Retirement Reform Blog

In my recent study, Ten Ways to Wreck Your Retirement, I pointed out that relying too much on home equity for retirement income can spell trouble.  A Wall Street Journal article has reiterated the potential pitfalls of relying on a mortgage to make you rich.

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A recent article in the Wall Street Journal confirms what I pointed out in a recent NCPA study, "Ten Ways to Wreck Your Retirement."  Tapping into retirement accounts is not the best option!  Certainly, desperate times can call for desperate measures, but it's important to bear in mind the true cost:  penalties, taxes and the lost opportunity of reaping a market comeback. 

A recent article on Forbes online discusses the benefits of "pensionizing" one's 401(k) as a way to dam up the flood of money leaching from the ever downward-spiraling market:

"Seeing how well most 401(k) plans have done in the past year, the answer still seems to be that for many, added flexibility is no replacement for steady, guaranteed returns. But those days are long gone for many. But that doesn't mean that even in a down market that you can't try to trim your losses. How? Do like the pensions do and re-balance your portfolio ever six months or so, selling off your winners and bumping up your losers. This way you're always selling high and buying when things are cheap. "The only way that the investor is going to be able to respond accordingly is if they are aware of what is happening in their portfolio," says Roseman."

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