I no longer trust my government not to change the rules - like they did with SALT- and so having the money in my hot little hands, to invest and spend as I please feels empowering. Not sure of the total numbers, 500K sounds high. I stopped working at 55 and did lots of Roth conversions. Took SS at 64 and invested most of it. I was always very thrifty and a few severance packages helped but it worked better than I could have dreamed. I feel less vulnerable if they reduce SS, means test it, tax more-whatever. Wish I could do the same with Medicare. We are living in less certain times.
I used to think that way and put 5 and 10 year tips in my IRA & Roth but once could make the case that it makes some sense in a brokerage. 1.) You spread out the income taxes over the life of the bond and avoid a tax bomb. Those of us with ibonds will know what I mean. 2.) In many states, treasury income is tax free while income from retirement accounts comes out as regular income for the state. Depending on your income, that way also be tax free but the ceiling in NJ for that is not all that high. My point is there is no perfect way to avoid the tax man, I now buy tips is all accounts-gotta be right some of the time..
I had a crazy career but it all makes sense in the rear view mirror. Enjoyed your article. You were pretty smart to go to school on those around you, not everyone pays attention to the lessons around them.
At almost 70, am having those conversations w my 93 year old mother. Your article was so honest and helpful. No perfect solution but good planning cant hurt.
great article. In the comments, DrLefy noted he'd found a local fiduciary in Calif. Does anyone know of something like this that is reputable in the Sarasota area? How does one find someone honest, it's such a position of responsibility.
Yes, those buyouts were even worse and I was lucky to be able to take advantage of both the stay and voluntary exit packages that were sometimes offered. The M&A has also terrible for our local communities that rely on people and businesses paying taxes and for all the young people coming out of school hoping for careers in especially HR, IT and finance that got hacked when the companies tried to "squeeze the value" out of these mergers. Suspect AI will be more of the same.
So sad on the human level. I worked at Maxwell House (general Foods) which got taken over by Philip Morris and then Kraft. I then decided Pharm was better and I went to work for Ciba Geigy which ended up "merging" with Sandoz to become Novartis. I decided food was better and escaped to Nabisco-which then got taken over by PM/Kraft. After being independent for a while I joined Organon which then got taken over by Schering Plough and ultimately Merck. I am now getting a tiny pension from Heinz. I was so very lucky and thrived and with the help of a number of voluntary severance packages, able to retire early with retiree medical. Yes, I know, very lucky. I worked with so many wonderful people who were not so lucky and whose lives were turned upside down and in some cases, destroyed. And the business side of things did not pan out in almost all these M&A.
We have umbrellas but I struggle with the "deep pocket" conundrum e.g. the richer the take, the more the incentive to sue baby sue. In the end we decided on the amount to cover about either half our non IRA accounts OR about half the house. Who knows what's right with insurance. We had to argue with the insurance company to raise the amount on our home owners, real estate in our area is rising faster than I could have imagined. THough it's nice that it's done, does not feel like it's increasing happiness
Comments
Amazing article with some sane approaches, thank you for sharing
Post: Taxing Social Security benefits
Link to comment from August 8, 2026
I no longer trust my government not to change the rules - like they did with SALT- and so having the money in my hot little hands, to invest and spend as I please feels empowering. Not sure of the total numbers, 500K sounds high. I stopped working at 55 and did lots of Roth conversions. Took SS at 64 and invested most of it. I was always very thrifty and a few severance packages helped but it worked better than I could have dreamed. I feel less vulnerable if they reduce SS, means test it, tax more-whatever. Wish I could do the same with Medicare. We are living in less certain times.
Post: Inflation, prices, COLAs, retirement and the last 16 years
Link to comment from August 1, 2026
I used to think that way and put 5 and 10 year tips in my IRA & Roth but once could make the case that it makes some sense in a brokerage. 1.) You spread out the income taxes over the life of the bond and avoid a tax bomb. Those of us with ibonds will know what I mean. 2.) In many states, treasury income is tax free while income from retirement accounts comes out as regular income for the state. Depending on your income, that way also be tax free but the ceiling in NJ for that is not all that high. My point is there is no perfect way to avoid the tax man, I now buy tips is all accounts-gotta be right some of the time..
Post: Taking a Loss?
Link to comment from August 1, 2026
I had a crazy career but it all makes sense in the rear view mirror. Enjoyed your article. You were pretty smart to go to school on those around you, not everyone pays attention to the lessons around them.
Post: Lessons Learned Along the Way
Link to comment from June 27, 2026
At almost 70, am having those conversations w my 93 year old mother. Your article was so honest and helpful. No perfect solution but good planning cant hurt.
Post: Close to Everything I Need
Link to comment from June 20, 2026
great article. In the comments, DrLefy noted he'd found a local fiduciary in Calif. Does anyone know of something like this that is reputable in the Sarasota area? How does one find someone honest, it's such a position of responsibility.
Post: The Financial Stress a Simple Document Could Have Prevented
Link to comment from May 30, 2026
Yes, those buyouts were even worse and I was lucky to be able to take advantage of both the stay and voluntary exit packages that were sometimes offered. The M&A has also terrible for our local communities that rely on people and businesses paying taxes and for all the young people coming out of school hoping for careers in especially HR, IT and finance that got hacked when the companies tried to "squeeze the value" out of these mergers. Suspect AI will be more of the same.
Post: How Deals Hurt Returns
Link to comment from April 5, 2026
So sad on the human level. I worked at Maxwell House (general Foods) which got taken over by Philip Morris and then Kraft. I then decided Pharm was better and I went to work for Ciba Geigy which ended up "merging" with Sandoz to become Novartis. I decided food was better and escaped to Nabisco-which then got taken over by PM/Kraft. After being independent for a while I joined Organon which then got taken over by Schering Plough and ultimately Merck. I am now getting a tiny pension from Heinz. I was so very lucky and thrived and with the help of a number of voluntary severance packages, able to retire early with retiree medical. Yes, I know, very lucky. I worked with so many wonderful people who were not so lucky and whose lives were turned upside down and in some cases, destroyed. And the business side of things did not pan out in almost all these M&A.
Post: How Deals Hurt Returns
Link to comment from April 4, 2026
And vig
Post: Sector Fund by Stealth
Link to comment from March 7, 2026
We have umbrellas but I struggle with the "deep pocket" conundrum e.g. the richer the take, the more the incentive to sue baby sue. In the end we decided on the amount to cover about either half our non IRA accounts OR about half the house. Who knows what's right with insurance. We had to argue with the insurance company to raise the amount on our home owners, real estate in our area is rising faster than I could have imagined. THough it's nice that it's done, does not feel like it's increasing happiness
Post: Financial Happiness
Link to comment from January 24, 2026