After the 2008 market crash, target date funds came under heavy fire for failing to protect older retirement investors. This time around, TDFs are faring much better – thanks to lessons learned a few years ago. The basic idea of TDFs — to invest in a mix of assets with the aim of reducing equity [...] [...more]
Retirement investors have struggled with a Jekyll and Hyde economy these past two years, where Dr. Jekyll lives very well on Wall Street while Mr. Hyde runs roughshod over a terrified Main Street. On Main Street, the jobless rate tops 9 percent and 14 million residential mortgages are underwater – a figure Deutsche Bank thinks [...] [...more]
If Washington strikes a big deal on deficit reduction to avoid debt default, it’s going to be bad news all around for older Americans. The debt crisis negotiations may yield no more than a short-term Band-aid and sidestep long-term changes in spending policy. But it’s clear that the Obama Administration and some lawmakers are reaching [...] [...more]
Is Congress getting ready to slash the tax deduction on retirement saving? The deductions on IRAs and 401(k) contributions is one of the deficit reduction options known in Washington as “tax expenditures” — that is, revenue the government foregoes through deductions, exclusions or exemptions. Overall tax expenditures — which also include deductions for big-ticket items [...] [...more]
Charles Schwab has long been a leader in low-cost retail investing. Now, it’s gearing up for a run at the 401(k) market by hitching its wagon to two ideas whose time may have come: low-cost passive investing and investment advice for plan participants. Schwab has never been a major player in administering 401(k) plans for [...] [...more]
