Those look like some good websites, AttorneyMother. That’s my kind of planning, “The Oblivious Investor”!
@busdriver11 , don’t sell yourself short. 
I’m sure you are being too modest, but with the generous pensions you are entitled to collect, your best investment is towards vesting and good health.
“Bus, when are you eligible to take that great pension, I mean what age. You should be alright when you retire, it seems like a great pension”
We are eligible to get the full pension at age 60, but we can start taking it at age 55, for a reduced amount. It reduces by 3%/year, for each year that you retire early. I know it sounds like a great pension, but the reality is, it has been the same number for (I’m guessing) over 25 years. Even though salaries have gone up, inflation goes up every year, the number stays the same, and many years from now, it will be worth far less. We’ve been negotiating our contract to improve it, but the company wants to freeze it, like many companies have frozen or done away with pension benefits.
AttorneyMother, we are doing everything we can to stay healthy. It’s our goal, to withdraw as many pension payments as we can before we knock off. Too many guys have either not drawn pensions at all, or just for a few years, so we are trying hard to make it happen for a long time!
The thing about SS is that if you can predict how long you live then you can plan. Stay healthy is the biggest asset for retirement.
I used to think I need to convert to Roth IRA my IRA money when I retire, at least that is the conventional wisdom, but if you closer to 70, then chances are the IRA can be inherited by our kids, much better rate, especially for one kid anyway.
busdriver do you contribute any of your pay to fund the pension?
@AttorneyMother , the reason for the name Oblivious Investor is that Mr. Price feels that “the point of this blog is to show that investing doesn’t have to be complicated.”
I agree with him. I listen to Bloomberg for the macro-economic news in the morning (“Bloomberg Surveillance”), but it doesn’t affect my investing in the slightest, although if I lived in Greece it might. Then I go to the gym, where CNBC (all financial porn, all the time) is on, and people talk about what this news means and that news means. It has as much to do with the real markets as their football insights have to do with being an NFL coach. Me, I’m a blissful idiot, and watch my 50/50 indexed portfolio mostly go up.
I love financial porn. I can tune in and out as I wish.
@IxnayBob I suspected as much. He has good information. Wade Pfau gets a little too much for me, but I suspect he is trying to get tenure. I mean, how many times can one debate SWR (which is his thing) down to the last 1/10%.
A story:
My favorite oblivious investor (in this case not my H), is a friend who is very happy whenever there is something positive said on CNBC about Apple, thinks her husband (who I sometimes refer to in my mind as Shrek) is a financial genius because Apple has been good to them, but likes to complain about paying taxes because they have had to sell Apple to fund their new house adventure. I don’t think she is aware of how undiversified they are. What can one say, except to remember not to discuss money, sex or politics with friends, but mostly money.
I have CNBC on when I need background noise. I prefer business news to world news, which is a depressant overall.
@AttorneyMother, haha, my husband said if he wants to hear how many people get stabbed to death then he turns on TV for news, otherwise he just watch the sports or live concerts replayed on TV.
Indeed. @DrGoogle. Sad but true.
Most people have larger amounts in 401k.
Cbreeze, 401k has lower limit contribution, while IRA such as SEP IRA has higher limit, could go up to more than $50k or more per year. So I tend to think the opposite, probably some fancy 401k, but not the garden variety kind, like the one most people have. In fact this year limit is $18k, you have to have much higher rate of return to reach more than $3 million. So I disagree with the term “most” in your comment. Perhaps some, but not most.
Most people have larger amounts in 401k.
MOST PEOPLE? have more than $3 MILLION DOLLARS IN 401K’s??
I dont think so…
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I think cbreeze meant “in general”, not that everyone with a 401k has $3mil.
SEP-IRA has potentially larger limits than a 401k, but you are limited to 20% of your income, to contribute $50K you are making $250K and I don’t think most self-employed make that much. A SEP 401k lets you contribute $18K and then match 20%, IIRC.
But most people aren’t self-employed, so a SEP is off the table.
Just remember that IRAs can be rollover IRAs as well as contributory IRAs. So, the balance of one is not determinative of anything. Also, what if the IRA contains a couple of home-run investments? More power to those people.
Doctors and health care related people(acupuncturist for example) can contribute more to SEP IRA because of higher limit. Self employed people can have Solo 401k which also allows higher limit, more than $50k when I last look at it.
Anyone who is self-employed can start a SEP-IRA or Solo 401k (for one-employee + spouse businesses). One does not have to be a physician or healthcare professional (thank heavens).*
- no offense to same. I am married to one. :)
Some 401ks allow post-tax contributions of up to $53k/year. My wife’s did, but I either just recently noticed or it recently changed, just in time for a new employer whose 401k does not allow it. As in most things, timing is key