Home - HumbleDollar

Latest PostsAll Discussions »

Retirement

Will Congress Wait Until the Last Minute on Social Security?

Jeff Peck | Sep 27, 2026

"And it's amazing how little gets accomplished."

- Randy Dobkin

Abuse

If you don’t think AI is powerful and scary, think again!

R Quinn | Sep 30, 2026

"For me, being anonymous isn't worth the extra time and complexity."

- Randy Dobkin

Family

A Broken Boy

Andrew Clements | Sep 30, 2026

"Thank you, Dan. I lost touch with most of my classmates, so I really don’t know how those years affected them later in life. My circumstances were also somewhat different from most of theirs. While many could go home for weekends or shorter breaks, Nick and I had parents living some 10,000 miles away in Bangladesh, so home simply wasn’t an option. I’m sure we all carried away different experiences from those years, but I can only really speak to the impact they had on me."

- Andrew Clements

Health

Medicare Part D premium shock 2027

R Quinn | Sep 29, 2026

"Just a caution; when you renew or change your plan this year, be sure to set your billing option to deduct from your social security check, even if it is $-0-. That way you will be assured it will be paid if the premiuom changes. Iowa had a $-0- premium option that became a $4.20 option. Many did not notice the change until they received the cancellation notice. When these people enroll in part D for 2027, they will have a penalty attached for the time they were not in a plan."

- Mark Eckman

From HumbleDollar Founder Jonathan Clements

Happiness

Let’s Get Happy

AMERICA’S HAPPINESS plunged during the pandemic. I’d assumed that survey result was an aberration, and perhaps that’ll still prove to be the case. But…

In Retirement

Dealing with a reduction in Social Security benefits. Is there a backup plan?

R Quinn | Aug 26, 2025

"Monthly checks began in 1940 at age 65 when the life expectancy was 61.4 for men and 65.7 for women. The average check was $22.71 if Gemini is to be believed. With that in mind, why isn't the full retirement age indexed? (Sorry, normal retirement age. Forgot my new speak.)"

- Mark Eckman

Taxes

Sourcing Taxes for Roth Conversions

Mark Ukleja | Sep 29, 2026

"You take distributions only to the extent of your required spending then assess the remaining available conversion and total tax liability and do the end of year conversion and tax withholding together,"

- Mark Ukleja

In Retirement

Is your retirement plan counting on a Social Security COLA in the future?

R Quinn | Sep 24, 2026

"It’s not a scam, it’s social insurance. I don’t see it as regressive. The taxes are based on earnings and so are the benefits plus the benefit formula is skewed to give a higher benefit to lower income workers. The percentage bend points decline with higher average wage of the individual. Virtually all beneficiaries receive more than they pay in taxes within six years of starting to collect. That’s why taxing SS benefits make sense. And also another reason why it isn’t regressive. I collected in benefits all I paid in taxes ten years ago and all my employer paid as well at this point. Disabled children, some spouses and ex-spouses and surviving spouses all may collect without paying taxes on their own work earnings. That’s why it is insurance. It’s worked fine for over 80 years, cry’s of scam are misplaced. As far a Medicare goes that is pure insurance. Taxes fund Part A and premiums and out of pocket costs and general revenue fund part B. All insurance transfers someone’s money to someone else. That is the very concept, collective protection. Hardly a scam at all and to call it that is irresponsible. If there was no such transfer, what is the alternative for everyone regardless of means. Frankly, I wish all I paid into and now pay for Medicare went to someone else instead of the hundreds of thousands in medical bills my wife and I have incurred in the last few years. You may want to consider dropping all forms of insurance if you view the concept as a scam and if you feel comfortable with accepting all the risk on your own."

- R Quinn

In Retirement

The Security Money Can’t Buy

Dennis Friedman | Sep 25, 2026

"Bob, Thank you so much for sharing your heartfelt words and experience. I’m so glad you have good friends, family, and fond memories to lean on. Wishing you the very best."

- Dennis Friedman

Behavior

Time Is Priceless

Andrew Clements | Sep 23, 2026

"Thank you Philip for your encouraging words, and thank you for reading my post. It's much appreciated."

- Andrew Clements

Behavior

My favorite question.

Richard Hayman | Aug 6, 2025

"You are indeed rich. Rich is not just about money."

- Steve Skillman

Investing

Financial Lessons

ArticleAdam M. Grossman | Sep 26, 2026

WHAT'S THE MOST important idea in personal finance? It’s hard to single out just one, but over the years, I’ve found the following dozen ideas to be among the most useful.

