Wall Street Journal Exposes Stock Market Myths!
July 27, 2010 by Pamela Yellen · 1 Comment
A very revealing article appeared in this past Sunday’s Wall Street Journal entitled, “Ten Stock-Market Myths that Just Won’t Die.”
Maybe you don’t quite believe what I’ve been saying for years. This article confirms exactly what I’ve been trying to tell you…
This article is must-reading for anyone who’s been scratching their head and wondering…
If what they say about the long-term returns you should be able to get in the stock market is true, how come I’m not rich?!?”
Please pay particular attention to…
Myth #1: “This is a good time to invest in the stock market”
Myth #2: “Stocks on average make about 10% a year”
And the article author’s insight into Myth #10: “Stocks outperform over the long term” is priceless.
I’ve quoted many sources confirming what this Wall Street Journal article says. How many more sources do you need to hear it from, before you request a free Analysis that will show you how much your financial picture could improve if you added Bank On Yourself to your financial plan?
Four fascinating facts that affect your finances
July 20, 2010 by Pamela Yellen · 3 Comments
I just came across these four surprising new facts that affect your money and finances…
Fascinating Fact #1: 61% of boomers fear outliving their money in retirement more than they fear death
That’s according to a new study.1
Maybe you’re one of them. It appears that lots of boomers should be scared out of their wits – almost half of them could run out of money in retirement, according to a new study by the Employee Benefit Research Institute.
In fact, most employees recently surveyed – regardless of age – say they aren’t saving enough money for retirement.2
Many people are adjusting to “the new normal” by postponing retirement.
But you may not have a choice: Nearly four in ten retirees say they were forced out of work earlier than they’d planned, because of layoffs, poor health, or the need to take care of a loved one.3
And, for those already retired, 60% say they have been forced to do without things they had taken for granted, to make ends meet.4
Things like meals out, new books and movies, travel, new clothes and home improvement projects.
Can you live without those things? Sure.
But why should you have to, after a lifetime of hard work and sacrifice?!?
Can you imagine how different things would be if you knew you would have a guaranteed and predictable income in retirement – one that does not depend on the roller coaster ups and downs of stocks, real estate and other investments?
While the “experts” lament that there’s been “no place to hide” during the financial crisis, none of the hundreds of thousands of people who use Bank On Yourself lost a penny in their plans when the markets crashed. Their plans have never skipped a beat and continue growing every year by a guaranteed, predictable and exponential amount.
However, no two policies or plans are alike – each is tailored to the client’s unique situation. To find out how much your financial picture could improve if you added Bank On Yourself to your financial plan, how much income you could take in retirement (guaranteed) and to get a referral to a Bank On Yourself Authorized Advisor, simply request a free, no-obligation Analysis here, if you haven’t already done so.
Fascinating Fact #2: Social Security may be in far worse trouble than we thought
By law, the Social Security’s trustees’ annual report is supposed to be published by April 1. This year, however, the trustees have postponed it indefinitely!
Why does the program’s financial condition continue to remain hidden from public view?
Could it have something to do with the fact that the trust fund is nothing more than a bunch of IOU’s… and the run on revenues has turned into a stampede?
In my opinion, Social Security is the biggest Ponzi or pyramid scheme ever conceived!”
To make matters worse, a new AARP survey revealed that 50% of those age 50 and over say Social Security is or will be more important to their retirement than they expected when they were younger.
And 25% say they rely, or plan to rely, on it for most of their retirement income.
Shockingly, only 12% of people over 50 expect to be able to rely on savings and investments for most of their income.5
Good luck with that!
Fascinating Fact #3: Deferring your taxes is one of the worst financial moves you can make
I’ve explained in my best-selling book and elsewhere why the notion that it’s a good idea to use 401(k)’s and other “tax-qualified” retirement plans to defer your taxes is just one more example of how dumb the “conventional wisdom” about money and finances is.
Now, an article on Forbes.com entitled, “Pay More Taxes Now!” confirms everything I’ve been saying…
As the article points out, we already know tax rates are going up. (Does anyone actually believe tax rates are going to go down over the long term?)
If tax rates do go up, and you’re successful in growing a nest-egg, you’re only going to end up paying higher taxes on a bigger number!
