Diversification Works In A Crisis (But It Doesn’t Work Miracles)

There are a lot of myths about diversification. Today, I want to address a pernicious lie floating around out there that diversification only works when times are good.
How to Use Life Insurance

Life insurance can be confusing. Especially since so many people want it to be. But it doesn’t need to be. Life insurance is one of the simplest financial tools out there – as long as you use it correctly. There are two basic components to your wealth: Your Financial Capital – All the stuff you […]
How Can Retirees Adjust Their Spending For Inflation Without Breaking The Bank?

A final example in the decision rules category is the Target Percentage Adjustment method introduced by David Zolt in his 2013 Journal of Financial Planning article, “Achieving a Higher Safe Withdrawal Rate with the Target Percentage Adjustment.”
The Original Retirement Spending Decision Rules

The next decision rule approach provides the name for this category of methods. The Guyton and Klinger spending decision rules derive from work by Jonathan Guyton in 2004 and the team of Jonathan Guyton and William Klinger in 2006.
How Does Diversification Actually Work?

Diversification is a good thing. Nearly everyone agrees that it’s just about the only free lunch in finance.
But not many people stop and think about how diversification actually helps them, beyond the general “don’t put all your eggs in one basket” argument.
What is a Bond Ladder?

Bond ladders sound like another complicated finance concept only investing geeks understand, but they’re actually pretty simple. The easiest way to view them is as though you’re setting up your own annuity by prepaying for at least some of your income in retirement.
Ratcheting Up Retirement Spending

In 2015, Michael Kitces proposed a ratcheting rule for retirement spending that shared the basic framework of constant inflation-adjusted spending while still allowing spending to increase if the portfolio performs well in retirement. As with many of these rules, the ratcheting rule could be implemented in numerous ways.
A Simple Way To Keep Your Portfolio In Line

Investing isn’t simply picking the best funds or building your perfect portfolio. Keeping your portfolio in line over the long term is just as important (if not more so).
When Tax-Loss Harvesting Makes Sense (And When It Doesn’t)

Tax-loss harvesting, when done right, is the equivalent of turning your financial lemons into lemonade, by converting your market losses into tax savings. Successful tax-loss harvesting lowers your taxes without substantially impacting your long-term investment outcomes.
Floor And Ceiling Retirement Spending, With A Twist

In a 2013 article, a Vanguard research team headed by Colleen Jaconetti developed an alternative form of the floor-and-ceiling spending rule that relies on percentages rather than hard dollar amounts.