The Three Scariest Words Affecting Your Retirement...

by Pamela Yellen Bank on Yourself.com There are three words that could have the biggest impact on whether you enjoy a comfortable retirement... or you have to struggle and  forego life's luxuries – and even life's necessities. But almost no one is talking about these three words.  And there's a good chance you've never even heard of them. These three words could have more impact on your retirement lifestyle t han living longer than you expected... or than being forced to retire sooner than you planned (which happens to nearly 50% of Americans,  according to the Employee Benefit Research Institute). The three words may sound a little technical, but I'm going to  make them brain-dead simple to understand. The three words are: sequence of returns.  Specifically, the "unfavorable" kind. It's a fancy way of saying that retirees who have  a big portion of their assets in equities and  mutual funds face the very real risk  that the market will fall as they are  withdrawing money from their accounts. Many people plan to use the widely recommended "4% rule,"  which advises retirees to take out no more than 4% of the  value of their retirement accounts (adjusted for inflation) each year.  Studies show that rate of withdrawal has a good chance of making  your money last as long as you do.  (It should be noted that more recent studies show  that a 3% annual withdrawal is the maximum needed  to make your money last.) That means that if you have $100,000 in your retirement accounts,  you can safely pull out $4,000 a year using the 4% rule.  If you have $500,000, you can withdraw $20,000 a year,  and if you have $1 million in your account,  you can take out $40,000 a year. If you haven't thought much about what kind of lifestyle withdrawing  4% a year from your accounts would give you, I'm guessing you might  be feeling a little queasy right about now. Oh! And don't forget to take whatever you'll have to pay  in taxes that you deferred in your 401(k)  or IRA off the top of that number!) It's easy to see that if we experience another market crash of  50% or more – as has happened twicesince 2000 –  as you're nearing or already in retirement,  it could have a devastating impact on how much  you can withdraw each year. If your million-dollar 401(k) suddenly becomes a 201(k) worth  $500,000, withdrawing 4% will provide you only $20,000 a year,  instead of the $40,000 you had planned on. But here's where it gets really sticky... timing is everything... When you run the calculations, you discover that the impact of a market decline in the first few years of retirement is even worse  than in later years. It turns out that when you begin to take withdrawals, market volatility has a far greater impact than rate of return. An unfavorable sequence of returns may make you have  to cut back significantly on your retirement lifestyle, or force you to work longer than you had planned. The BIG problem, of course, is that there is no way  to accurately predict when the next market crash  will happen, or where the markets will be  when you are ready to retire. We may be at the beginning of the next major crash...  or several years away from it. Nobody knows for sure. One way to protect yourself from this very real threat to your  retirement lifestyle is to diversify your assets. What if a portion of your savings were in an asset that is  guaranteed to grow by a larger dollar amount every year?  That would be a favorable sequence of returns that translates  into financial peace of mind for life.

Such an asset exists, and it's called Bank On Yourself.   It's never had a losing year in more than 160 years! It also lets you fire your banker and become your own  financing source for your cars, vacations, a college education,  business expenses and more. And the best part is that it's easy to find out UP-FRONT  what your bottom-line guaranteed numbers and results  could be if you added Bank on Yourself to your financial plan. To find out how a custom-tailored plan could help you reach  your financial goals and dreams   without taking any unnecessary risks.  – just request your free Analysis right here.

Are you financially illiterate? Pamela Yellen discusses the truth about money that no one is teaching...

      Pamela Yellen: Creator "Bank on Yourself"

by Teresa Kuhn, JD, RFC, CSA

Authorized Bank On Yourself Advisor(TM)

Living Wealthy Financial Group

For a long time now, I have been encouraging my clients, friends, and family to take charge of their own financial destinies by becoming more educated about how money really works.

It's always shocking to me when I read the latest studies demonstrating just how few Americans grasp basic financial concepts.  Even well-educated Americans who consider themselves to be savvy in the area of personal finance often fail when given simple money tests.

Pamela Yellen recently joined the Living Wealthy Podcast to discuss her short, simple, but ultimately revealing new money quiz and the alternative to Wall Street offered by the Bank On Yourself system.

Check out the interview here:

http://www.blogtalkradio.com/livingwealthyradio/2015/08/14/financial-illiteracy-do-you-know-the-truth-about-money-with-pamela-yellen

Also, be sure to take the Financial IQ Quiz yourself.

http://www.bankonyourself.com/financial-literacy-month-quiz.html

PS: We'd love to know what YOU scored.  Call our office M-F 8AM-4PM Central time and tell us your score.  We'll send you a free packet of information full of great money advice.  

(800) 382-0830

One Way To Guard Against Identity Theft

by Teresa Kuhn

Living Wealthy Financial

Each year, over 15 million United States residents have their identities stolen.  

The resulting financial losses have been estimated at nearly $50 billion annually.

According to the US Department of Justice  approximately 7% of all

American adults have experienced identity theft with the average loss per incidence at $3,500.00.

As the technical expertise and savvy of would-be identity thieves increases, so does their ability to extract information from government and corporate databases, even those with high-level security.  

Breaches of these databases occur much more frequently than you might expect, making your risk of identity theft even greater than before.

For several years now, I have recommended that my clients take advantage of the legal access and identity theft protection offered by LegalShield.(R) 

LegalShield Platinum Council member Larry Smith says that as the danger of identity theft has grown, LegalShield's product has become stronger and more effective, offering features that other identity products can't match at a price nearly anyone can afford. 

 In June of 2015, security powerhouse Kroll International partnered with LegalShield to launch "IDShield," an innovative solution to guard against identity fraud. 

"Everyone needs this, says Smith, "and the monthly cost is such that anyone can afford it.  Your financial information is vulnerable and you need to protect it as best you can."

Learn more about the legal and identity services offered by LegalShield by going here:

IProtectPeople.info