Ben Carlson

I’m in my mid 30s and pursuing FIRE. If all goes well my wife and I should hit our target number by age 40. I’m not a big fan of bonds and rather just keep a larger cash position in a high-yield savings account equivalent to around two years of expenses and maintain a more aggressive mix of US and international ETFs. My question: does this make sense to do? Am I leaving money on the table by using only cash/savings and avoiding bonds or some other lower risk alternatives?

Two things happening at once with investing and wealth.

Every year I do some back-of-the-envelope investment planning to set some goalposts.

There is A LOT of money in index ETFs and it just keeps coming in.

Today’s Talk Your Book is brought to you by VanEck:

One of my favorite parts about writing over the years is the regular feedback I get from readers.

A look at market history through the lens of Wall Street comics.

The “Relentless Bid” of 401ks has inflated stock prices and dampened volatility for years. As the population ages, target-date funds are swapping stocks for bonds, and people have to take RMDs. At what point does this cavalcade of selling drive stock prices down, and become the “Relentless Beg” (or “Relentless Ask” if you prefer)? Or is wealth so top-heavy that this phenomenon is just too small to make a difference?

Apparently June is the month to call a bubble if you’re a seasoned fund manager or prognosticator.

Through the close of markets on Monday, the S&P 500 ETF (SPY) was up 9.8% on the year.