This article let’s me get on my soapbox about one of my favorite topics: markets don’t need to be right to be efficient. Oftentimes, people equate market efficiency with “right” or “perfect” market prices. That’s simply not true, and in fact, it doesn’t even mean anything. The folks who are advancing these arguments are either misinformed or…

Jack Bogle has done more for investors than almost anyone. He popularized passive investing, and founded Vanguard. Everything he has done hasn’t happened by accident. When he talks about the financial services industry people should listen, and think carefully about what he says. He isn’t always right about everything, but he knows what he’s talking…

This report features world capital market performance and a timeline of events for the last quarter. It begins with a global overview, then features the returns of stock and bond asset classes in the US and international markets. The report also illustrates the performance of globally diversified portfolios and features a topic of the quarter.…

In addition to other methods we’ve discussed, a third type of variable spending model uses dynamic programming methods. These methods rely on complex computing power and mathematical equations to integrate spending and asset allocation decisions more completely over the life cycle. Dynamic programming provides a road map at each point in time for optimal spending and…

The fiduciary rule has been in the news again lately, as some members of Congress have been trying to “delay” it so they can “study” its impact. In other words, kill it. But there’s some interesting data that suggests that, at least in the long term, this is moot. Cerulli Associates has found that young…

Planning for retirement is hard. There’s a lot to think about, and so much of what you need to prepare for is uncertain. But as this article points out, everything starts with trying to figure out how much you’ll spend in retirement. Once you know that, you can figure out how you’ll get there (or…

Our Director of Retirement Research, Dr. Wade Pfau, was recently named one of InvestmentNews’ Icons & Innovators of 2016. According to IN, the list recognizes the people who have “shaped and transformed the financial advice profession.” All told, the list includes 20 people – 18 innovators and two icons. Dr. Pfau was listed as an innovator, which…

Last time, we compared retirement spending rules using historical data, but I believe we can arrive at a much more realistic picture for today’s retirees using Monte Carlo simulations. To that end, today I want to simulate these strategies with Monte Carlo simulations for stock and bond returns using current market environment as a starting point.…