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It would be interesting to hear from those who have purchased LTCi within the last 0-3 years , and see what their calculations were. I just do not see how the numbers add up. - How does the policy provide increasing benefits to somehow approximate the true costs 15-25 years in the future? - How doe...

Make sure prospective tenant is: a) licensed from the state/city to provide such a service along with any potential employees of the business, b) has a very large liability policy in the name of said business, c)you obtain a separate insurance policy (liability) against trips,falls,etc d)is your in...

I pay $140 a year with Auto Owners. Not trying to advertise them but since State Farm was mentioned I thought I'd throw another alternative out. Pricing will vary by each individual circumstance. Living in a large city vs a small city will make a difference. Living in a state or county with a high l...

Have you made a mistake? Nope

Are your in-laws making a mistake - Yep

Press forward with your decision and you won't regret it.

I'm confused. Almost everyone on this thread believes LTCi is needed and that is a given. Several months back I read a long thread where many were for the purchase of this coverage. Just as interesting it seemed there were just as many Bogleheads who were against it and some of these Bogleheads were...

That's the head line on the CNN web site. Sure glad I am now a Boglehead as I can ignore that noise.

This thread is going to brew up some trouble I can tell. Sorry for the bad pun as I've long bean a bad comic. I caffein my toes, where are they? I use to know a lot of puns about java but I can't remember them now as I have a bad case of Indonesia.

Sorry - back to work for me.

& they didn't even mention all of the Bogleheads who don't even use electronic brokerages.

I am 50/50 and not retired but will be in the not distant future. At this juncture, this is where I intend to stay and yes I would rebalance into equities. As I say that, though, Dr. Bernstein's advice to take money off of the table has a lot of appeal to me. Two portfolios with 20 to 25 times of ba...

Thanks for posting the interview. You confirmed my thinking on the book. I stopped by a Barnes & Noble recently and saw it on the stand and took a few minutes to review it. I thought it might be interesting to read but for entertainment purposes but not for taking action on anything he wrote. Wh...

Sometimes I make comments that seem to me to be relevent to the discussion at hand but everyone else wonders where in the world I am coming from. I hope this isn't one of those instances. I read Dr Pfau's white paper on the danger of the 4% withdrawal rate when real interest rates are this low. As I...

Are you looking to buy individual securites or mutual funds. With what you listed, I think the former and not the latter. If so, this is a group that by and large buys mutual funds and selects an asset allocation. Not many of us are good stock pickers and by and large we are skeptical of those who c...

I will be interested in the logistics of premium payments. Once a plan is started is one locked in for a year and can mid-year changes be made? The reason for my interest is on 1/1/14 both my wife and myself will be 64. In July she will qualify for medicare and then I will in December. We would star...

Who said a $5,000 road bike is extravagant? The rider who just came in from a 3 hour ride with 7% body fat or the guy pecking away at his computer about this thread with 20+% body fat? Would it be the guy with a resting heart rate in the 40's or the guy over in the corner with a resting heart rate i...

Would a Vanguard Variable Annuity with the GLWB (Guaranteed Lifetime Withdrawal Benefit) be considered in the good or bad category?

The healh insurance premium of $906 per month might be for two people but still seems high. Medicare Part A is free (not really as we all have paid payroll taxes for years) and Part B is something like $110 per month per person. Prescription drug coverage Part D is something I don't know the cost on...

I'm not 65 yet but closing in on it fast. I've done some research on medicare and supplements and it seems from what I've read that $904 per month for health insurance seems high. How was this number derived?

I've considered purchasing a variable annuity from Vanguard in 2 years when I turn 65 instead of a SPIA. Main reason is my wife just can't get over turning a sum of money to an insurance company for good because the kids might need it when we are gone. Thus, I've thought of the Vanguard variable as ...

I'm not a retired athlete, but I've spent the past year dealing with making the most of a large lump sum windfall. My advice is take your time! Read the books. I found William Bernstein's The Four Pillars of Investing the most comprehensive and useful after reading all the others. Don't feel like y...

As for the financial planning aspects of retirement the suggestion on the "Bogleheads Guide To Retirement Planning" previously mientioned is an excellent recommendation. I also like the writings of Steve Vernon who is a retired pension actuary. Google Steve Vernon or go to Amazon and searc...

I think this can be an interesting topic to discuss and I look forward to the dialog that will ensue. However, for me, I recognized opportunity costs in some of my short term decisions in the past and acted accordingly. I must say, though, most of the time I didn't and even more so when the time hor...

This question is to Rick Ferri. Rick I note your comment about (1) determining ones expenses in retirement (2) subtracting expected social security from the expenses and then multipling times 20. I thought "The Rule" was 30 times expenses. Why do you suggest the number of only 20 times. H...

Rick Ferri says I need 2 million???? Good Lord, I'll never make it. With that said, my number is $500,000 which is a little less than what I currently have and significantly less than what most here say they need. I'm getting close to pulling the plug but then only part way as I will still work part...

Sounds like a couple large corporations I worked for.

I predict something is going to happen. I just don't know what though. Best that I stay the course.

why is it that whenever I hear Jim Cramer's name my thoughts go immediatly to the Daily Show?

looking, this is the investing forum. You might have better luck getting an answer to your question in the consumers forum.

