She’s Not a Captive Academic
For New School economist Teresa Ghilarducci, the 401(k) system, like the inert bird in the classic Monty Python pet shop scene, is a dead parrot. Her independence is refreshing.
Global roundup from IPE.com: China, UK, Netherlands
China now outsources management of about $57 billion of its $136 billion Social Security fund to foreign money managers, UBS is warning UK pension funds about longevity risk, and...
It’s a drag: Low rates weigh on life insurer earnings
“Operating earnings in the individual annuity segment were generally lower in 2011,” said a new report from Fitch Ratings, “as extreme equity market volatility in the second half more...
One in six mortgages of >50 Americans are underwater: AARP
Subprime, middle-income and minority borrowers have been hardest hit by the housing crisis. But serious delinquency rates are still higher among those under age 50.
“Quote” of the Week
“You can be young without money but you can’t be old without it. You’ve got to be old with money because to be old without it is just too...
Cash balance plans, the darlings of small professional firms
“IRS regulations released in October 2010 added flexibility for plan sponsors, so we expect this growth rate to continue accelerating,” said Dan Kravitz, whose eponymous firm designs and administers...
The Social Security Claiming Guide
A guide to one of the most important financial decisions that mass-affluent retirees will make.
Life insurers face opportunities, constraints in retirement market: Conning
Conning Research estimates that at the end of 2011, the individual annuity line held about $1.2 trillion in assets and the life insurance industry's free capital could support an...
Pick and bankroll: Trade to Rockets saves Jeremy Lin over $1m/year in taxes
The combined New York State and New York City tax rates are about 12.7% a year. The combined Texas state and Houston city taxes are zero percent per year.
Financial service firms will focus on retirement income offerings, advisor training: Hearts & Wallets
Having "credible, empirical methodologies" for generating retirement income "will become a competitive necessity" for financial services firms in the future, according to the Massachusetts-based research firm.
New report specifies best and worst of the TDF universe
BrightScope and Target Date Analytics have released the highlights of Popping the Hood V, the latest in their series of reports on target date funds, fund families and companies.
Harold Evensky at Wharton
Advisors in particular will be interesting in Harold Evensky's comments on retirement income planning during this 39-minute after-dinner talk and slide presentation at the Pension Research Council's meeting in...
In the UK, auto-enrollment solves one problem but creates others
A debate rages over where small retirement accounts should go when auto-enrolled participants change jobs. There seems to be no British equivalent of the “rollover IRA.”
CFP Board to publish its first financial planning handbook
"The financial planning profession has long needed a book that encompasses not just the tactical pieces of putting together a financial plan, but also the academic underpinnings of a...
How an Advisor Views CDAs
“Being able to tell they have a guarantee is huge,” the fee-based advisor Kimberly Foss (pictured at left) told RIJAdvisor. “2008 was not fun and I...
LPL to launch mass market advice platform, acquire Veritat Advisors
LPL Financial expects to launch NestWise, a financial advisory platform for the mass market, later in 2012.
CFP Board to publish its first financial planning handbook
The handbook, which will be available in print and e-reader form, will feature approximately 90 chapters that have implications for practitioners, educators and students interested in becoming personal financial...
Harold Evensky Speaks at Wharton
Last May 4, venerated financial advisor and author Harold Evensky delivered the dinner keynote address at the 2012 Pension Research Council Symposium at the University of Pennsylvania. The 39-minute...
“Quote” of the Week
"Money, no longer tied to gold or any other firm anchor, can be created instantly, in infinite quantities, on the technocrats' say-so. And so long as factories have spare...
Contingent Deferred Annuities: Still a Rare Bird
Only two life insurers—Transamerica Advisors Life and Great-West Life & Annuity—can be said to be actively marketing contingent deferred annuities, aka stand-alone living benefits. Phoenix is on the cusp.
