A new study suggests that investing your retirement money half in bonds and half in stocks will produce 5% annual returns like clockwork, despite bumps in the economy. But is this a smart strategy for everyone? No.
Planning
How to Fix Your 401(k) Plan
As the traditional pension disappears, the 401(k) plan is evolving into something that one day might actually be just as good. That’s saying a lot. The certainty of monthly income for life, which traditional pensions promise, is a high bar. Meanwhile, 401(k) plans have taken their licks.
Attention Holiday Shoppers: Plastic Hurts—Then Hurts Again!
The always-insightful Jason Zweig of The Wall Street Journal once said that great personal finance journalism is really the art of communicating the same handful of important lessons over and over again without boring people. …
What We Can Learn from a Legendary Fund Manager’s Retirement
In the end, Bill Miller was doing what he had always done. But it stopped working, and now the legendary mutual fund manager is retiring. His inglorious departure from Legg Mason Value Trust offers a telling lesson in the perils …
How Health Care Reform Can Create Jobs — and Cut Costs
Nobody would be surprised to hear that spending more on healthcare will result in new jobs. But a new program announced by the Obama administration last week seeks to create new healthcare jobs and at the same time reduce …
Fewer Foreclosures Near Top Public Schools
A new analysis of foreclosures shows that the expression “safe as houses” could be expanded to “safe as houses in a really great school district.”
8 Money Habits That Separate Doers From Dreamers
When it comes to securing financial security, are you a doer or a dreamer? By definition, financial doers have a better shot at reaching their retirement goals. No real surprise, they also have a much better shot at raising …
Pension Backstop Posts Record Shortfall. Is a Bailout Next?
Put another nail in the coffin of private pensions. The Pension Benefit Guaranty Corp., a government agency that insures corporate defined-benefit plans, has been running a record deficit. Now it’s sending up flares for either a taxpayer bailout or higher insurance premiums from the companies that still offer these plans. Good luck on …
Vast Majority of Middle Class Expects to Work Well Beyond Retirement Age
America’s middle class has had a rough go of things in recent years, and few in the middle anticipate life getting easier as they get older. In a new survey, three-quarters of American middle-class workers say they expect to keep working past the normal retirement age (65), and one-quarter think they’ll have to work at least until they’re 80.
What Separates A Pro Athlete From His Money?
When Michael Vick declared bankruptcy, it raised our eyebrows. Sure, we knew his legal defense against dogfighting charges would have cost a lot of money, but not THAT much money. He, like a host of other visible athletes, made …
Back to School? Why It Pays to Retire in a College Town
In a new survey, Coldwell Banker identifies the most and least affordable college town real estate markets. If you’re a retiree looking to downsize and stretch your nest egg, this is worth a look.
Smart Cookies: Girl Scouts Learn Financial Literacy
Think the Girl Scouts are all about making s’mores and campground sit-upons? Think again. A new overhaul of the organization’s merit badge program includes learning some decidedly 21st-century survival skills: budgeting, …