Social Security
Michael S. Falk, CFA, discusses entitlement reform, outdated incentives, the lessons of the pandemic, and more.
This book provides an overview of the Social Security system, detailing its benefits and how they are calculated, with a focus on the general strategies for maximizing benefits.
When clients ask you whether the hodgepodge of social security programs, private savings accounts, and employer-sponsored retirement plans that we collectively rely on will be sufficient to provide them with a comfortable living after they stop working, you probably have an easy answer at the ready. "Ha!"
The benefits of meditation are well-known and have been espoused by some of the world's most successful investors and innovators. Indeed, even business schools are starting to include meditation in their curricula.
Charles D. Ellis, CFA, offers a "sensible pathway to an overall resolution" of the US Social Security and retirement crises. Unfortunately, he writes, "there is no happy solution; there is no magic answer."
Don't fret. This is not the "self-help" edition of weekend reads, even though the headline might lead you to think so. It just so happens that luck versus skill, work (and it's evil twin overwork), and investor happiness are topics tackled in three separate articles.
In the United States, and in many other countries, only a fraction of households have saved enough to look forward to a comfortable retirement. For those without a sizable nest egg, the so-called "golden years" are a grim prospect. Not surprisingly, governments around the globe are grappling with how their citizens will afford retirement.
Financial advisors have an increasingly important role to play in building sustainable retirement income strategies for their clients. But as is the case with most investment advice, there is no one-size-fits-all approach. To help advisors and investors sort through the issues here is a list of essential reading and resources.
The United States and many other countries are in the infancy of significant demographic changes. Over the next four decades, the retiree demographic will constitute an increasingly large percentage of the population.