James C. Molet's Blog, page 21

July 14, 2017

The Elderly and Diabetes: Everything You Need to Know

Jeff Sheldon The Diabetes Council provides a useful guide for the elderly with diabetes. A recent article explores many different guidelines and recommendations, along with nutritional, activity, pharmaceutical, and financial and estate planning considerations. According to the American Diabetes Association, as we get older, our chances of getting Type 2 diabetes increases. They claim that one... Read Article →
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Published on July 14, 2017 05:30

July 13, 2017

The Essential Retirement Guide – A SavvyReview

Author Frederick Vettese is the Chief Actuary of Morneau Shepell, one of the largest human resources consulting and technology companies and one of the top five defined benefit pension plan providers in North America. Vetesse has spent his entire career providing retirement consulting and actuarial services in respect of workplace pension plans. Much of his professional time these days is spent in the public eye, speaking at professional conferences and writing on retirement issues for the national newspapers and other media.


Early on, it becomes clear to the reader why A Contrarian’s Perspective is the sub-title of Vettese’s new book as he quickly shoots holes in traditional retirement finance rules such as the 70% income replacement target and the 4% post-work drawdown rate. Each of these old rules is replaced with his own for planning, saving and investing.


In the preface it is noted that the book is intended for American and Canadian audiences. My reading of the book suggests it could find an audience beyond those locations as it does not really dive into the details of specific retirement vehicles or tax strategies. The practices and philosophies contained within could generally be applied anywhere.


The 262 page book – including the five appendices – is broken down into twenty-two chapters split between five-parts: the retirement income target, the wealth target, the accumulation phase, the decumulation phase and random reflections.


Early on, on the third page of the first chapter, Vettese clearly states that in this book he seeks to help the reader determine their retirement goal as well as the possible ways to reach it, using the following process (which hews closely to the five-part structure):



Determine the income needed at retirement as a percentage of final employment earnings — referred to as the retirement income target
Considering the retirement income target, determine the required nest egg at the time of retirement — referred to as the wealth target
Consider the possible savings strategies to reach the wealth target
Drawing down (decumulation) the nest egg in a sustainable manner throughout retirement

Annuities. Vettese discusses them early and often; and clearly he is a fan of the insurance product. His bottom line could be summarized as even though they are expensive, they make sense for a lot of people for a number of reasons.


Vettese makes great use of graphs and tables to convey useful information or drive home a particular point. Periodically the information is presented using the fictional couple, Steve and Ashley, as representative of a middle-income household. This couple got married at 30 and immediately started saving for a house. Their first child came along when they were 33 and a second child at 35, the same age they bought their first house. A bigger house, where they would stay until they retired, was moved into at age 45. During their peak earning years, near retirement, their household income was $90,000.


The structure – including the graphs, tables and examples – and flow works well and keeps readers fully engaged. Both long-term planners and those that have started saving later than desired will find value in the book’s pages. Vettese provides the framework in which readers can think clearly and effectively plan their retirement based on their own unique situation. While the Kindle – my preferred format – price ($10.99) is a tad higher than I would like to see, readers would be well served by moving this book to the fore of their ‘must read’ list.


The Essential Retirement Guide: A Contrarian’s Perspective is available at Amazon in Kindle and Hardcover formats.

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Published on July 13, 2017 19:06

10 Ways to Avoid Shopping on Impulse

As noted by Brian at Get Money, Got Money, we live in a world of dangerous consumerism and overabundance that leads us to artificially fill the voids in our lives. In a society where anything you could ever want is just a click away, we have become accustomed to taking the easy way out. Our consumption culture often... Read Article →
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Published on July 13, 2017 06:00

July 12, 2017

Avoiding Mistakes With Your Medication in an Attempt to Save Money

The following is a contributed post from Jenna, a freelance blogger who is mainly focused on business innovation. There is nothing wrong with trying to save a little bit of money. The problem comes when you are trying too many things to save money on your medication that you need in order to maintain your... Read Article →
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Published on July 12, 2017 05:00

July 11, 2017

3 Monumental Financial Mistakes People Make Before They Turn 50

The following is a guest post from Chris Heerlein, author of Money Won’t Buy Happiness – But Time to Find It, is a Investment Adviser Representative and partner at REAP Financial LLC. He hosts the “Retire Ready” TV and radio shows in Austin, Texas, and has been featured in national media outlets such as Fortune, Bloomberg Businessweek,... Read Article →
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Published on July 11, 2017 05:45

July 6, 2017

Steps to Take if You Were Denied Auto Insurance or Offered a High Premium

The following is a contributed post from Jenna, a freelance blogger who is mainly focused on business innovation. If you’ve had your fair share of traffic violations, you know that it will most likely affect your future driving record. One thing that you may not consider at first is how it may affect your auto... Read Article →
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Published on July 06, 2017 16:30

July 1, 2017

Understanding the 4 Basics of Money Can Enrich Your Life

The following is a guest post from Ann Vanderslice, president and CEO of Retirement Planning Strategies. Ann helps federal employees understand their benefits, maximize the value of their benefits and plan for retirement, as well as organize income planning and IRA distributions. Vanderslice holds the Registered Financial Consultant designation from the International Association of Registered Financial Consultants... Read Article →
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Published on July 01, 2017 05:30

June 30, 2017

Don’t Forget About Inflation in Your Retirement Plan

An often overlooked component of retirement planning is inflation. So what exactly is inflation? in·fla·tion [in-fley-shuhn] noun – In economics, a persistent, substantial rise in the general level of prices related to an increase in the volume of money and resulting in the loss of value of currency (opposed to deflation). Vitaly Interesting definition but... Read Article →
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Published on June 30, 2017 20:45

June 27, 2017

How Women in Leadership Roles Can Change the Workplace

The following is a guest post from Andi Simon, author of On the Brink: A Fresh Lens to Take Your Business to New Heights. She is a corporate anthropologist, an award-winning author, and the founder and CEO of Simon Associates Management Consultants, designed over a decade ago to help companies use the tools of anthropology to better adapt to... Read Article →
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Published on June 27, 2017 10:00

June 26, 2017

How to Beat the Healthcare Odds in These Uncertain Times

The following is a guest post from Chris Orestis, Executive Vice President of GWG Life, is an over 20-year veteran of the insurance and long-term care industries and is nationally recognized as a healthcare expert and senior care advocate.  Concerns about healthcare are on the rise in the United States. Dissatisfied with Healthcare and Government A... Read Article →
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Published on June 26, 2017 06:30