Even if tax rates remain the same, it’s estimated you’ll pay 10-20 times more in taxes over a thirty-year period!
My advice – and Forbes.com’s advice – is to pay your taxes now. At least you know what they are!
A Bank On Yourself policy is taxed like a Roth IRA. You pay your taxes up front, and then you can access the growth with little or no tax consequences, under current tax law.
But, you may be wondering, what if the tax laws change?
Of course, the tax laws could change. For that matter, they could change the tax laws on 401(k)’s, IRA’s and Roth IRA’s. But the tax advantages of Bank On Yourself are just the icing on the cake. Even if the tax laws changed for Bank On Yourself, you’d still have all the many other advantages and guarantees of this time-tested method, including:
The Bank On Yourself concept is based on an asset class that has increased in value during every stock market decline and every period of economic boom and bust for more than a century. That asset is dividend-paying whole life insurance
Your money in one of these policies grows by a guaranteed and preset amount every year. In addition, the growth is exponential, meaning it gets better (more efficient) every single year you have the policy – with no luck, skill or guesswork needed to make that happen
A properly structured Bank On Yourself-type policy incorporates little-known riders which turbo-charge the growth of your equity (“cash value”) in the policy, especially during the early years of the policy. This enables you to use your policy as a powerful financial management tool from Day One
Once credited to your policy, both your guaranteed annual cash value increase, plus any dividends you may receive, are locked in. They don’t vanish due to a market correction
Can you imagine how much brighter your financial picture would be if you still had every penny of principal you put in AND all the growth you’d received?
You have peace of mind for retirement planning, because you could know the minimum guaranteed income you can take in retirement, and for how long you could take it
And that’s just a partial list of the benefits of Bank On Yourself, which is why the $100,000 cash reward I’ve offered to the first person to show they use a different product or strategy that can match or beat Bank On Yourself remains unclaimed.
There’s no cost or obligation to receive an Analysis that will show you how a custom-tailored program can help you reach your long-term and short-term goals and dreams – in the shortest time possible.
Fascinating Fact #4: Apparently, money can buy happiness
A Gallup survey – the largest of its kind – found that people almost universally agree that a lot of having a “good life” has to do with material prosperity.6
And not having to worry about whether your money will run out before you do significantly reduces stress and lets you focus on the more positive, fun things in your life.
Which is part of the reason most people say the only regret they have about Bank On Yourself is that they didn’t start sooner.
If you haven’t already added Bank On Yourself to your financial plan, now’s the time to make sure you never suffer another lost decade… or even another lost day.
When you request a FREE Analysis , you’ll get a referral to one of only 200 advisors who have taken and passed the rigorous requirements to be a Bank On Yourself Authorized Advisor.
Tip: Ask your Authorized Advisor if you can qualify to “turn back the clock” by up to six months to jump start your Bank On Yourself plan and turn your back on the stomach-churning ups and downs of the stock and real estate markets.
1 “Reclaiming the Future: Challenging Retirement Income Perceptions,” Allianz Life Study
2 Harris Interactive
3 Employee Benefit Research Institute
4 Harris Interactive
5 AARP Bulletin exclusive survey, July/August 2010 issue
6 Gallup poll
Famous people who use the Bank On Yourself method
June 30, 2010 by Pamela Yellen · 11 Comments
There’s one surprising thing Walt Disney, J. C. Penney and the Pampered Chef have in common – they all used the Bank On Yourself method to start, grow and/or finance their businesses!
Walt Disney borrowed from his life insurance in 1953 to help fund Disneyland, his first theme park, when no banker would lend him the money.1
Following the 1929 stock market crash, famous retailer J. C. Penney borrowed from his life insurance policies to help meet the company payroll.2 Had he not had ready access to capital, the company probably would have been forced to close its doors, adding even more people to the unemployment line.
In 2002, Doris Christopher sold her kitchen tool company, the Pampered Chef to Warren Buffett for a reported $900 million. Seven years earlier, she launched the company with a life insurance policy loan.3
Foster Farms was founded in 1939 when Max and Verda Foster borrowed $1,000 against their life insurance policy to buy an 80-acre farm near Modesto, CA.4
Senator John McCain secured initial campaign financing for his presidential bid by using his life insurance policy as collateral.3
So-called “permanent” or cash value life insurance (versus term insurance, which is like renting insurance) builds up cash value that policy owners can use in difficult times as a ready source of money to cover personal or business expenses for emergencies and even to cover insurance costs.
