at 70. My map for this conversion is pretty simple:
Michigan Muni -FMHTX
Other Muni- VTEI
Corp Bond- VCSH Short term Cash SPRXX & FCNVX...these are Treasury based funds More than you want to know, but risk tolerance and the desire to simplify will continue to evolve as age and personal circumstances intervene. BTW, my mother in law is 96...her taxable and IRA are in FCNVX. I put it there 15 years ago.
I just returned from visiting my MIL who lives in a CCRC in WV. On the continuum of CCRC's, this facility might be at the opposite end of the spectrum from yours as far as location and services. She is 96, legally blind, and debilitated with arthritis. She is dependent on her son for doctor visits, grocery shopping, etc. She lived in another state when she gave up driving after damaging her car in a grocery store parking lot. My wife and I worked very hard to keep from retaining the car as her vision and reactions declined. We were the responsible party for providing her needs after that. Her doctor and other family members were not supportive of this change. Her son with special needs lived with her at that time. More complications. So how would my wife and I respond as we age? We are in a small condo community in the suburbs. Our neighbors generally drive including those on the other side of our duplex who are in their 90's. We have talked about the future but what kind of hand will we be dealt? Man plans and God laughs.
My favorite tax scam is where Private Equity billionaires have lobbied for having a major source of their income taxed at capital gains rates...their carried interest. It is their cut of the 20% fee the PE firm receives during a liquidity event. There is no capital invested as they are not investors. Having worked in many PE owned businesses, my compensation was taxed at regular tax rates. If I had a capital gain, I had to have a basis in the investment. Somehow, PE billionaires get a pass. For more of this story read the link and write your Congressman. https://carta.com/learn/private-funds/management/carried-interest/
I negotiated a unique deal for my wife and I with an advisor where I pay a % of assets fee on only a small portion of my assets. I manage our portfolio today but I review where we are twice a year. As things come up, he has been a good source of advice. We reviewed Roth conversions, titling of accounts, setting up trusts and if I became incapacitated, my wife will have someone we know available. With index funds, it’s hard to go wrong on investments, but there are so many other financial issues that must be addressed, it’s good to have professional help.
I've spent the last 20 years+ involved in private equity owned businesses, generally, in a financial role as part of the ownership group. They were all what I would call "turnarounds." These companies were beat-down, neglected assets that needed attention and focus. You mention all the common elements of due-diligence. I would say your hard work was the difference maker.
My wife and I have all our accounts at Fidelity. They provide tools that allow you to aggregate the accounts for asset allocation purposes. We keep our IRA's at 90% equity (indexes) and 10% TIPS. Our joint taxable account is 60% equity and 40% fixed income. All dividends and interest on the taxable accounts are distributed and used for expenses or reinvested in fixed income. This minimizes the rebalancing efforts and provides cash flow.
The mutual fund is experiencing the same thing throughout the day with its investments. You just do not see those transactions or the bid ask spreads in every trade they do.
Good discussion of your reasoning. There is no single right answer on when to claim SS. Piper provides good resources and I bought his book. Excellent guidance but everyone is different. For me, waiting until 70 maximizes my after tax position. I am 68 and 10 months and still self employed. My wife is 65 and retired. I am fortunate to have significant taxable income and IRA’s. I have been focusing for the last 5 years to convert as much of my traditional IRA to Roth but staying at the top end of my tax bracket. Taking SS would just force me to do less conversions. One more year of this and I will have around 50% converted. Tax diversification for me and my heirs is a goal.
Comments
Explanation=lobbyist wrote the law.
Post: IRS Notice 2025-68 – I’m trying to understand an aspect of the new tax law
Link to comment from December 5, 2025
My wife and I are fortunate that we've been able to live off dividends and interest and save whatever money I earn from self-employment for the last 5 years. I'm 60/40 Equity/Fixed in my taxable account. My IRA is 90/10 equity. All the fixed income in the IRA are individual TIPS purchased through Fidelity. The 40% in my taxable account was individual bonds...50% investment grade corporate, 50% muni (split 50% Michigan 50% national), all less than 7 year maturity. My short term was Treasuries < 6 months duration. I've been running this way for about 10 years. Starting last year, I take the money as the bonds mature and put in bond mutual funds. This is a simplification move for me. I will be 69 in January and will take SS at 70. My map for this conversion is pretty simple: Michigan Muni -FMHTX Other Muni- VTEI Corp Bond- VCSH Short term Cash SPRXX & FCNVX...these are Treasury based funds More than you want to know, but risk tolerance and the desire to simplify will continue to evolve as age and personal circumstances intervene. BTW, my mother in law is 96...her taxable and IRA are in FCNVX. I put it there 15 years ago.
