Wipe Out The Fear in South Bend

Feel like you are drowning in today's economy?
Inflation?
Shaky stock market?
Sinking dollar?
Unemployment?
Staggering debt?

Watching the news may seem like an ongoing care wreck - especially if you watch Glenn Beck, who always looks like he will suffer a breakdown right on camera - but as horrifying and overwhelming as the news is, you can't seem to pull yourself away.

We don't suffer from a lack of information - rather TOO MUCH information. Its all so confusing and you can feel like the rag doll being pulled apart from all directions.

How does all of this affect your ability to save for retirement? Is it possible to still have goals and dreams? Can you still retire with dignity?

Dan Rather was once quoted as saying "If all of the difficulties were known at the outset of a long journey, most of us would not start out at all."

Nothing great was ever achieved without hardships along the way. As an advisor, my job is to help you resolve your fears. Let's wipe them out and provide some peace of mind.

This year, when I became an iindependent advisor and opened my own office, I've been learning that most people would rather "not lose anymore" than to win with their long term savings. To quote another great American, Will Rogers - "I'm more concerned with the return OF my money than the return ON my money."

With that in mind, my purpose has been to focus on helping people to find a vehicle that would "not lose" and still let you win. What if I could toss you a "Life Preserver" for your savings? Remember when you first learned to swim? Those kickboards or noodles came in handy, didn't they? You learned eventually that the water is your friend. Once you stopped fighting it, and let it help you, swimming became more fun, right?

Russell Pearlman recently wrote an article titled, "Problems? What Problems?" from the November 2009 issue of "Smart Money" magazine. His article focused on annuities, which have become much more popular with investors as a life preserver for long term savings.
"Don't tell that (regarding annuity cost) to baby boomers looking for retirement security at a time when their 401(k) plans are still hurting; they just keep buying annuities. Through the first six months of the year, total annuity sales were almost $127 billion, only a 3 percent drop from 2008." he writes.

Again, the message I get from my clients and others I meet is "We want SAFETY and Peace of Mind."

Can we get "Guaranteed" growth for our long term savings?
Will it be better than current CD rates?
Can we get "Guaranteed" income when I retire - also better than current CD rates?
Can we make sure the income never goes down?
And lasts for a lifetime - even if we live to 100 or beyond?
And when that lifetime does end, can we leave something for our family and loved ones?

In short - YES! Mr. Pearlman goes on to write "Are annuities for you? Experts say the peace of mind may be worth it."

Another of my favorite articles this year was written by Leslie Scism of the Wall Street Journal. "Long Derided, This Investment Now Looks Wise". "Because of such guarantees, many holders of variable annuities actually saw their accounts increase 6% or more in value last year, when the Standard & Poors 500 stock index dropped nearly 39%." Ms. Scism writes.

Contact me today to learn more about how to get a life preserver (or noodle if you prefer) for your savings. Treat yourself to some Peace of Mind!

You can contact me through my website, http://www.helpmy401k.us and follow me on Twitter at http://www.twitter.com/deanvoelker. I also host a weekly internet radio braodcast, "Improving Your Financial Health" at http://www.blogtalkradio.com/401kcoach.

If You Knew You'd Get a "B"

Soon, all the kids will be back in school. My daughter can’t wait to see her friends and show off her new outfits. Back-To-School time usually also means plenty of sales which should get the cash registers ringing in your local retail shops.

Since we are just getting started, it’s too early to think about report cards and grades yet….or is it?

What if you knew at the beginning of the year, that your grade at the end of the year would be at least a “B” and no worse – no matter what? Better still, what if you got an “A” in one quarter, and a “C” in the other quarters – and at the end of the year, you got to keep the “A” as your grade for the year?

If that were true, how would you feel about going to school? Would you be more relaxed? Would you want to learn more? Would school be more fun?

Well, GUESS WHAT!! I can’t do much about Johnny’s math grade, or Susie’s US History Course, but I can provide solutions which may improve your confidence in investing.
How can you do that, you ask? Variable Annuities can provide Safe Growth and Safe Income.

Recently, Leslie Scism of the Wall Street Journal wrote “Because of such guarantees, many holders of variable annuities actually saw their accounts increase 6% or more in value last year, when the Standard & Poor’s 500-stock index dropped nearly 39%.” in her article “Long Derided, This Investment Now Looks Wise”. http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052970204900904574302270919454880.html

Currently, you can earn as much as 7% or more on your principal base when you aren’t using it for income. That means if you start with $100,000, by the end of the year, you would have $107,000 to draw income from later – no matter what happens in the market. (As long as you leave it there.) And it can grow tax-deferred until you begin to take it out.

