Bdiddy

re: The 4% rule gets talked about a lot but was it ever really a “rule” to begin with?

Posted by Bdiddy on 6/24/26 at 6:19 pm to meansonny

quote:
How much did you put into the annuity and at what age did you annuitize?

I funded them over time as they were deferred and allowed contributions, including the QLAC.

To get a rate of return, which may be what you are looking for, I would have to find the dates of deposits and amounts. Sorry I don't have that handy.

One thing I did before each contribution including the initial was to run a rate of return on each one. I don't have those numbers anymore. For example, if I were to put $100K into an immediate income annuity today, I would find the income and calculate what rate of return I would earn if I (joint life in my case, so one of us) lived to 85, 90, 93, etc.

The returns are not spectacular. From my memory, I believe that at life expectancy, it was comparable to a safe (no consensus on what that is) bond, but with a slightly better tax outcome as a portion of each payment is principal. If we lived a few years less than LE, the rate of return was anemic, and if we lived a few more, it was considerably better than bonds.

I think the biggest downside is not living near LE, but even then, I feel that it helps my quality of life by knowing that I won't run out of money. I am not going to lose sleep worrying about a poor return on a small portion of assets. That may bother someone else, so good point made earlier re: "personal finance". We have life insurance that will make up for any poor result, which I think is a good hedge. Don't live long, annuity is not great and life insurance is a big win. Live a long time and the rate of return on the life isn't as great, but they annuity is more valuable.

Again, it's for a portion of my money, just under 15%, and it's not life-changing. Also, if something happens to me, the only amount that my wife is going to feel good about spending is annuities, pension, and SS, regardless of how much she can safely withdraw, and for that reason, I probably will purchase a couple of longer term fixed period annuities. I think I have enough in things that have a mortality component. Having a wife that won't spend money does not seem to be a concern for most.

re: The 4% rule gets talked about a lot but was it ever really a “rule” to begin with?

Posted by Bdiddy on 6/24/26 at 1:17 pm to RoyalWe

quote:
I will never understand why someone would lock themselves into this type of instrument especially given how likely it is that we will inflate away the value of our money. You need to be hedged against inflation, not buy something that will ensure that you get screwed over time.

I have locked myself into this type of instrument, and I am 66. We receive approximately $32K per year in income annuity payments, and will begin receiving an additional payment of approximately $40K per year when we are 80 (QLAC). "Approximately as some of them have a dividend component along with a guarantee. These are funds that would have been in bonds, although I still have a healthy allocation to bonds.

I own equities for inflation, and won't need to touch a stock until I am over age 80. If equities do poorly, I'll have enough money anyway. If they do well, then I'll have much more than I need. I don't want to rely on equities doing well to live the life that I have planned. I view the income annuities as an alternative to bonds. There is nothing about them that resemble a stock, so I would not have money that would otherwise go to equities in the annuities.

For people at or very near retirement, it's probably a good idea to have some money in safe assets, and a portion of safe money could be allocated to annuities. If your health is poor, annuities probably are not a great idea. I also realize that if make it to be a very old man, I may not have an interest (or ability) in managing all of my assets, so I am fine with outsourcing some of that. Plus, if I become widowed and my new online girlfriend is actually a Nigerian man, I can't send them my future annuity payments.

I also know people who are miserable owning stocks, so maybe everyone's plan should reflect their own risk tolerance, needs, etc.

re: Ralph & Kacoo’s in Lufkin, TX on a random Thursday

Posted by Bdiddy on 5/8/26 at 8:11 am to Clyde Tipton

I'm glad that you finally got to go out and that you enjoyed it.

O-T Lounge

re: 10% of vets were actively engaged in combat 28% receiver PTSD disability???

Posted by Bdiddy on 4/15/26 at 11:24 am to trinidadtiger

My uncle was overseas during WWII, but never in combat. He received a check for hemorrhoids from WWII until his death. Golden hemorrhoids.

re: 71-Year-Old arrested in Breaux Bridge for his marijuana crop

Posted by Bdiddy on 4/6/26 at 10:08 am to Shexter

Every time I plant a seed, He said kill it before it grow

O-T Lounge

re: Using a Roth as a trading account..