Whether it’s on TV or online, there’s never any shortage of market prognosticators. Especially during a bull market, everyone seems to have an opinion on where things are headed. The reality, though, is that people can only guess about how the economy, the market or any individual investment will perform. Convincing as they might sound, no one has a crystal ball. That’s why, when it comes to investing, I suggest taking an evidence-based approach, one that relies as much as possible on data and research rather than on the simple stories, anecdotes and sayings that are so prevalent among market commentators.
What does the data tell us? Among the most significant research in recent years is the work of Hendrik Bessembinder. In looking at the historical returns of stocks, he found that just a tiny fraction—only 4%—have accounted for the vast majority of the market’s gains over and above what Treasury bills paid, and the median stock actually delivered a negative return. This is one of the key reasons I recommend index funds rather than picking individual stocks or investing in an actively-managed fund. Identifying that 4% is almost impossibly difficult. But if you invest in a broad-based index fund, you’ll have a high likelihood of owning the next Apple or Nvidia.
Be careful not to miss the forest for the trees. The most important driver of investment risk and return for most people, most of the time, is asset allocation. In other words, the dollars you have in stocks vs. in bonds or in cash will almost always be the most consequential decision. It’s easy to lose sight of that, though, because so much of the investment commentary from day to day focuses on details like small differences in fund expenses or small differences in bond yields. To be sure, details can be important, but only after considering the big picture.
Another challenge in investing is that certain rules of thumb gain so much popularity that they end up being seen as rules rather than just guidelines. For example, some say that the percentage of a portfolio allocated to bonds should be equal to an investor’s age. To me, that’s illogical. Consider Bill Gates. He’s 70 years old, but it stands to reason that he shouldn’t have the same asset allocation as any other 70-year-old. Rules of thumb are useful as points of reference, but we shouldn’t lose sight of the fact that everyone’s situation is different, and our investments should reflect that. More to the point, don’t worry if you’re doing something different from the next person.
Buy insurance, but only to protect against losses you couldn’t absorb on your own. What does this mean in practice? In many cases, it’s possible to significantly cut insurance premiums by increasing deductibles. For example, if you have a seven-figure net worth, you might consider raising the deductible on your homeowner’s insurance to $5,000 or $10,000 or even more. Similarly, you might re-evaluate your life insurance as your net worth grows. You’ll likely become “self-insured” at some point, and then you could reduce or drop that coverage.
Personal finance is quantitative, but we should never make decisions based only on the numbers. For example, a common question is how much cash to keep on hand. While we could work out an optimal number on a calculator, that shouldn’t be the final answer. You should also consider what would provide you with peace of mind. That is equally important.
Be wary of the psychological pitfall known as recency bias. This is the tendency to extrapolate from recent experience and to downplay the possibility that things might change. The most famous example? In the late-1920s, when the stock market was booming, Yale University economist Irving Fisher declared that the stock market had reached a “permanently high plateau.” Just nine days later, the market crashed, ultimately dropping 89% from its peak.
Avoid high fees. The research firm Morningstar once wrote, “If there’s anything in the whole world of mutual funds that you can take to the bank, it’s that expense ratios help you make better decisions. In every single time period and data point tested, low-cost funds beat high-cost funds.”
Keep things simple. Most importantly, I would be wary of investments that aren’t easily understood. Not only can this help keep investment costs down, but it also makes it much easier to monitor your financial picture. Legendary fund manager Peter Lynch said it best: “Never invest in any idea you can't illustrate with a crayon.”
Avoid “interesting” investments. So far this year, Wall Street has introduced more than 1,000 new exchange-traded funds (ETFs). How many of these are worth your attention? My guess is you could probably count them on one hand. More than 80% of these new funds are actively-managed, and more than 30% employ leverage. And there are more to come. Fund companies recently filed paperwork to create ETFs that will track the performance of major league sports teams. They won’t actually own shares in the teams; instead, they’re expected to rise and fall in response to each team’s wins and losses.
For years, I’ve argued that bitcoin isn’t a valid investment. Even though it’s gone way up since I first made that argument, I still feel the same way, and for the same reason: because it lacks intrinsic value. Unlike stocks or bonds, it doesn’t generate any dividends or interest. Bitcoin’s price is not anchored to anything measurable or tangible, and that’s why, in my opinion, its price is so volatile.
When it comes to investment risk, investors’ attention usually turns to the stock market. That makes sense, but as we’ve seen this year, bonds are not without risk. And unfortunately, the total-bond market index, which is often seen as the simplest, set-it-and-forget-it option, is one that carries quite a bit of risk. If you’re choosing bond investments, my recommendation is to pay attention to a metric known as duration. This tells you how sensitive a bond, or bond fund, will be to interest rate changes. In my view, investors should hold a sizable portion of their bond investments in a fund, or in individual bonds, with a duration of less than two years.