What if your account does better than 7%? Also, what if it only does better than 7% for one quarter? Wouldn’t it be great to keep the best quarter and lock it in for the year? Well….you CAN!

What if you could do this every year while you are building your Nest Egg? What if you went into the school year knowing you would at least get a “B”….and might get an “A”?

Then when you begin to take income from your savings, you can take 5% from the nest egg you’ve built for the rest of your life. The check would go up or stay the same, but never go down. (As long as you aren’t taking more than 5%.) Would that be OK?

There are some drawbacks to a Variable Annuity, which Ms. Scism also points out in her article http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052970204900904574302270919454880.html the most obvious being the cost of the extra protection. George Lambert also points this out in his article, “The Cost of Variable Annuities” http://www.investopedia.com/articles/pf/06/variableannuity.asp in which he looks at the different types of protection – Growth Protection, Income Protection, and Death Benefit.

Another drawback is that when you consider investing into a Variable Annuity, you need to take a Long Term approach – like any other investment. Speak with a reliable advisor about whether or not it may be appropriate for you based on your time horizon and income needs at retirement. Early withdrawals may result in steep surrender charges, although many plans allow you to withdraw as much as 10% with no surrender charge.

The main advantage of course is taking the uncertainty over today’s economy out of the picture. And if you knew you’d get at least a “B”, wouldn’t you sleep better at night?

For more information on annuities, or other investment ideas, you may contact me at http://www.helpmy401k.us/. You may also follow me on Twitter at www.twitter.com/deanvoelker. I am also hosting a weekly internet radio podcast at http://www.blogtalkradio.com/401kcoach.

Climbing The Mountain

Thanks to my 7 years old daughter, I’ve been exposed (repeatedly) to the music of Miley Cyrus (aka Hannah Montana). Although my musical tastes are more in line with 1970’s & 1980’s Classic Rock, I have to admit that Miley’s music is pretty good.

One of her best songs, “The Climb” is popular right now, and it’s a very inspiring song. Hearing “The Climb” makes me think about how saving for retirement can be much like climbing a mountain. There may be obstacles along the way, but we keep climbing, and the climb is actually the best part of the process.

There are really 2 parts to climbing a mountain, going up and then coming back down. This makes a great analogy when thinking of your retirement savings. “Going up” is building your nest egg. “Coming down” is when you are beginning to take income from the nest egg you’ve built. Both parts are just as important, aren’t they?

If you are in the “Going Up” stage, and trying to build your nest egg, having a year like 2008 can be discouraging. What if you could get at least 7% or more every year on your savings? What if you were able to get even more in years when the market does better then 7%?
How about if I also told you that if you stayed invested for 10 years, you would DOUBLE your original investment? (By the way, according to the Rule of 72, that would be an average compound return of 7.2%.) http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rule_of_72

Lets say you have an account which grows by 10% at the beginning of the year, hits its peak in June, then tails off for the rest of the year. What if I told you that the highest Quarterly Gain (in this case the end of June) would be locked in for you, in helping to build your nest egg?

The next year, the same thing would happen. The benefit base would increase by either 7% OR whatever the highest quarterly gain was.

What about “Coming Down” the mountain and taking income? How about if I told you that beginning at age 63, you would be able to take 5% from the benefit base you built and you could take 5% for life? Wouldn’t it be great to know that your pay can go up, if the account continues to grow - and your pay won’t go down?

And for those who can wait until age 75 to begin taking income, would you like to be able to take 6% FOR LIFE? Sounds pretty good so far? Wouldn’t you feel more comfortable climbing your mountain if you had a “safety net“? For more information, please contact me at http://helpmy401k.us/. You may also follow me on Twitter at www.twitter.com/deanvoelker.
　
　

How Do I Keep My IRA From Being Eroded By Taxes When I Die?

Recently, I have been reading “The Retirement Savings Time Bomb…and How To Diffuse It” by Ed Slott. Ed is a highly renowned CPA and tax advisor. He has written for the Wall Street Journal, the New York Times, and USA Today. His book focuses on strategies to keep money in your savings, and away from the IRS.