Posted by Bdiddy on 4/2/26 at 1:25 pm to FAT SEXY

If I were younger, I would probably put the stocks/etfs/funds with the highest expected return in a Roth. I'm at what is often considered traditional retirement age, so I keep bonds and other tax-inefficient assets in qualified accounts, and tax efficient stock strategies in non-qualified accounts. Since I continue to work, I don't want assets being taxed at ordinary income tax rates.

re: My company is being sold to KKR.. odds that layoffs are coming?

Posted by Bdiddy on 3/30/26 at 10:30 pm to SaintTiger80

Blue Horseshoe loves Blue Star.

re: Springsteen? Do you still like him?

Posted by Bdiddy on 3/30/26 at 7:32 pm to Demps

I liked his early music before he became so sanctimonious. Before his cover of "War", he would say "blind faith in your leaders, or in anything, will get you killed." I agreed. Then, he decided to blindly follow leftist politicians, refusing to find any fault, thus became exactly the person about whom we were warned. A pig, hosting a party for the farmers.

re: Stocks or ETFs

Posted by Bdiddy on 3/29/26 at 8:05 am to Mariner

quote:
You can say its a mutual fund, but they are a more concentrated one. An ETF may have 50 stocks while a mutual fund may have 500. Its a little more interesting.

quote:
ETF's are more safe but to me they are boring. Not that it is a bad thing. I have them along with individual stock.

There are high conviction mutual funds and the Vanguard Total World Stock ETF has 3,500 stocks. There are leveraged or inverse ETFs, which hardly qualify as boring. Your post makes no sense.

re: Albany Mayor Dorrcey Applyrs to reporter on how she is going to fix the city debt.

Posted by Bdiddy on 3/23/26 at 7:41 am to BoomerandSooner

Look under the hood, open the cabinet, get into the weeds are all fine, but more cliches serve to make one look more intelligent. Could have added lots to unback, deep dive, see how the sausage is made and so many others.

re: Frank Williams Wade Postseason Record as a Head Coach

Posted by Bdiddy on 3/18/26 at 3:18 pm to DamnStrong

If you can't pile up NCAA tournament wins at McNeese, you probably should not even be a coach. (I will add that it's sarcasm as I'm pretty sure someone is that dumb)

Tiger Rant

Our Technology Chief is grounded and his parents took his computer away.

Posted by Bdiddy on 3/11/26 at 9:51 am

I thought this was a pretty interesting article regarding Aaru, which has a $1billion valuation, and was started by teens. The technology chief was 15.

LINK

quote:
Aaru recently reached a $1 billion valuation, making it one of a growing crop of hot companies led by people who have barely cracked their 20s and want to shake up entire industries in lieu of attending college.

Co-founders Cameron Fink and Ned Koh started the company two years ago when they were 18 and 19 years old, respectively, along with technology chief John Kessler, then 15.

re: Supreme Court rules parents have a right to know about gender transitions at school

Posted by Bdiddy on 3/3/26 at 10:59 am to Hback

If California's rule would have been upheld, it would be logical to assume that the school would not be required to notify the parents if the child had an abortion, was on drugs, thought they were a rabbit, expressed suicidal intentions, etc.

re: Gone With the Wind

Posted by Bdiddy on 2/22/26 at 8:03 am to Missouri Waltz

I thought Gerald was drunk and fell while jumping his horse.

Movie/TV Board

re: Etiquette; Texting your boss on a Sunday evening saying you won’t be at work Monday

Posted by Bdiddy on 2/22/26 at 7:53 am to TechDawg2007

It's just too easy now. Forty years ago, I had to call in and do a performance, faking a scratchy throat, congestion, etc. We earned our day off.

O-T Lounge

re: 1980 Lake Placid Winter Olympics - the undisputed Winter games GOAT!

Posted by Bdiddy on 2/10/26 at 9:53 pm to ATCTx

I distinctly remember the Salt Lake City Olympics Opening Ceremony featuring Aaron Copland's "Hoedown". Unapologetically American, and they threw in the Dixie Chicks, one year before the short, fat one claimed to be embarrassed to be from the same state as GWB.
LINK

Winter Olympics