Steve Brown

Comments:

• The article starts with two reasons to build your own portfolio mix vs a TDF. I have a third. When the time comes to start drawing funds from your stash, you'll be doing so on a prorata basis from each asset class your TDF holds. If you decide you want to withdraw only from your cash because the markets have turned down, you can't.

  Post: Step 5: Build Your Own

  Link to comment from April 3, 2023

• I have some free advice for anyone considering annuities. Interest rates play a big part in the pricing of annuities, and should therefore not be purchased during a period of historically low rates, as we saw for a long time before the fed began their current battle against inflation. I'd say the floor should be when prevailing rates are around the historical average of 3-3.5% +1% before I'd make a purchase. On the other hand, if rates surge to above the historical return on equities, I'd start buying bonds and annuities with both hands. Either way, it may make sense to stagger purchases to spread your interest rate/inflation risk.

  Post: Jonathan’s Retirement

  Link to comment from February 20, 2023

• This is in line with one of my favorite quotes. It is sometimes attibuted to, among others, General Gharles de Gaulle. "The graveyards are full of indispensable men."

  Post: Changed by the Trip

  Link to comment from July 22, 2022

• @Elizabeth Adams It sounds okay to me, but I wonder if it might be possible for you to run through the cash in your portfolio before the equity portion recovers to the point of your net worth clawing its way back to the 90% point. It's worked easily in the last 5 years, but you may want to check more infamous periods of investing history (20s, 00s, for example).

  Post: Containing the Issue

  Link to comment from October 1, 2021

• Thank you for this discussion on taxes. It's not about minimizing taxes in any given year. It's about paying the lowest taxes over the long haul. In my situation, a Roth was not always available to me, especially in my 401k. After my divorce, I needed to minimize all of my expenses, including taxes. Now, the situation has changed. Tax rates have gone down, and I'm converting as much to Roth as possible, while also drawing on traditional assets. Then, when all of my income streams have started and it is time to draw RMDs, I hope not to be taxed out the whazoo just because my income is far more than I need. Makes me wish I'd heard this advice earlier. The lesson: diversify not only your investments, but also your taxability.

  Post: Taxes in Retirement

  Link to comment from August 24, 2021