Post: Which bond fund?
Link to comment from December 4, 2025
I just returned from visiting my MIL who lives in a CCRC in WV. On the continuum of CCRC's, this facility might be at the opposite end of the spectrum from yours as far as location and services. She is 96, legally blind, and debilitated with arthritis. She is dependent on her son for doctor visits, grocery shopping, etc. She lived in another state when she gave up driving after damaging her car in a grocery store parking lot. My wife and I worked very hard to keep from retaining the car as her vision and reactions declined. We were the responsible party for providing her needs after that. Her doctor and other family members were not supportive of this change. Her son with special needs lived with her at that time. More complications. So how would my wife and I respond as we age? We are in a small condo community in the suburbs. Our neighbors generally drive including those on the other side of our duplex who are in their 90's. We have talked about the future but what kind of hand will we be dealt? Man plans and God laughs.
Post: What would you do if you couldn’t drive?
Link to comment from November 24, 2025
My favorite tax scam is where Private Equity billionaires have lobbied for having a major source of their income taxed at capital gains rates...their carried interest. It is their cut of the 20% fee the PE firm receives during a liquidity event. There is no capital invested as they are not investors. Having worked in many PE owned businesses, my compensation was taxed at regular tax rates. If I had a capital gain, I had to have a basis in the investment. Somehow, PE billionaires get a pass. For more of this story read the link and write your Congressman. https://carta.com/learn/private-funds/management/carried-interest/
Post: I think billionaires are under appreciated
Link to comment from November 18, 2025
Thank you.
Post: A Day In Philly
Link to comment from November 12, 2025
I negotiated a unique deal for my wife and I with an advisor where I pay a % of assets fee on only a small portion of my assets. I manage our portfolio today but I review where we are twice a year. As things come up, he has been a good source of advice. We reviewed Roth conversions, titling of accounts, setting up trusts and if I became incapacitated, my wife will have someone we know available. With index funds, it’s hard to go wrong on investments, but there are so many other financial issues that must be addressed, it’s good to have professional help.
Post: Does My Sister Need a Financial Advisor?
Link to comment from November 5, 2025
I've spent the last 20 years+ involved in private equity owned businesses, generally, in a financial role as part of the ownership group. They were all what I would call "turnarounds." These companies were beat-down, neglected assets that needed attention and focus. You mention all the common elements of due-diligence. I would say your hard work was the difference maker.
Post: The rules we didn’t follow
Link to comment from October 29, 2025
My wife and I have all our accounts at Fidelity. They provide tools that allow you to aggregate the accounts for asset allocation purposes. We keep our IRA's at 90% equity (indexes) and 10% TIPS. Our joint taxable account is 60% equity and 40% fixed income. All dividends and interest on the taxable accounts are distributed and used for expenses or reinvested in fixed income. This minimizes the rebalancing efforts and provides cash flow.
Post: How do Couples Rebalance with Multiple Accounts
Link to comment from October 29, 2025
The mutual fund is experiencing the same thing throughout the day with its investments. You just do not see those transactions or the bid ask spreads in every trade they do.
Post: Mutual Funds Vs. ETFs Which do you prefer and Why?
Link to comment from October 24, 2025
Good discussion of your reasoning. There is no single right answer on when to claim SS. Piper provides good resources and I bought his book. Excellent guidance but everyone is different. For me, waiting until 70 maximizes my after tax position. I am 68 and 10 months and still self employed. My wife is 65 and retired. I am fortunate to have significant taxable income and IRA’s. I have been focusing for the last 5 years to convert as much of my traditional IRA to Roth but staying at the top end of my tax bracket. Taking SS would just force me to do less conversions. One more year of this and I will have around 50% converted. Tax diversification for me and my heirs is a goal.
Post: Waiting Until We Turn 70
Link to comment from October 23, 2025