Hold your financial course or change your course?
June 15, 2010 by Pamela Yellen · 5 Comments
The Dow has dropped below 10,000 several times recently – a level it first reached more than eleven years ago and has since bounced over and back an astonishing 63 times!
Millions of people who were counting on their homes to help fund their retirement now have no equity to count on, because they owe more than their homes are worth.
Credit is still extremely tight for both businesses and consumers, underscoring just how little control we have when we have to rely on other people’s money.
As we face continuing economic challenges, many people are wondering… what does the future hold?
Ever hear the old saying, “Change is the only constant?” Today that is clearly true more than ever! Stephen Covey, author of the run-away best seller, Seven Habits of Highly Effective People, tells the following story:
How will the debt crisis affect Bank On Yourself?
May 13, 2010 by Pamela Yellen · 20 Comments
A question we are getting frequently right now is how safe is your money in a Bank On Yourself plan if the debt crisis in Europe continues and spreads to the United States?
Let’s start by answering the question…
Life insurance companies are highly regulated and required to maintain sufficient reserves to ensure they can pay all future claims.
They are regularly audited by the state insurance commissioners’ offices, and sometimes by dozens of states, to ensure they are on solid financial ground. And a multi-layer safety net exists to assure your money in a life insurance policy is secure.
You may be wondering, “What about AIG?” Many people missed the fact that AIG’s problems were caused by a holding company, not its life insurance subsidiaries. Their insurance companies were walled off from the problems, have always been solvent and did not receive a bailout.
The companies recommended by Bank On Yourself Authorized Advisors are among the financially strongest life insurance groups in the world.
They enjoy some of the strongest surplus positions in the industry, approximately double the industry average.
These companies are, in essence, owned by policyowners, rather than stockholders, which allows them to focus on the long-term interests of policy holders, rather than the short-term demands of Wall Street.
Here’s what the companies used for Bank On Yourself invest in:
The truth about investing in mutual funds
May 5, 2010 by Pamela Yellen · 6 Comments
Investors earn returns over time that are far lower than those quoted by mutual fund firms. In fact, it’s not even a close race.”
This is the conclusion of DALBAR, Inc., the well-respected independent investment research firm.1
For the past 20 years ending December 31, 2009, “the average equity investor managed to eke out an annualized return that outpaced inflation.” The average return was 3.17% per year – just slightly more than the inflation rate for that period!
Asset allocation and fixed income investors weren’t so lucky (if you can call that “luck”); they lost ground after adjusting for inflation.
Why most investors don’t come close to getting the returns touted in mutual fund prospectuses…
There are plenty of reasons for this. For starters…
Does money buy happiness?
April 28, 2010 by Pamela Yellen · 3 Comments
There is probably nothing in the world that people spend more time discussing than money.
Countries go to war because of money. People marry and divorce because of money. And we spend the biggest part of our waking hours working to earn it.
The age-old question, of course, is, does money buy happiness?
While writing a fascinating book, John Stossel, the highly regarded former anchor of the investigative TV show, 20/20, did some research into the answer to this question.
Dow 11,000: Déjà vu all over again?
April 12, 2010 by Pamela Yellen · 13 Comments
Bill Clinton was President, the world awaited the potentially disastrous consequences of the Y2K computer bug, and – oh, yeah – the Dow closed above 11,000 for the first time in history.
The date was May 3rd, 1999, and to quote Yogi Berra, nearly eleven years later,
The Wall Street spin-makers are pointing out what a “big accomplishment it is for a measure that was below 7,000 only a year ago” to recapture the 11,000 level.
Before we pop the cork on a bottle of champagne, here’s a few sobering questions to ask yourself…
What’s the rate of return on a Bank On Yourself plan?
March 18, 2010 by Pamela Yellen · 55 Comments
A recent comment made by a reader of this blog inspired this post. I’ve never gone into detail on the question of how the rate of return on a Bank On Yourself policy compares with investing in stock market and mutual funds.
