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From MarketWatch Retirement:
Social Security’s COLA for 2024 is 3.2%, vs. 2023’s historic 8.7% inflation-fueled adjustment. This translates to an average increase of about $59 a month for recipients, according to AARP. The increase in 2024 follows an 8.7% increase for 2023, which was the highest COLA in more than 40 years amid rising inflation. The average COLA increase over the last 20 years is 2.6%, according to the nonpartisan Senior Citizens League.
Here’s the real reason the stock market is so horrid. And, yes, it’s rather spooky. It is a bizarre and yet undeniable fact that throughout history, Wall Street has produced almost all of its gains during the winter months of the year — from Nov. 1 to April 30.
Retirement bond anxiety: Even with 6% yields, you can’t set and forget it. One new worry on the horizon: Callable and convertible bonds and CDs. Conditions are brewing for a dip in interest rates, and corporations and other entities that issue debt have been preparing for this by issuing more call options than ever, and with increasingly shorter call windows.
Also on MarketWatch:
Opinion: Social Security: Why are politicians asking the wrong questions?
‘I’m in my peak earning years’: I work full time and will soon turn 67. Should I wait until I retire at 70 to collect my Social Security?
‘We were broke, broken and stressed to the max.’ They sold their house for an RV— and it became the blueprint for their richest life.
Stock-market bear Jeremy Grantham is probably right about this, history says
Nobel Prize–winning economist Claudia Goldin’s forgotten discovery
We have two houses and 45 acres of farmland, but we don’t know what to do about retirement. Where do we start?
More in retirement news:
How long does retirement last? Most American men don’t seem to know (USAToday)
How to Get More Retirement Income From Your 401(k) (Kiplinger)
Gen Z workers expect to retire at age 61, and they aren’t afraid to ask AI how to do it (Fast Company)
How much money you need to retire comfortably in every U.S. state (CNBC)
Why Delaying Your Retirement by a Few Years Is a Powerful Move (Motley Fool)
Come sail away? These Australian grandparents booked 51 back-to-back cruises and claim retiring at sea is cheaper — but here are 3 ways to stay afloat if you want to retire on land (MoneyWise)
Research and Insight:
Youngest Workers Feel They Face Most Retirement Obstacles (PlanSponsor)
Study Finds ‘Spending Spikes’ to Be a Cause of Eroded Retirement Savings (FedWeek)
BlackRock Says Workers Without This May Lose Out on Almost $625,000 in Retirement Savings (SmartAsset)
Baby boomers are often said to be the luckiest generation financially — but millennials will be better off than their parents in retirement, survey finds (Business Insider)
Older Participants Increasingly Carry Debt Into Retirement (PlanSponsor)
First MMA fighter retirement fund bill signed into California law by Newsom (LA Times)
To share with your family, friends and clients:
In retirement, time is short. Don’t waste it on things you hate.
‘Nursing homes aren’t warehouses’: Will new staffing rules improve care? Why critics are pushing back.
The ‘tragedy’ of American healthcare: Olympic gymnast Mary Lou Retton’s family is crowdsourcing for her hospital bills. She’s not alone.
Avoid these mistakes if you’re shopping for Medicare Advantage
7 more ways to save that you may not have considered
You just won the Powerball jackpot — what should you do next?
Opinion: ESG investing limitations for fiduciaries confirmed by new court ruling
