Coasting in Retirement is dedicated to the financial planning and investment management needs of pre-retirees and retirees living an active lifestyle along our part of the Gulf Coast. Host Josh Null and co-host Michelle Melton dive into relevant financial topics, plus have a little fun with the "Michelle with the News of the Week" and "Josh's Crystal Ball & Big Mouth" segments. Josh's practice Gulf Coast Financial Advisors serves clients in the Panhandle of Florida, Lower Alabama, and the Gulf Coast of Mississippi and Louisiana. You can hear the original broadcast of Coasting in Retirement every Sunday from Noon to 1 PM CT on 106.5 FM in Mobile, Alabama.
Since we last spoke with you listeners, the Fed gave indication it was going to hold its Fed Fund Rates steady for December, and as a result, the market celebrated with a run up that has left some indexes nearing their all-time highs, last seen in January 2022.
Josh and Michelle have some fun using real money to demonstrate the different choices investors' have for their retirement accounts.
The most important question isn’t if a recession is coming, because eventually it will. What investors need to pay attention to is what part of our economy stumbles first, and what options they have to protect their investments against a recession.
Investors that read financial news have undoubtably noticed recent headlines like “bond yields hit multi decade high” and “the bond yield curve has inverted, which is a leading indicator of a coming recession”. Why should those of you in or near retirement pay attention to bond yields? We’re going to attempt to answer this question.
As the old saying goes, there’s no such thing as a free lunch, and that applies to your investments. Whether you’re a do-it-yourselfer paying 6 bips using low-cost index funds, or you’re a variable annuity customer paying over 300 basis points(!), you’re paying someone a certain amount to invest your money. The question becomes – are you getting what you paid for?
Rule 72(t) is a section of the IRS code that covers the exceptions and processes that allow you to withdraw money from your qualified retirement accounts be age 59 ½ and not pay the typical 10th early withdrawal penalty.