Friday, August 7, 2020

Why are target-date funds so popular?


Is putting off retirement right for you?
A quarter of Baby Boomers plan to postpone their retirement. The virus pandemic has changed a lot of lives and plans. If you start Social Security benefits you cannot go back. Previously this was allowed. This makes your decision all the more important. Many will wait because they do not wish to begin taking retirement money from an IRA or pension now. Studies have shown that doing so can hurt you in later years if you have a big reduction in your nest egg immediately. If you have 30 years in retirement, you don’t want to begin with a bad 1st year. Also, this is one of the worst times to buy an annuity since future benefits are calculated on the current very low interest rate. You could only receive $437 a month for life in return for your $100,000 if you were male age 60. On the other hand, if you had to retire due to job shut down, you could receive $896 a month for 10 years in the hope you would be better situated later. Delaying SS benefits to age 70 provides a much larger monthly income: $3,790 maximum for someone who files at age 70 compared to $2,265 maximum for someone who files at age 62. Maximum benefits require higher incomes for your final 35 years of work. The average benefit is $1,503. Also remember taxes are due on up to 85% of SS benefits if your total income is higher unless you have tax-FREE Roth IRA income.

With the virus passing 4 million, what can you do to save your nest egg?
If there's anything you should expect out of 2020, it's volatility and unpleasant surprises. Most people are checking their account more often and that is a recipe for disaster. Panic selling is what happened in 2007-8. The stock market fell 37%. Some investors think they can avoid the market drop by selling. But your advisor doesn’t know when the market will come back as in 2009-10 with 27% and 15% growth. We can’t control the virus or the market so we must focus on our nest egg end time. A stock market index fund is the only asset class that has proven 11% returns over time. Wealthy investors in hedge funds etc have a really bad record of losses. They can afford to take a chance on alternative assets; we can’t. Warren Buffett, one of the most successful investors, says holding a low-cost stock index fund so we take advantage of compounding earnings is the best way to protect our nest egg, rain or shine. Costs are all we can control.

Is buying the ‘hot’ fund now right for you?
Advisors and young investors try to pick the ETF funds that are rising or will rise during the current conditions. They want to ride the wave to the top. Problem is: momentum trading does not work. Over time, picking the hot security usually results in disappointment. Why? No trend lasts for long. With index funds of all types, the past trends have been changed—watered down. Be wary: past performance is no guarantee of the future; only the hype. The owners of Wall Street firms are great at the hype. What else do they have? They don’t have a predictable product nor a person who has golden hands nor a crystal ball nor a way to control the underlying factors nor a magic wand. All they have to make the sale to you is the B.S., the “story” as my firm’s FCs used to call it.

Why are target-date funds so popular?
Short answer: they use the three best investment strategies available to working people. First, they are usually low cost. This means that over time, you don’t give up over 60% of  your earnings to sellers. Second, they use compounding—the miracle of compounding—earning money on money by itself. Third, they usually hold index funds which can provide 11% earnings from many profitable companies—you are diversified. The added bonus is that as you get closer to retirement, your assets and contributions become less volatile—from 90% stock to 30% stock balance. Unless you are wealthy enough to loose 1/3 of your wealth in a derivative or leveraged hedge fund, this one fund decision is all you need to be a successful investor. It just takes time. Warren Buffett recommends it.

Perfect time to convert part of your IRA to a Roth IRA
If your income and thus taxes will be lower during this pandemic, converting taxable future income to tax-FREE future income may make sense now. If you are over age 59 ½, you can take out IRA money with no penalty—just extra taxes—at lower rates than future years. If your income and tax burden allow it, taking any amount--$10,000, $20,000 even $30,000 from your future retirement account is a smart move now since all the earnings in the future will be tax-FREE. Even if you are in retirement now when you do NOT have to take your 2020 RMD—forced IRA distributions—your tax liability will be less this year so you can afford to take and pay tax on a chunk of your IRA. Because the stock market is still positive, you can convert your stock IRA money to future positive income with no tax in the future. Many advisors see higher taxes in the future (to pay for the Trump tax cuts to the wealthy and virus expenses). You benefit two ways: take advantage of lower current taxes and avoid paying the increase later. You will pay less tax later as you take out smaller traditional IRA distributions AND your future taxable income will be less. Roth IRA balances can accumulate for your whole life without distributions or tax payments. You may be able to avoid income tax on your Social Security benefits too.

