Every Wednesday night, my next-door neighbor and I tend to take out our garbage at about the same time. Don’t know how that happens, but we usually get to talking about the usual topics—our kids, sports, the weather. And every week, my neighbor asks me the same question: “How’s the economy doing, Joe?”
My candid response over the past several years has been the same: “It’s been better.”
Here are several “big picture” retirement themes I expect to hear more of in the coming year. I’ll come back later in the month with a post on personal retirement tactics.
It was such a small news item in the paper I almost missed it. A hometown bank was being acquired by a rival. For a fraction of its estimated value. The reason: large real estate losses.
As I travel around the country, I come across other stories of the mortgage crisis, sometimes in unexpected ways. In southern Florida, a development looks tidy and prosperous during the day. At night, you drive through the neighborhood and see lights in every third or fourth house. The others homes are empty—not just foreclosures, but also properties abandoned by the developer or investors.
A Word of Clarification
My blog post below has struck a chord with some of you. As a Vanguard blogger, I am charged with sharing my personal and professional perspectives on issues facing investors. The post, prompted by a discussion I had with a fellow passenger during a recent flight, represents my understanding of how the federal economic stimulus programs might be viewed historically. The focus is on certain macroeconomic principles and is not intended to endorse specific political leaders or parties. More importantly, my views are my own and not necessarily those of Vanguard, and they do not influence how the company manages our clients’ assets. I regret if some readers have interpreted the posting as representing a partisan point of view. Steve
Someone asked me recently about the main federal economic stimulus programs and how they might be viewed historically.
My response was simple: They will be viewed as the tools that help us avoid Depression 2.0. Read more »
The current economic recovery is weak, but that’s hardly news. There are many explanations for this meager improvement, but perhaps one of the most telling is a large jump in personal savings in the United States.