Adam M. Grossman is the founder of Mayport, a fixed-fee wealth management firm. Sign up for Adam's Daily Ideas email, follow him on X @AdamMGrossman and check out his earlier articles.

Retirement

Will Congress Wait Until the Last Minute on Social Security?

Jeff Peck | Sep 27, 2026

"And it's amazing how little gets accomplished."

- Randy Dobkin

Abuse

If you don’t think AI is powerful and scary, think again!

R Quinn | Sep 30, 2026

"For me, being anonymous isn't worth the extra time and complexity."

- Randy Dobkin

Family

A Broken Boy

Andrew Clements | Sep 30, 2026

- Andrew Clements

Health

Medicare Part D premium shock 2027

R Quinn | Sep 29, 2026

- Mark Eckman

From HumbleDollar Founder Jonathan Clements

Happiness

Let’s Get Happy

AMERICA’S HAPPINESS plunged during the pandemic. I’d assumed that survey result was an aberration, and perhaps that’ll still prove to be the case. But…

In Retirement

Dealing with a reduction in Social Security benefits. Is there a backup plan?

R Quinn | Aug 26, 2025

- Mark Eckman

Taxes

Sourcing Taxes for Roth Conversions

Mark Ukleja | Sep 29, 2026

- Mark Ukleja

In Retirement

Is your retirement plan counting on a Social Security COLA in the future?

R Quinn | Sep 24, 2026

- R Quinn

In Retirement

The Security Money Can’t Buy

Dennis Friedman | Sep 25, 2026

"Bob, Thank you so much for sharing your heartfelt words and experience. I’m so glad you have good friends, family, and fond memories to lean on. Wishing you the very best."

- Dennis Friedman

Manifesto

Sep 30, 2026

NO. 36: WE SHOULD consider working at least part-time into our late 60s and possibly beyond. That’ll not only help financially, but also it can bring a sense of purpose to our retirement.

Truths

Sep 29, 2026

NO. 116: AVOIDING probate is a big cost savings in some states—but not others. A local attorney can tell you how things stand in your state. If probate is costly, you might place assets in a revocable living trust. That can also be a smart move if you own a house in another state—and face the prospect of your estate passing through probate in two states.

think

Sep 28, 2026

ILLUSION OF CONTROL. If we shake the dice vigorously, we feel we’re more likely to get the roll we want. Similarly, if we follow the stock market closely and trade often, we feel more control over our returns. But in truth, this can hurt results, as we act impulsively and rack up costs. A better strategy: Focus on things we can control, like risk, taxes and expenses.

act

Sep 28, 2026

SEARCH FOR UNCLAIMED property. Every state has a program for returning lost and forgotten assets to their rightful owners. Those assets include stocks, uncashed dividends, bank accounts, traveler’s checks, the contents of safe deposit boxes and utility company security deposits. You can find further details and links to state websites at Unclaimed.org.

Money Guide

Manifesto

Sep 30, 2026

NO. 36: WE SHOULD consider working at least part-time into our late 60s and possibly beyond. That’ll not only help financially, but also it can bring a sense of purpose to our retirement.

Spotlight: Health

Healthcare Insurance Alternatives to Covered California Marketplace

Bradley Brechin | Oct 16, 2025

We are a couple who retired early (early 60s) and like many are facing a big jump in our Healthcare costs (California residents). Has anyone here looked at alternatives to the marketplace, such as insurance brokers, for Healthcare? Any recommendation or insight would be welcome. Also, I searched the articles and couldn’t find anything about this. Thank you.

The Jonathan I Found: Through Others’ Eyes

Andrew Clements | Sep 19, 2026

WHEN MY YOUNGER brother Jonathan died, I thought I knew who he was.
After all, we had shared a childhood in England, years together at boarding school, family adventures in Bangladesh, and more than six decades as brothers. I knew the journalist the world admired, the devoted husband and father, and the man whose words quietly helped millions of readers live richer lives, not simply financially, but personally as well.
I was wrong.
Over the past several months,

Four things you might want to consider when thinking about paying for healthcare.

