I just returned from a six-day silent retreat. What in the world could that have to do with retirement and financial life?  Maybe nothing or maybe a lot.  I’ve been going on silent retreats for more than 20 years, ever since I became a minister and they were part of my spiritual and professional development. These days in my semi-retired lifestyle they are still part of both.
One of my goals for the retreat was to write a draft article about moving to California for Humble Dollar.

Twenty years ago I would not have written this, but I have grown less naive.
Consider human nature…when thinking about paying for healthcare and generating retirement income
We have tried countless schemes to manage health care costs, and expand coverage.  Similarly we provide incentives to get people to save for their retirement. The evidence shows only modest progress, but nothing has really solved the basic problems. 
We humans are just short-term thinkers.
Over 20 million Americans still have no health insurance.

I’ve been doing a lot of reading on Roth conversions lately, and I’m seriously considering pulling the trigger on one this year. But before I make any moves, I wanted to get some feedback from those of you who have been through the process.
A little background: I’m in my mid-50s, still working, and in a relatively high tax bracket. I have a mix of retirement accounts – mostly in a traditional IRA and a 401(k).

I came across an interesting tax return the other day while volunteering at a local AARP TaxAide center. This is my 7th year doing free tax returns and I’m still learning. In this case, I didn’t prepare the return; I was the quality reviewer and did the outtake with the client. The client was a retired single woman in her mid-70s. Her income was modest and she didn’t have any fancy or complicated investments. What made her case interesting was her near obsession with making sure that she paid zero tax for the year,

Time for a pop quiz:

For those still working, what do you imagine your retirement will be like?
For those no longer employed, does your retirement match your earlier expectations?

This is not a political post, but the basis is a political action. Friday, Feb. 28, was the so-called Nationwide Economic Blackout. My wife and I decided to participate. For us, this wasn’t about specific retailers. We simply made no discretionary (or mandatory) purchases that day. It was not a difficult commitment.
Thinking about this over the weekend, I realized that the result of that day wasn’t anything special for us. There are many days that we spend absolutely nothing.

Last month I did my best to analyze investments to the market as an alternative to payroll taxes for Social Security. My conclusion was that the payroll taxes were worth it, though some readers respectfully disagreed.
But what if I could go back in time for a do-over. What if at age 16 I began to invest an amount into the market that was equal to and in addition to the payroll tax deducted from my pay?

THE U.S. STOCK MARKET has historically delivered similar returns under both Democrat and Republican administrations. For that reason, my view is that investors shouldn’t worry too much about who occupies the White House, and I tend to stay away from investment discussions that involve politics.
But sometimes, the news coming out of Washington dominates the headlines in a way that can’t be ignored. Such is the case today. Moreover, with the stock market faltering recently,

WHEN I STARTED writing about personal finance in the late 1980s, my focus was on giving “actionable” money advice. Here, at the end of my career, I’m more interested in offering thoughts that’ll help folks with all areas of their life, financial and otherwise.
I’m not sure how many articles I have left in me. Fingers crossed, it’ll be many more than my current diagnosis suggests. But whatever the case, here are four thoughts that I’d like readers to remember:
1.

CAUTION: Read the following with the understanding there are exceptions. There are people who through no fault of their own reach old age in poor financial shape, who were overwhelmed with misfortune and simply had little chance of success in their later years.
THIS IS ABOUT THE MAJORITY of the complaining over 65 population who are in the place they are, not from misfortune, but from inaction, poor decisions and a tendency to live in the moment and ignore the future. 

If we want to shrink the federal government budget deficit, lower inflation and fix Social Security, there’s a simple solution: We need to nudge folks to stay in the workforce for longer.
The more people who work, the more goods and services the economy will produce. That means demand is less likely to outstrip supply, pushing consumer prices higher. It should also mean more income and payroll taxes, helping to fund government programs.
By contrast, the solutions for inflation and government deficits that are usually discussed—raising income taxes,

I have always thought that words matter.  To this end, I have followed a few financial writers whom I have admired, and whose advice I trust.  Each one has a singular quality:  one was a brilliant market  analyst, one had an uncommon knowledge of investing, and another a well known market strategist.  All were trusted providers of market analysis to the world’s  most well known institutional investors.
I found one person who is the whole package. 

I have seen countless articles on the 4% rule, which essentially states that withdrawing 4% annually from a retirement portfolio (adjusted for inflation) provides a high probability that funds will last for at least 30 years. Correct?
But I have never encountered a 4% article that factors in the reality that a great number of us enter a presumptive retirement of 30 years with a spouse or partner. 
I assume a couple likely needs less than 2x the portfolio of a single person.

Think about the four or five happiest retirees you know. Do they have anything in common? For instance, they might share some of these attributes:

Enough wealth
Sufficient monthly income from a pension, income annuities and Social Security
Companionship
Friends and family nearby
Good health
Strong faith
Activities that give them a sense of purpose

Or is it simply that these folks are innately happy people?

ONE OF THE PERILS of being a HumbleDollar contributor is that you sometimes get hit up for advice that you aren’t necessarily qualified to give.
Such was the case recently when I was having breakfast with an old buddy. The topic turned to money and investments. Joe and I have been good friends since the days when we played on the high school basketball team. We try to get together every month or so to catch up and reminisce about old times.