How to Retire on Time

How to Actually Balance Risk and Protection in Retirement

Michael Decker, NSSA® answers a viewer question on balancing risk and protection using a food-storage analogy, splitting a portfolio into smaller pieces that each have th

Why Just Buying the S&P 500 Does Not Solve Retirement Math

Michael Decker, NSSA® responds to a viewer who says the math only works with stocks and the S&P 500, and the risk that gets left out when withdrawals start during a down

What to Do With Your Money Five Years Before Retirement

Michael Decker, NSSA® answers a viewer question on repositioning savings five years from retirement, and why shopping around matters here as much as anywhere else. The f

A Way to Decide Whether You Actually Need an Annuity

Michael Decker, NSSA® walks through how to decide if an annuity fits your plan before shopping for one, then answers a follow-up question on timing IRA to Roth conversion

How to Plan Retirement Around an Inheritance You Might Not Get

Michael Decker, NSSA® answers a viewer question on planning retirement income around a future inheritance, and why treating it as a backup plan works better than counting

The Bond Market Warning Sign Behind This Year's Market Jitters

Michael Decker, NSSA® walks through a widening gap between short-term and long-term interest rates that echoes the run-up to 2008.  Plus two "would you rather" thought ex

Why Some People Don't Need to Do Roth Conversions

Michael Decker, NSSA® answers a viewer question on why some people don't need IRA to Roth conversions even as taxes go up, and the one number he says actually matters. T

How You can Exit a Concentrated Company Stock Position

Michael Decker, NSSA® answers a viewer question on selling company stock that makes up over half their savings, and three ways to manage the tax bill along the way. The

How to Schedule Withdrawals From a $750,000 401(k)

Michael Decker, NSSA® answers a viewer question on withdrawing from a $750,000 401(k) at 65, and tells a CVS receipt story he uses to explain wasted tax breaks. The foll

A Way to Think About a 403(b) Rollover

Michael Decker, NSSA® answers a viewer question on an in-service 403(b) rollover, an index annuity, and withdrawal order, and why the real first question isn't about the

How A Few Stocks Can Prop Up the Whole Market

Michael Decker, NSSA® walks through how much of the market's growth is riding on a handful of AI-related companies, and shares the story of the day he learned about risk

How the Widow Tax Changes a Retirement Plan

Michael Decker, NSSA® answers a viewer question on the widow tax, and why a surviving spouse can end up taxed at close to double the rate on roughly the same income. The

What a Financial Advisor Can Offer That You Can't Get Yourself

Michael Decker, NSSA® answers a viewer question on what a financial advisor can actually offer that you can't get on your own, and where that access matters most. The fo

How Your Social Security Timing Can Affects Everything Else

Michael Decker, NSSA® answers a viewer question on how Social Security timing can affects the rest of a retirement plan, well beyond just maximizing the benefit itself.

Tax Planning for Retirement Accounts Under $1 Million

Michael Decker, NSSA® answers a viewer question on tax planning for retirement savings under $1 million, and why the right approach is more subtle than it looks. The fol

Is the Stock Market in another Bubble Right Now?

Michael Decker, NSSA® answers a viewer question on whether he's concerned about the markets right now, and explains why a flat market worries him more than a crash. The

Three Common Leaks in a Retirement Plan

Michael Decker, NSSA® answers a viewer question on the most common leaks he sees in a retirement plan, and the first one is tied to how much AI exposure people don't real

A Retirement Plan That Ran Out of Money Doing Everything "Right"

Michael Decker, NSSA® runs the same million-dollar IRA forward in two different ways, one converting aggressively to a Roth and one does not. Only one of them still has m

How to Plan for a Big Expense in Retirement

How do you fit the large bills in your retirement plan? New roof? New car?  Michael Decker, NSSA® answers a viewer question on planning around a big one-time expense and

What's Changing with Medicare This Year

Don’t let yourself auto-renew your current plan.  Big changes could cause you to want to shop this season before you commit. Michael Decker, NSSA® covers what's changing