My son has huge student loans from law school, Direct Loan and Grad Plus. He went to school during that window of time between when students were allowed to consolidate their variable rate loans at less than 3% and the lower fixed rates available now. Unfortunately his rates are 6.9 and 8.6. He is in […]
The pressures on middle class Americans are mounting, regardless of the stock market’s relentless climb higher. Yes, there is plenty of good news about corporate earnings and productivity generated by AI. There is capital investment and job creation in the building of data centers, much as the creation of our national highway system boosted the […]
The Fed has spoken. Chairman Jay Powell clearly declared victory over inflation at his annual Jackson Hole, Wyoming press conference. The next direction for interest rates is down. The Fed appears to have done the impossible: reduced inflationary expectations without causing a steep recession and loss of jobs. While inflation is not yet down to […]
More than half of Americans – 56% to be exact – believe the United States is in a recession, according to a new Harris Poll. And all of those people are wrong. The classic definition of a recession is two consecutive quarters of negative growth – measured by GDP – gross domestic product. We haven’t […]
Remember when you rushed to buy Series I bonds a year ago, before November 1, 2022, to get that astounding 9.62% rate? You did earn that rate – for the next 6 months. And then, as inflation dropped, rates for subsequent 6-month periods also declined. And if you purchased an I-bond a year ago at […]
While all eyes are focused on the rising stock market, the bond market is staging a quiet rebellion. Interest rates are rising inexorably, despite pronouncements from Fed Chairman Powell that there is no inflation in sight, at least for the next three years. Still, bond buyers are demanding slightly higher interest rates, especially when it […]
PATIENCE IS REQUIRED! The first round of payments went primarily to taxpayers who had included direct deposit information on their 2019 (or 2018) returns. Yet, quite a few of you received paper checks in the mail. Now the IRS is making a second large sweep in coming days, which is expected to send benefits to […]
Shhh … don’t tell anyone: We can’t repay our debt! Also, the emperor has no clothes. It’s the same story: Everyone knows it, and no one is willing to say it. But the United States is awash in debt that can’t possibly be repaid. Perhaps a spurt of economic growth could put a dent in […]
Hi Terry, given a backdrop of rising bond yields (assuming we’ll get there at some point), which do you recommend: individual laddered bonds (either high quality corporate or gov’t) with varying maturities that are held to maturity or bond funds? If it helps you can assume this is for a $1M retirement portfolio where bonds/fixed […]
Is there a fairly safe financial product that can earn 3% a year? I’m retired and would like to put about 150,000. into such an instrument (if it exists). This is about 25% of my liquid assets. Terry Says: Sadly, in today’s world of Fed-manipulated low interest rates, there is no “safe” ie “chicken money” […]
Terry, currently do you think bond funds are a bad investment, considering the propects of ending quantitative easing by the Fed? If so, would a person in retirement (67yrs old) would it be a good idea to investi in bond funds with a short duration? Thank you, you’re my favorite investment person! Terry Says: It’s […]
HOW DOES THE FED PUT MONEY IN THE STOCK MARKET ? I THOUGHT THAT THE FED CANNOT PURCHASE STOCKS, BUT IT CAN PURCHASE TREASURIES. IS THAT THE METHOD (TREASURIES) ? SAVAGE SAYS: The Fed doesn’t add money directly to the stock market. It adds money to the banking system — and sometimes that money flows […]