And is it really true that if you simply hold on long enough, investing in stocks and mutual funds will out-perform just about anything else?
So, I’ve decided to lay those questions to rest – once and for all – right here. Here’s the comment by a reader who calls himself “Tob” that sparked this post:
This is a ridiculous attempt to compare whole life insurance to the “stock market” after the worst decade. I can show you how investing blows the pants off whole life using investing basics. Balanced Funds. How many funds do you want that have produce 10% per year compounding average to convince you?”
So, has “Tob” really found that elusive investment that gives you a 10% average return, and still lets you sleep at night?
We’ll get to the answer to that question in a moment.
First, let me address the question,
“What the heck is the rate of return on a typical Bank On Yourself policy?”
Will the Government’s new plan to increase Americans’ retirement security work?
January 28, 2010 by Pamela Yellen · 12 Comments
With much fanfare, the White House has announced the highlights of what they are recommending to help you save for a secure retirement. Will it help you… or hurt you?
Let’s take a look at the major provisions…
1. More Americans will be herded into a retirement plan system that most experts agree is broken
According to a newly released White House Fact Sheet, the administration wants to force many of the 78 million working Americans not currently covered by employer-based retirement plans into them. They will do this by requiring employers to enroll their employees in automatic direct-deposit IRAs, unless the employee opts out.
Experience shows most employees do not opt out. The result? Many more people will be relying on the same investment strategies that have lined the pockets of Wall Street and dashed the retirement hopes and dreams of millions of Americans.
On the other hand, those who use the Bank On Yourself method have been able to move closer to their financial goals and dreams each and every single year. To find out how you could turn your back on the stomach-churning ups and downs of stocks, real estate, and other investments, request a free, no-obligation Analysis today.
2. Proposed tax credits for retirement savings contributions mean you will be paying for other people’s investment mistakes!
Even millions of Americans who pay no taxes will receive these credits, under the administration’s proposal.
3. Employers will be expected to do what even the experts can’t
Employers who offer so-called “target-date” mutual funds will be expected to “evaluate their suitability for their workforce.”
These funds, which automatically shift assets over the individual’s lifetime to lower risk as the person approaches retirement age, failed miserably to accomplish that goal during the 2008 crash.
In addition, studies consistently show that 80% of all investment advisors and 80% of all mutual funds underperform the overall market1. Yet employers with no training or experience will somehow be expected to determine which funds will do well.
4. The government wants to “promote” the availability of annuities and other forms of guaranteed lifetime income in 401(k) plans
Unfortunately, the growth and returns of some of these products may not even keep up with inflation.
5. Beleaguered small business owners will face new costs and administrative burdens
According to the National Small Business Association, 64 percent of small business owners surveyed said revenues declined in the past 12 months.
When small businesses are struggling to stay afloat, we oppose mandates such as this that stand to create a new administrative burden”
- Molly Brogan, vice president of public affairs for the NSBA
6. The government controls your money in retirement plans, not you
The government determines when and how much you can take out of your retirement plan, and can change the rules any time they want.
Proposals to do just that have already been floated through Congress.
And if the government wants to force you to buy Treasury debt with part or all of their retirement plan money, because China and Brazil won’t take the risk any more, they can do it.
7. While expert after expert agree that the current systems of saving for retirement are broken, few offer any viable alternatives
Yet hundreds of thousands of people who use the Bank On Yourself method did not lose a penny during the market crash of 2008, or during the “lost decade” of the 2000’s.
Their plans have all continued growing – safely and predictably, and without the risk or volatility of stocks, real estate and other investments. Which may explain why my offer to pay $100,000 to the first person who uses a different strategy that can match or beat Bank On Yourself remains unclaimed.
Bank On Yourself isn’t a magic pill. It takes a little patience and discipline. But if you have those traits, it pays a lifetime of benefits.
To find out what your bottom-line numbers and results could be, and how much income you could count on at retirement, just request your free, no-obligation Analysis.
There's no obligation on your part
If you take the first step now, you could start taking back control of your money and your future financial security in as little as 60 days!
1 Hulbert Financial Digest, The Motley Fool
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