Retirement, Risk and Return

By Dan Crimmins on January 12, 2015 in Enjoying & Protecting a Lifestyle

If investors could take no risk and still maintain the lifestyle in retirement, why wouldn’t all investors just invest in T-Bills?

David Booth, CEO of Dimensional Fund Advisors (DFA)

That is because investors understand the risk of purchasing power. The Risk of Purchasing Power deals with the declining value that money has – or to put another way, nearly everything that you need to purchase each year in retirement will increase in price.

Many individuals focus only on principal risk – the loss in principal. We strongly believe that those individuals who only focus on principal risk will run the real risk that their investments will not keep pace with the raising costs of the lifestyle, especially in retirement.

David Booth, one of the DFA founders and current CEO, gave a video interview where he discusses what risks investors need to focus on when developing an investment portfolio. He helps explain the historic returns experienced by investors overtime. As a former professor, he uses charts and graphs to illustrate his points.

He also discusses the low bond interest rates in place today, and the real risk to maintaining one’s lifestyle in retirement having a portfolio built to maintain the principal amount. We have discussed this dilemma in previous posts, such as LONGEVITY RISK.

Click on the words to the right to begin David Booth’s video which is as relevant today as it was in 2009: RETIREMENT, RISK and RETURN

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The foregoing content reflects the opinions of Crimmins Wealth Management and is subject to change at any time without notice. Content provided herein is for informational purposes only and should not be used or construed as investment advice or a recommendation regarding the purchase or sale of any security. There is no guarantee that the statements, opinions or forecasts provided herein will prove to be correct. Past performance may not be indicative of future results. All investing involves risk, including the potential for loss of principal. There is no guarantee that any investment plan or strategy will be successful.