I’m often asked what I think about the “4% rule” for spending in retirement. According to this rule of thumb, an individual who is planning on a 30-year investment horizon and is holding a broadly diversified and balanced investment portfolio of stocks and bonds, can—with a reasonably low probability of running out of money over 30 years—spend an amount equal to roughly 4% of their total retirement portfolio in the first year, and then adjust that withdrawal every year thereafter for inflation.
For those of you who watch or have heard of the hit series “Mad Men,” you’ll know that the show provides an interesting story line, some fascinating characters, and great commentary on the social mores and gender differences of the late ’50s and early ’60s.
I’ve been watching lately with an eye toward the financial side of life in that era. There are no credit cards to speak of—Don Draper, the main character, peels off cold cash when he asks his secretary to buy Christmas presents for his children. This is pre-401(k)s and IRAs, and Don and his band of not-so-merry marketers left behind whatever pensions they had coming to them when they broke with their old advertising agency to go out on their own. There is little if any dialogue concerning personal investing at all.
Here’s the good news: Half of Americans are “on track” financially for retirement.
The bad news? The other half aren’t. Read more »
We’ve been hearing a lot about gold over the last few months, related to concerns about inflation, the creditworthiness of various governments, and fallout from the financial crisis—all against the backdrop of what is the most significant increase in inflation-adjusted gold prices since the early 1980s.
As we sat around after a recent family cookout, talk turned to the stock market’s recent gyrations.
The older folks (I am, of course, in that camp) were grumbling about the spring slump in stocks. After listening to his middle-aged relatives talk about the damage to their retirement portfolios and their varied views on the market, my 20-something nephew, Rob, confidently said he saw no reason to fret.
“I just keep the zoom theory in mind,” he said.