R Quinn | Nov 20, 2025

People and money, especially when not actually their money, generates some interesting points of view and confusion. It sometimes seems to bring out the illogical.
Health care and health insurance are especially volatile topics. I spend a great deal of time writing about health care on my blog and I spent most of my working life dealing with health insurance and related health care issues. I helped organize three HMOs.
The cost of healthcare is a significant issue for most people and yet finding a workable solution is greatly hampered by misinformation and what people want to believe.

Medicare Advantage Part C — Not too soon to start planning for 2027

R Quinn | Aug 11, 2026

MA plans in several areas are being shut down for 2027. The choices seniors have is declining as insurance companies realize the profits are not there.
If your Medicare Advantage plan closes or terminates its contract, you get federal guaranteed-issue rights to buy a Medigap policy without health screening or denial for pre-existing conditions.

You must apply within a strict 63-day window starting from the date your plan coverage ends. Keep Your Notice: You will need the formal termination or non-renewal notice from your Part C plan as proof when submitting your Medigap application so the insurer knows not to put you through medical underwriting.

Social Security COLA announced this morning.

baldscreen | Oct 24, 2025

I wanted to mention for those who are interested that the SS COLA was announced this morning to be 2.8% for 2026. Not really needing a discussion, just offering the information. Chris

The ACA Financial Cliff … some helpful visuals (and hope for continued dialog)

Suzee | Feb 3, 2026

Sharing this article (free link, I hope) because it does a great job explaining the ACA “subsidy cliff” — how a small change in income can suddenly make health insurance unaffordable. Hoping it helps people explain this to family or friends and sparks a real conversation about why subsidies matter and how the rules could be improved.
https://www.nytimes.com/2026/01/30/upshot/obamacare-subsidies-financial-cliff.html?unlocked_article_code=1.JVA.k0hc._GnYquc58qF6&smid=url-share
I’ve tried to explain the ACA and subsidies to a number of friends to limited success. Between calculating MAGI,

Is 4.7% the New 4% Safe Withdrawal Rate

Mark Bergman | Aug 17, 2025

Bill Bengen, the godfather / creator of the 4% safe withdrawal rate (SWR), or rule, has just published a new book available on Amazon: A Richer Retirement: Supercharging the 4% Rule to Spend More and Enjoy More. I have not read the book, however, he has done a number of interviews on YouTube. The gist is that with a more diversified portfolio, as compared to that used to generate the original 4% rule, the new SWR should be raised to at least 4.7 %. 1) the original 4% SWR was not what his original study showed - it really was determined to be 4.15%. It was rounded down to 4% for unclear reasons. 2) per Michael Kitces, using a 4% SWR, 2/3 of retirees portfolios will grow to be greater than 2.5 x what they started retirement with, by the time they pass. 3) real world data has shown that retiree spending declines by around 1% per year, meaning that spending will go down by 30% over a 3- year retirement (compunding effect disregarded) Are we vastly underspending our financial resources? Keep in mind that an increase from 4% to 4.7 % is a very large increase in "permissible " spending. On a $2.5 million portfolio, spending would increase from $100,000 a year to $117,500 a year, which is a highly significant bump up in annual spending.

What exactly has to happen for a stocks value to go up or down?

Mark Bergman | Apr 9, 2025

I would appreciate it if one or more of the smart people on this blog can explain the following : what causes individual stocks prices to change - be it higher or lower ? For every seller there has to be a buyer, so what exactly is causing a stock price to move up or down? What determines how much that movement will be ? Is there a mechanism that continuously, and at millisecond or nanosecond intervals, keeps track of the number of sell orders waiting in a queue for a buyer ? If so, how does this lead to a .25% gain or loss in a stocks value vs a 0.5 % gain or loss ? Twice as much of "what" has to take place to go up or down 0.25% vs 0.5 %. Is it something else ?

A Rant about the Price of Gas, Part II: Live Experiment

Mark Bergman | Jun 13, 2025

Let’s all collectively do a real time experiment regarding my recent post/rant about the price of gas. Facts : 1) Israel attacked Iran last night. 2) Refineries were NOT hit. 3) The Strait of Hormuz remains open 4) according to Google, it takes about 5-7 weeks for oil from the Middle East to arrive in the US 5) as I write this, the price of oil has gone up 8.67 % since yesterday. How long will it take, and by how much, for the price of gas at the pump go up near you ?

re RDQ’s “down arrows” —> My 1 cent :

