Monday, April 18, 2011

The Sarcasm Report v.96 (Musical Tribute)

April 15, 2011
The Rising Price of Retirement

Nevertheless, the pervasive gloom about retirement is overdone. Fact is, people are quite creative at coming up with solutions.

That's awesome.

Among the key assumptions: A couple is 60 years old, each earns $100,000, and they have a total retirement portfolio worth $2 million.

I have to admit that the article does make a great point. It is extremely difficult to be gloomy about retirement if we can assume that everyone has $1 million in retirement savings.

This is America. There are 307 million people in this country. Let's pool our resources for the greater good. Once we build up a collective nest egg of $307 trillion, the pervasive gloom about retirement should be all but gone.

Here's an added bonus. At the rate our country is exponentially increasing our rate of borrowing, $307 trillion shouldn't take many years at all. Woohoo!

April 19, 2011
S&P US debt downgrade spooks world markets

Boo!

at

4 comments:

  1. Mr SlipperyApril 18, 2011 at 8:42 PM

    My income (with wife) puts us easily in the top 10% and there is no way we are going to retire with $2 million. Now, the NPV of our combined pensions will be high (unless they are cut back along the way), but I don't think it will reach that high. I haven't done the math. I know a lot of people that could be considered rich and maybe 3 or 4 will retire with $2 million. Most people that have to work won't accumulate that much unless wage inflation really explodes.

    ReplyDelete
  2. deariemeApril 19, 2011 at 11:01 AM

    "A couple is 60 years old, each earns $100,000, and they have a total retirement portfolio worth $2million." So to retire on half pay they'll need to make 5% per annum on their portfolio. In retrospect, not very demanding. In prospect, very optimistic.

    ReplyDelete
  3. Stagflationary MarkApril 19, 2011 at 1:31 PM

    Mr Slippery,

    If a person manages to save 10x their annual salary at age 60 then my guess is that they were extremely fortunate, extremely frugal, and/or they participated in one of the greatest ponzi schemes this planet has ever seen (the doubling of the S&P 500 since the bottom in 2009 and the 1980s-1990s notwithstanding).

    ReplyDelete
  4. Stagflationary MarkApril 19, 2011 at 1:36 PM

    dearieme,

    Simply assume 8% returns like the pension funds and the world is your oyster!

    ReplyDelete