One strategy of his, which I also recommend to my high net worth clients is the use of Life Insurance for estate planning. Because Life Insurance proceeds are not taxable, it’s a great way to pass money to your beneficiaries without creating a tax burden for them.

Ed uses a great story to make his point on why insurance is important. With his permission, I have included an excerpt from his book. Ed Slott’s website is www.irahelp.com.
******************************************************************************
If you’re not a baseball fan, then the name Bill Buckner probably doesn’t ring a bell. But if you follow the game, you’ll recognize it as one of the most ignominious names in the history of baseball.

Bill Buckner was the first baseman for the Boston Red Sox in the 1986 World Series when the Sox were matched against the New York Mets. It was Game 6. The Red Sox were an out away from winning a World Series for the first time in 68 years. The ball was pitched, the Mets batter swung and connected with a thunderous c-r-a-c-c-k-k, sending the ball straight to first base and the outstretched arms of Bill Buckner, who flubbed the catch before the stunned but elated crowd in New York’s Shea Stadium, letting the ball roll between his legs!

Thanks to this colossal error, the Mets were able to pull their fanny from the fire, win the game that night, and go on to win Game 7 and the World Series title. The city of Boston has never forgiven Bill Buckner. Last I heard, he’d moved to Idaho, which apparently still wasn’t far enough for Boston fans. To Boston Red Sox fans in particular, and to baseball fans in general, Bill Buckner remains but one thing: The Man Who Dropped the Ball.

Now, what if I told you the Bill Buckner was also one of the best players ever to play the game of baseball? Would you be shocked? Disbelieving? I know I was when I heard that exact statement mad in a recent show about Buckner called “Beyond the Glory” on the Fox Sports Network. Being an accountant by trade, I decided to do my own audit of Buckner’s statistics to see if the show was right.

But how would I find those statistics? Easy. I went to a local baseball card store and asked the owner if he had any Bill Buckner cards for sale. He looked at me like I’d sprouted two heads.
“Why would you want a Bill Buckner card?” he asked. “Nobody wants them. That’s why I don’t carry any. We’d never sell them.” But I persisted, and he said he’d check around the baseball card grapevine to see if he could come up with one.

I went back in a few weeks and, lo and behold, he’d managed to dig up a few old Bill Buckner cards for me. “How much?” I asked.

He said, “They’re worthless. You can have ’em for free.”

I thanked him, took the cards home, and quickly checked Bill Buckner’s statistics. Fox was right. The numbers were astounding!

Bill Buckner played 22 seasons. Only 25 players in the history of baseball have pleyed more games then he did. He’d gotten more hits than 70% of the players currently in the Baseball Hall of Fame, including such superstar names as Mickey Mantle, Ernie Banks, Reggie Jackson, Johnny Bench, and even Ted Williams. He had 500 more hit’s the Joe Di Maggio!

When Buckner played for the Chicago Cubs, he won a National League batting title. He was also an exceptional fielder. He genuinely was one of the greatest players the game of baseball has ever had. And yet he will be forever locked in the Baseball Hall of Shame for that one slip-up at the end of his career that cost the Red Sox the World Series.

As I pondered the ill-fated career of Bill Buckner, I found myself thinking, “He’s a lot like an IRA. He had such a brilliant career, accumulated so much, but in the end lost it all due to one error, and now his name is mud.”

Is that how you want your family to remember you? As the guy (or gal) who dropped the ball?
Most people don’t think about it much, but the combination of estate and income taxes can easily consume an IRA of any size. Combined, estate taxes, along with federal and state income taxes could easily exceed 90%.…..

When it comes to retirement accounts, its not enough to earn great investment returns. Yes, that is important in building the account, but even if you earn 30% per year, every year for 30 years, what good is it if, at the end of the line, up to 90% of the account’s value is lost - which can happen if the funds aren’t there to pay the combined estate and income taxes on an inherited IRA, and so the IRA itself must be used to pay those taxes.

If an IRA must be tapped to pay tax when the IRA owner dies, the result is a cycle of taxation that doesn’t stop until the beneficiaries are so punch drunk that they don’t know what’s happened to them, let alone to their IRA…..

Do something now while you are still alive and options to protect that money for your heirs still exist. Life Insurance is your retirement account’s best defense to offset the tax burden which beneficiaries may face.
******************************************************************************
For more information, please contact me at http://helpmy401k.us. You may also follow me on Twitter at www.twitter.com/deanvoelker