Thread: Avoid the nest egg scramble

Avoid the nest egg scramble

Conventional thinking not always best for stretching retirement funds

By Robert Powell

MARKETWATCH
2:00 a.m. October 4, 2009

Back in the good old days, before the crisis of 2008-09, many experts suggested that all you needed to do was withdraw 4 percent per year, adjusted for inflation, from your nest egg. That strategy, experts said, was a near-guarantee that your nest egg would last a lifetime.

Well, go tell that to the guy selling apples and pencils on the street corner.

Yes, conventional wisdom has proved to be more conventional than wise.

Now everyone is trying to figure out the best way to turn a nest egg into an income stream that will last throughout retirement. That includes AARP, which has released two tip sheets that “challenge conventional thinking and offer general guidance about how to make the best decision for you and your circumstances.â€

This article leaves out an important issue.

Older workers who loose their job in this economy have little chance of finding another job and many must start collecting their Social Security now just to survive.

Originally Posted by JohnDoe2

This article leaves out an important issue.

Older workers who loose their job in this economy have little chance of finding another job and many must start collecting their Social Security now just to survive.

Many people claim Social Security — even though it means a reduced benefit — at age 62, using the faulty logic that they may not live past the so-called break-even point.

Took the words right out of my mouth, JohnDoe2!