Although company pensions are going the way of the dinosaur, you may still be in a position to choose between taking a lump sum or a monthly stream of income from your pension. Deciding between these two is not always straightforward. There are many factors that go into determining which may be better for you. I have an opinion that the lump sum has some hidden advantages that many overlook. The first is flexibility. Once you have received a lump sum, you can decide where each and every … [Read more...]

New Online Minicourse - Buckets Approach to Retirement I believe in making decision-making simple and straightforward. I think the “Buckets Approach to Retirement Planning” makes life much more simple when determining where to put money and how to evaluate the dizzying number of options. I made my recent video series into a minicourse that can be viewed for free by anyone. If you haven't seen the video series yet, I encourage you to do so. And if you know someone who could benefit … [Read more...]

Did you know that 70% of a retirees wealth is inside their home and only 3% of those retirees ever make use of it to improve their retirement outcomes? I've had enough conversations with retirees to know that the reverse mortgage is a hot topic and one in which others are not ambivalent. Dave Ramsey has his opinions… Susie Orman has her opinions… But what are the facts that trump opinions? In this enlightening video series, a collaboration with reverse mortgage expert Janice Cohen, we … [Read more...]

Where do you think tax rates are going in the future? I don't think I've ever spoken with somebody who thinks that tax rates will be going down, and I would agree with them. Have you seen https://usdebtclock.org/ recently? It shows the total amount of the national debt in real time, but more fascinating to me shows the total amount of the unfunded liabilities that the government has when it considers both Medicare and Social Security. Although the US national debt stands at $20 … [Read more...]

If you're like most people, you've never lived on a budget. For most, the term or concept "budget" is constricting. It's an outside force telling me what I can and can't do. The reality is a budget is simply telling your money what to do and where to go. It's proactively being in control rather than being controlled by your money. You can call it whatever you want… ultimately it's just a plan. So, do you need a budget in retirement? The reality is cash flow control is a must in … [Read more...]