When evaluating fees charged by investment advisors, should we look only at the actual dollars spent, or should we evaluate the long-term effect these fees have on our wealth? That's the question I address in this video.Kitces Article: https://www.kitces.com/blog/financial...My Response: https://robberger.com/how-should-we-e...Hourly and Flat Rate Advisors: https://robberger.com/low-cost-financ...Join the Newsletter. It's Free:https://robberger.com/newsletter/?utm...

Vanguard has announced that it is selling 280,000 small business retirement plans to Ascensus. The transaction covers individual 401(k) plans, sometimes called Solo 401(k)s, Multi-SEP IRAs, and Simple IRAs, but not individual SEP IRAs.Here's my take on what's going on, your options, and what this means for Vanguard.Press Release: https://www.prnewswire.com/news-relea...Ascensus Fees: https://www.ascensus.com/solutions/re...Fidelity Solo 401(k): https://www.fidelity.com/retirement-i...Schwab S...

In brief remarks, Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell all but took an interest rate cut in the near term off the table. In doing so, he taught us a very important lesson about investing.Join the Newsletter. It's Free:https://robberger.com/newsletter/?utm...

Fidelity recently disclosed that its computer systems were breached and that the personal data of more than 77,000 customers were accessed. here's what happened and some ways we can protect ourselves.News of hack: https://www.investmentnews.com/indust...Massachusetts: https://www.mass.gov/doc/data-breach-...Maine: https://www.maine.gov/agviewer/conten...New Hampshire: https://mm.nh.gov/files/uploads/doj/r...Sample Fidelity letter: file:///Users/robberger/Downloads/Sample_Letter.pdfClass Actio...

Does the 4% Rule apply in the same way to tax-deferred, tax-free, and taxable accounts? And how should one consider the different tax treatments of these accounts when coming up with a safe spending plan in retirement? I'll cover these questions in today's video.Bengen's 1996 Paper: https://www.financialplanningassociat...Bengen's 1997 Paper: https://www.financialplanningassociat...New Retirement: https://go.robberger.com/new-retireme...Join the Newsletter. It's Free:https://robberger.com/new...

Today, the top 10 companies in the S&P 500 Index account for more than 33% of the index. That's the largest concentration we've seen in 50 years. In this video we'll cover three things:1. Just how significant is the concentration?2. Does it tell us anything about future returns?3. What, if anything, should we do about the concentration.Join the Newsletter. It's Free:https://robberger.com/newsletter/?utm...

Our retirement plan's chance of success depends a lot on assumptions we make about future investment returns. In this video, I walk through my approach to this issue. Join the Newsletter. It's Free:https://robberger.com/newsletter/?utm...

In this video, we'll discuss how to optimize the tax efficiency of your retirement withdrawals. New Retirement: https://go.robberger.com/new-retireme...Many retirees have up to three account types: taxable, tax-deferred (e.g., traditional IRA), and tax-free (Roth IRA or HSA). The conventional wisdom tells us to spend the taxable accounts first, then the tax-deferred, and finally the tax-free. It turns out that this approach is rarely optimal.By making a few adjustments to the conventional app...

A viewer named Bill emailed me today about the bucket strategy. He has watched my videos on the bucket strategy and understands why I don't recommend it. He wants to know if the traditional approach of a total return portfolio with annual rebalancing negates the sequence of returns risk. It's a great question, and I share my perspective in today's video.Join the Newsletter. It's Free:https://robberger.com/newsletter/?utm...

Today we look at the 8 crucial differences between interest and dividends. We'll also look at how one should think about interest and dividends when using the 4% Rule of retirement spending.Join the Newsletter. It's Free:https://robberger.com/newsletter/?utm...

Andy Panko, CFP, joins us to help answer your questions about retirement planning and taxes.Join the Newsletter. It's Free:https://robberger.com/newsletter/?utm...Join Andy's Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/retirementplanningeducationCheck Out Andy's Website:https://retirementplanningeducation.com/Listen to Andy's Podcast Retirement Planning Education Below:https://retirementplanningeducation.com/podcast

With the launch of Bitcoin Spot ETFs, investors now have a safe, low-cost way to own Bitcoin. In this video, we'll look at some examples of these new ETFs, and then I'll make the strongest case I can in favor of adding Bitcoin to an asset allocation portfolio.Then I'll share how I'm approaching Bitcoin and why.Join the Newsletter. It's Free:https://robberger.com/newsletter/?utm...

Roth IRAs are best known for tax-free spending in retirement. What many don't know, however, is that if you make a mistake with a Roth IRA, you could end up owing taxes or a 10% penalty on some of your withdrawals.In this video, we'll walk through how to avoid these Roth IRA tax traps. We'll cover the two 5-year rules of Roth IRAs, the ordering rules of withdrawals, the aggregation rule, and even the backdoor Roth IRA.Join the Newsletter. It's Free:https://robberger.com/newsletter/?utm...

Several weeks ago some reported what has been called the Chase Glitch. The glitch allowed people to deposit bogus checks at Chase ATM's and then immediately withdraw the funds. That glitch has now moved to Fidelity, where some have tried depositing bogus checks via Fidelity's mobile app, and then immediately taking out the money. In response, Fidelity has limited check deposits via its mobile app, extended hold periods on deposited funds, and even locked some customers out of their accounts.J...

Today, we look at five apps you can use to track your investments. Three of them are free, and two are paid. All of them are excellent tools depending on the features you want.Join the Newsletter. It's Free:https://robberger.com/newsletter/?utm...

Yesterday the Fed lowered the Fed Funds rate by 1/2 of a percent. The prime rate followed, going from 8.5% to 8.0%. Rates on everything from credit cards to savings accounts to CDs also went down. And the rates on bonds and mortgages continued to decline.Given all of this, where are the best places to keep your cash?The Fed's Statement: https://www.federalreserve.gov/newsev...30-year U.S. Bond Yields: https://fred.stlouisfed.org/series/MO...T-Bill Yields: https://home.treasury.gov/resource-ce...

While stock market returns get most of the attention when it comes to retirement portfolios, we should be equally concerned with inflation. In this video, I walk through how to incorporate inflation assumptions into a retirement plan using New Retirement planning software.Join the Newsletter. It's Free:https://robberger.com/newsletter/?utm...

New Retirement (Boldin): https://robberger.com/new-retirementNew Retirement, which just changed its name to Boldin, has launched a new feature that makes it easy to customize the order of accounts you use to fund your retirement. In this video, we'll look at the new feature and some advanced strategies on how to use it. Join the Newsletter. It's Free:https://robberger.com/newsletter/?utm...

When to claim Social Security benefits is one of the most critical questions we'll answer in retirement. In this video, we'll look at the 3 most common strategies and a framework for making a decision. We'll cover strategies if you never been married, married, divorced or widowed.Join the Newsletter. It's Free:https://robberger.com/newsletter/?utm...

The stock market has declined so far today, with the S&P 500 down more than 3% as I type these words.So I thought I'd share my perspective about what's going on.Join the Newsletter. It's Free:https://robberger.com/newsletter/?utm...