As I get used to the new (temporary) normal, working from home each day, I’ve had the morning news shows running in the background and find myself each day stopping my work during the segment where they have a doctor on who is answering write-in questions from viewers. I’m paying attention because in many…
I’ve been officially retired for more than two years. During that time, I have been asked numerous times about when to take Social Security retirement benefits. My general response is that it pays to delay receipt of benefits to age 70. After that, there is no incentive to delay other than potential income taxes.…
Estate & Legacy, Retirement, Taxes
A recent post from Jamie on his WealthAdviceMadeSimple blog regarding the SECURE Act. Setting Every Community Up For Retirement Enhancement (SECURE) Act was recently signed into law by President Trump in December and offers a meaningful impact for retirement legislation. A more extensive overview of the law’s provisions can be found here, but for purposes…
Beyond Your Finances, Investment Planning, Retirement
Readers of my previous blog posts know that since I retired more than 18 months ago, I don’t spend much time looking at the values of my investments. There are four main reasons for this. First, I spent more than 30 years watching the markets and client portfolio values on a daily basis. I…
Living a Rewarding Retirement: The Importance of Time It’s minus 3 degrees this morning, with a thick blanket of snow on the ground, and winds are making it feel like 20 below. There is little compelling reason for this retired guy to hustle around and get outdoors, so it’s as good a time as any…
Beyond Your Finances, Retirement
“Some people make more than a career out of their work. They make a difference.” It’s been more than a year since I retired from my position as Portfolio Manager and Chief Compliance Officer with PDS Planning in Columbus, Ohio. One of the many retirement cards I received from clients and colleagues contained…
Beyond Your Finances, Market Commentary, Retirement
I have always had a great respect for educators and how they impact our society. Both my mother and aunt were teachers. I recall as a child how my mother spent countless hours working to get her Masters degree to stay certified while raising three kids. And now, my wife, Abbey, is a teacher. I…
Beyond Your Finances, Retirement
I gained my label as a distance runner in high school running track and cross country. However, I didn’t really get back into running until about six years ago when I ran my first half marathon. Since then, I’ve run two full marathons, eight half marathons, and enough events in the range of 5K-15K…
Beyond Your Finances, Retirement
There have been many changes for me since August 31, 2017. On that day, I officially retired as partner and Chief Compliance Officer of PDS Planning, Inc. in Columbus. Having worked for a total of almost 50 years (five of those while I was in college), there was more than a bit of trepidation as…
Estate & Legacy, Market Commentary, Retirement
A recent post from Jamie at his WealthAdviceMadeSimple blog outlining the importance of fees. There are few certainties in life, and probably even fewer when it comes to investing. One guarantee that I can make is this: what you don’t spend, you get to keep. Fees matter. Especially when it comes to your money.…
The fifth in a series of articles For me there has always been a disconnect between the concept of wealthy living and the size of a person’s bank account, retirement account, or other traditional measure of wealth. Enjoying a wealthy life should not be determined by how much money one makes or has amassed. Wealthy…
The fourth in a series of articles My original intent was to retire when I turned 70. However, as I noted in Part 2 of this series, the realization that “it’s time” bumped up my retirement to this fall, when I turn 67. Thus the mental switch was flipped. Then the “Can I afford…
My original intent was to retire when I turned 70. However, as I noted in Part 2 of this series, the realization that “it’s time” bumped up my retirement to this fall, when I turn 67. Thus the mental switch was flipped, then the “Can I afford to retire?” review and decision was made. A…
If you are one of the thousands of employees that work for the state of Ohio or a teacher at a public school in Ohio, chances are you have a traditional state sponsored defined benefit pension plan. These retirement plans require the employee put a certain % of their gross income into the plan each…
This is the second in a series of articles on preparing for retirement, in which I consider the question we all ask: “Can I afford to retire?”. Future articles will deal with converting my retirement plan from one of accumulation to one of distribution, health insurance, Social Security planning, investments, eventual downsizing and/or re-locating, and…