How the super wealthy—$100 billion—avoid income tax
Zuckerberg’s net worth just passed $100 billion. Can you write $1,000,000,000 one hundred times? He joins Jeff Bezos and Bill Gates in the clouds. Zuckerberg’s net worth is largely derived from his 13% stake in Facebook. Since these guys and other uber gelt holders do not have to take a salary, they have no taxable income. Think of that! Like the old Robber Baron times, they can sit in their home offices and clip coupons/dividends. Yes it is possible to pay no taxes. Our president claimed that he pays no income taxes too. However, we know he owes a lot so that may be how the wealthy buy things—they live on loans. So Zuck, Jeff, Bill and Don can just text their bank and get a loan every year to pay for maintaining their lifestyles. You don’t pay income taxes on a loan. They also don’t pay for the public services they use—airports, roads, courts, army navy air force. We pay for those on their behalf. Because their companies pay for most of their ‘overhead’ private planes, health insurance, gym, body guards, meals, etc, they don’t need to pay much “out-of-pocket” expense either. We pay for that when we buy stuff.

**********ACCOUNTABILITY**************

Like 1776, this period is a test of democracy—do we really want ‘low-IQMobster?

Philly DA: we have an “authoritarian dictator."

How Govt wastes our money: Congress gives 3.7 Trillion to the wealthy! 
Census not counting all as per Constitution: est. 37% not counted, Dems lose Congress seats?

Trump’s promised health care plan is dead: millions lose employer coverage in July

Eviction, loss of relief $600, job not re-open, virus threat, school?: government fails many.
Testing slows as deaths rise in hard hit states: will schools test every child before spread?



SCAMS/SPINS:
Trump’s new voter suppression strategy: delay mail-in ballots so invalid, not counted
Virus is making medical firms wealthy: $175 test? Plus add-ons $2,479. Medicare for all!
HALF kids at GA camp infected, most positive virus tests were 6 - 10 year olds. School?
TX does not count positive virus tests: rapid-result tests ignored: Thousands spread virus

Trumpers threaten Fauci, his family because he gives respected scientific info not B.S.
One man not sick infects 91 +: it is called pandemic for a reason: symptoms in 10 days

Trump in cognitive dissonance: changes to favor mail-in ballots: last week--against it!
Trump: Biden opposes God, Bible, religion, guns, energy, rights, everything American?

Kanye West schill for Trump to get votes from Biden: GOP paying to help West in CO.


Brian Scroggs, VCS, Transfer Group, Real Travel failed timeshare relief: kept payments
Netflix phishing scam: steal credit card info by tricking you into updating your account.

Gov agency scam: caller ID, agent number, military romance ask for money to get grant
Victor Lee Farias Integrity Aviation stole $14 million Ponzi engine parts leasing scam


Jobs
Immigrants constitute 40 percent of home-buyers and help create new jobs.

Who owns your account now?
Check your Social Security statement for correct earnings: it determines your later benefits
Best Cars for Teens Under $20,000: CR picks safe, reliable used cars and SUVs insurable.
Best appliance brands: CR Appliance Brand Reliability Rankings: no “get what you pay for”

States Pull Back On Pension Payments: state budgets don’t allow pension build up now


Miracle:
White cop not charged in Michael Brown’s killing: shot 6 times but “no proof”?
Billionaire pays off student loans: continues family tradition of giving

Missouri approves Medicaid for ½ million despite 10 years GOP votes against it
Virus tests (quick version) are NOT accurate: OH gov negative then pos then neg.



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