Somehow I have it in my head that pensions, 401Ks, IRA's, Roths and the like are protected in lawsuits and bankruptcies. If I volunteer as a board member on a charitable organization, are these assets protected in the event I am sued as a volunteer because of a wrongful act.

Paul, Excellent point. I will look for that white paper on their website. Don't know why Mr. McNabb would say 30%, when he could have said 20-40%. It came out so assuredly, causing me pause (big time)! Probably because 30% is right smack dab in the middle of 20-40%. Now I know why you are such a le...

As for an annuity, everything I've read suggests waiting until you are at least in your 60's before purchasing one. I don't want to speak authoritatively on this as I'm no expert but it's not until this age or older that survivorship credits make it worthwhile - or so I've read. In fact, I sort of t...

If a SPIA is purchased with IRA funds by someone over age 70 1/2: What happens if the annuity amount is greater than the RMD. ? Will you be taxed on the full annuity amount ? Can you just keep the excess over the RMD in your IRA ? 121 Someone more astute than me will tell us for sure but I don't th...

Do you need to pay tax on this income? This is only income. Thanks Good question and I don't see this aspect of SPIAs discussed a lot. The answer is it depends. If one purchases a SPIA with before tax dollars, IRA/401k, then my understanding is it is 100% taxable. This makes sense in that if I pull...

You might not die on your 86th birthday. True, but I'm guessing the money will be enjoyed more in years 62-69 then it would be in years 87+. The other thing to keep in mind is how much of the OP's portfolio can be left alone to continue growing by taking SS at 62 instead of 70. Ah yes so true. On t...

I believe the OP was contemplating an SPIA. Most Bogleheads agree that a Single Premium Immediate Annuity is appropriate for some investors depending on their need and time horizon. SPIA's are commodities, competitively priced and basically a "fair game". Variable Annuities are a differen...

I believe the OP was contemplating an SPIA. Most Bogleheads agree that a Single Premium Immediate Annuity is appropriate for some investors depending on their need and time horizon. SPIA's are commodities, competitively priced and basically a "fair game". Variable Annuities are a differen...

When is the market going to drop? I need to know.

Chubb is excellent for both commercial umbrellas and personal umbrellas. On personal umbrellas, Chubbs marketing plan is for the more affluent and they are good at it. If like me, you are middle class then Chubb most likely won't be for you as their pricing reflects what segment of the market they w...

Keith, It's frightening :) but our thoughts are virtually mirror images of each other. I have decided to wait until 70 for social security. My wife is 5 months older than me and her social security benefit is about $100 less monthly than the spousal benefit she would receive if I suspend at 66. We m...

"The last I looked, an SPIA for a single 65-year old male was 7%. For a joint annuity it was a touch under 6%, and for an inflation protected annuity, a touch under 4% . (Dang! 4%! Who would have guessed it?)" And this whole 4% income stream come from an underlying investment in bonds . I...

Thanks - it's unfortunate though because some Bogleheads don't appear to be as friendly or welcoming to new investors. I realize that I have been indecisive and gone in different directions at times, but it's part of the learning process. It's the people that don't ask questions that end up making ...

.... The issue is: 1) what is the most comfortable system for adjusting withdrawals? 2) If you're going to make flexible adjustments, what's the evidence that any set of numerical rules is going to work any better than Taylor Larimore's system : "We simply withdrew what we needed and kept an e...

When involved in a situation like this, inform your insurance company immediately. Yes it was the other parties fault but why deal directlly with them and their claims dept as they will have the upper hand on the untrained. Turn it over to your insurance company and let your insurance companies clai...

It doesn't matter what your house would sell for now or in the future. Property tax assessments likewise are irrelevent. What matters is a hurricane that tears up huge portions of Florida property. What would it cost to rebuild in that scenario with limited and expensive building materials as well a...

I recently transferred a portion of the Total Bond Fund to the short term corporated since sooner or later interest rates will go up. Was I timing the market or playing defense? My motive was the latter.

Serbeer, if anyone is negligent and the amount of settlement is 7 million, the insurance company pays their limit of coverage and walks away. If one has a total liabilty limit of $1,500,000 of underlying coverage (auto or homeowners) and umbrella then the policyholder would be liable for 5.5 million...

Victoria, instead of sitting if front of a TV getting fat I could be out in the countryside burning calories on a road bike. I could be cross country skiing in the winter. I could play a round or two of golf every week at a fraction of the cost of what golf costs in the land of fancy restaurants and...

Is all of this to say that where I live and how much it cost's might have an impact on how many millions I need to have saved for retirement when that day comes? I live in a small town not too far from a mid-size city. Being in the midwest I go to the Chicago area frequently. There is a big big diff...

The policyholder has no control on the handling or settlement of a claim. Through discovery the plaintiff and the plaintiff's attorney most likely will know what assets are available. If there is an underlying auto policy limit of $500,000 and an umbrella with a policy limit of $1,000,000 they may d...

If having more coverage just means that you will be sued for more money, I'm not sure how that is useful. Likewise, I'm not sure how one arrives at a coverage amount based on net worth, if the plaintiff's lawyers will just set the amount of damages sought to your coverage + net worth + some additio...

I drive a big old Mercury Grand Marquis. Wife drives me nuts. I think a used Grand Marquis is going to be my next car. I love the old school Detroit comfort-mobile. It's a great car. I inherited it from my Dad and at first wanted to sell it because... it's big and sort of an old man's car. However,...