Mark Bergman | Aug 29, 2025

I posted the following 1-2 days ago within the body of another topic. Since it has so far garnered 7 down votes, you have 1) proven my point 2) I am making it a post of its own. 3) thanking David Lancaster for being the only one who actually bothered to leave a written comment, see below. re RDQ’s “down arrows” —> My 1 cent : Why is there “voting” on peoples comments ? If you have a comment, either positive or negative, post it. Otherwise, keep it to yourself if you don’t have the intestinal fortitude to post it publicly. Is this Facebook or Instragram ? Are we posting to get “Likes” ? It is childish and beneath the dignity of this blog site. Are we not adults here ? The ability to vote on comments should be removed. David Lancaster 12 hours ago Reply to Mark Bergman Despite your down votes, I agree 100%. This site seems to be headed in the wrong direction. This site is the closest I get to social media. I have always enjoyed the comments, and the fact that, whether I agree with them or not, they are directed at the topic, not an attack on the writer’s personality. I keep away from social media because it has become the cesspool of the internet. I truly hope that this site does not become one that I feel I can no longer feel comfortable interacting with due to the tenor of the commenting, and increasing number of down votes for innocuous comments on certain writers’ posts that seem like they are negative just because of who they are.

Dividends Part II – At least

Mark Bergman | Aug 23, 2025

https://www.whitecoatinvestor.com/dividend-irrelevancy-theory/#comments Today, I’m going to channel my inner “RDQ” and raise some peoples ire: About one month ago, there was a post about dividends. It contained quite a bit of what I will politely call, “magical thinking”. Despite my linking two excellent articles which debunk the dividend myth, clearly subsequent posters did not bother to read either of them and persisted in posting the dividend dogma that commonly persists. I even resorted to asking Jonathan to chime in (which he kindly did) as too many folks seemed to still not be “getting it”, to my dismay. In an effort to never give up the good fight (LOL), a new post dropped this morning elsewhere, and I have attached the link above, in an effort once again at dispelling the false ideas people have about dividends. Please feel free to use your down arrow votes aggressively and make my day !

Actually, Lets NOT Forget the 4% Rule – as Posted Yesterday 3/6/26

Mark Bergman | Mar 7, 2026

https://www.whitecoatinvestor.com/should-you-use-a-safe-withdrawal-rate/?utm_source=convertkit&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=Should%20You%20Use%20a%20‘Safe’%20Withdrawal%20Rate?%20-%2020950276 A very interesting blog post from this morning, on the White Coat Investor site. Upshot: its REALLY hard to deplete all of your assets if you spend 4% or more……many things need to go wrong As an aside: the chart showing the “famous” spending smile from David Blanchett is likely incorrect, in a good way - new data shows that the rise in spending at the right side of the curve, is actually quite small with a minimal rise in annual spending - see link. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IOPWlBtsPNU

Will Congress Wait Until the Last Minute on Social Security?

If you don’t think AI is powerful and scary, think again!

A Broken Boy

Medicare Part D premium shock 2027

Let’s Get Happy

Dealing with a reduction in Social Security benefits. Is there a backup plan?

Sourcing Taxes for Roth Conversions

Is your retirement plan counting on a Social Security COLA in the future?

The Security Money Can’t Buy

Time Is Priceless

My favorite question.

Financial Lessons

Will Congress Wait Until the Last Minute on Social Security?

If you don’t think AI is powerful and scary, think again!

A Broken Boy

Medicare Part D premium shock 2027

Let’s Get Happy

Dealing with a reduction in Social Security benefits. Is there a backup plan?

Sourcing Taxes for Roth Conversions

Is your retirement plan counting on a Social Security COLA in the future?

The Security Money Can’t Buy

Free Newsletter

Get Educated

Manifesto

Truths

think

act

Money Guide

Manifesto

Spotlight: Health

Healthcare Insurance Alternatives to Covered California Marketplace

The Jonathan I Found: Through Others’ Eyes

Four things you might want to consider when thinking about paying for healthcare.

Medicare Advantage Part C — Not too soon to start planning for 2027

Social Security COLA announced this morning.

The ACA Financial Cliff … some helpful visuals (and hope for continued dialog)

Spotlight: Bergman

Is 4.7% the New 4% Safe Withdrawal Rate

What exactly has to happen for a stocks value to go up or down?

A Rant about the Price of Gas, Part II: Live Experiment

re RDQ’s “down arrows” —> My 1 cent :

Dividends Part II – At least

Actually, Lets NOT Forget the 4% Rule – as Posted Yesterday 3/6/26