My nephew Rob, age 25, asked me for some of my thoughts on investing. I gave him a few quick thoughts but then decided to describe what I think I’ve learned over the decades. This post is my advice to someone age 25. I would

How would your life change if your annual Safe Spending Amount (SSA) – your annual pay from your nest egg – increased in real spending power by 50% in the future?  How would you live your life differently? Buckle up. You have to think about

Blog reader Bill is starting out on his plan. He’s figured out what he can pay himself from his financial nest egg and asks, “We now have a long string of years without a major market decline. Are we ripe for one? Should I start

Neighbors Bill and Mary, nice folks age 50, told me that they just signed on with a financial advisor. He’s going to manage $800,000 for them. He said his fee is 1%, so they conclude they are spending $8,000 per year for his advice and

I read this article that suggests Rental Real Estate is a good investment for retirees. I hate even thinking about investing in rental real estate. Or why I’d hold onto it if I had it at this stage in life. This post discusses why I

Patti and I have slowly changed our spending habits, but the change was not in the way that you might think. We slowly changed to be more tolerant of spending that gives one or both of us pleasure. We no longer are bugged by the

A financial retirement plan with 65% stocks is inherently NO SAFER than plan with 85%. A plan with 85% stocks can have NO RISK or uncertainty in the life of your portfolio – the number of years your portfolio will pay you a Safe Spending

A possible change in tax law would require heirs of our IRA to fully distribute them over fewer years. The change, described here, (“… It Could cost Your Kids Thousands.”) would require that our IRAs be fully distributed within ten years of our death.

A possible change in tax law would cut the number years our IRAs that we leave to our children or other heirs will grow tax free. The change, described here, would require that our IRAs be fully distributed within ten years of our death.

Does it ever make sense to not add to your IRA when you have money saved that you won’t spend for many years? My friend Jim, years younger than I am, asked me, “I have money to invest. I don’t plan on spending it for