Recent headlines have raised concerns for many working Americans, suggesting that Social Security may not be around by the time they retire. Let’s take a closer look to understand what’s really going on, because the reality is more nuanced, and far less alarming, than the headlines imply.
Ryan Coffee, CFP®, provides an overview of the 2024 updates on the Secure Act 2.0 including 529 to Roth conversions, Roth changes, and student loan debt.
The point is this: there’s always risks around the corner and it’s part of our wiring as humans to focus on what could go wrong to the exclusion of everything else. But the same instincts that kept our ancestors alive likely isn’t conducive to investing successfully unless we can understand and harness it.
What happens next is where things get interesting.
The concentrated rally in US markets this year isn’t out of the ordinary. Doubters would have you believe the market is on shaky ground with the rally being led by so few names. But the same prognosticators fail to recall that rallies following bear market recessions typically feature a concentrated move at the top before broadening out.
Placing one’s life savings in assets that may lose value can be fraught with emotions, high and low. When the market turns down and emotion sours, reminders like, “Valuations are more attractive than they have been,” or, “The only guarantee in investing is that cash loses value to inflation,” fall flat. They’re just too sterile for most of us.