Whether Gold Prices Are Up or Down, You Should Stay Away
Along with China and the potential implications of rising interest rates, many stories have come out this week heralding the fall of gold and the new world we now live in as a result. It seems only a few years ago, we were simply deluged by articles about the merits of gold, the frailties of fiat […]
Bucket of Cold Water Dumped on this Investing Strategy
Poor Greece. Not even the Greek alphabet has been given safe quarter these past weeks. Perhaps it is the ever increasing popularity of ETF strategies and the continuing underwhelming performance of active managers, but one thing is clear if you are trying to sell an investment product: it is best to couch it as an […]
Can Indexing Become Too Big?
This is an issue that comes up as a last ditch effort to attempt to sway the active/passive argument in the active direction. It’s as if after a wave of articles that show the shortcomings of trying to outguess the markets an editor stands up and announces to the staff: “Folks, we need something ominous […]
Taking the Risks That Make Sense
More risk does not mean more return, but more return follows more risk. Which risks make sense for you?
Safe Withdrawal Rates for Retirement and the Trinity Study
One of the classic studies in the field of financial and retirement planning is the Trinity Study.
How Asset Location Helps Your Investments Flourish
How you invest is the largest determining factor in the level of returns you will see. But what about the “where” of investing?
Why the Dow Doesn’t Work
With Apple’s addition to the Dow (or more properly, the Dow Jones Industrial Average), now is a great opportunity to look at how to think about the Dow, and indices more broadly. Indices are great tools for understanding what is going on in the markets, but you need to understand what to do with those […]
Sequence Risk vs. Investment Risk
A lot has already been written about the sequence of returns risk confronting retirees. But the full implications of sequence risk have not been completely internalized. Retirees become more vulnerable to investment volatility, because as they withdraw from their portfolio they may find themselves locking in investment losses. It’s the opposite effect from dollar cost averaging.
Are market valuations the most important factor for retirement income strategies?
The question remains as to whether historical withdrawal rates provide sufficient insight about what can reasonably be expected to work for more recent retirees.
