Teaching Choral Concepts

Review

     Retiring First Class is written for individuals and families who want to develop their money knowledge and skills--people who want to plan now for a comfortable future retirement, as well as for those who are now retired. In 14 anecdote-filled chapters, the authors describes the most common pitfalls to personal financial security and tells how to avoid or climb out of those pitfalls.

The book provides easy-to-understand explanations of how money investments work and offers a step-by-step approach to solving the problem of preparing for the future. The authors explain, in non-technical language, how to gauge investment risk factors, how to reduce debt payments to 0% of income, and the hidden benefits to buying a home. The miracle of compound interest, the temptations of "fantastic plastic" credit, and guarding against inflation and other financial leaks in an established savings plan are other parts of the Retiring First Class wealth-building system.

Strategies described in this book lead to financial improvements regardless of the reader's age, responsibilities or income. Best of all, the financial principles and methods described in this book are designed to work even when economic conditions change. The book includes graphs and a unique investment pyramid to help readers visualize how to balance and protect investment dollars.

A final section describes what an individual's retirement years can become-one of the most delightful, productive, and rewarding periods of life. 

Table of Contents

1. In the Beginning, 9

2. Common Sense and Proper Planning, 12
You Can't Get There from Here, 12
The Spending Binge, 13
The Fable of the Plastic Rich, 14
Needs or Wants, 15
Thou Shalt Not Touch, 16
The House with the Golden Windows, 17
Its Never Too Late to Start, 19

3. Your Greatest Financial Habit, 21
Basic Budgeting Steps, 21
How to Save Every Month, 23

4. Compound Interest: Your Best Economic Friend, 26
The George Thomas Financial Rule, 29
Great or Greed, 32

5. The Golden Stream You Can't Outlive, 35
Budgeting the Flow of the Stream, 35
More About Compound Interest, 37
The Invisible Economic Thief, 39
Compounding Interest Tax Deferred, 42
Tax-deferred Vehicles, 44
Tax-free Income, 46

6. Your Investment Pyramid, 48
The Principles of Risk vs. Reward, 48
Allocation of Money Between Investments, 53
Asset Allocation Scale, 56
Diversification Of Investments, 57
Graph 1--Portfolio Volatility (100% Stocks), 59
Graph 2--Portfolio Volatility (80% Stocks), 60
Graph 3--Portfolio Volatility (20% Stocks), 61
Graph 4--Comparative Returns, 62
Graph 5--Investments & Inflation, 63
Graph 6--Investments, Inflation Adjusted, 64

7. Your Top Ten Investment Parade, 66
Insured Certificates of Deposit, 66
Treasury Instruments, 67
Government Agencies, 68
Collateralized Mortgage Obligations, 69
Corporate Bonds, 70
Municipal Bonds, 72
Tax-deferred Annuities, 73
Preferred Stock, 74
Mutual Funds, 75
Professionally Managed Money, 76

8. Financial Peace of Mind, 78
The Seven Easy Steps, 78
Early Payoff of a Home Mortgage, 80
Accumulate a Year's Supply, 83
Reduce Your Debt-payment Percentage, 84

9. The Great Gear Change, 87
The Second Sixty Days, 88
More than Just Money, 90
Develop an Activity Plan, 91
Many Begin Productive Undertakings After Retirement, 94
Develop the Prize within You, 95
Evan and Myrtle, 97

10. The Financial Power Formula, 102
P = Principal Safe, 102
O = Optimum Cash Flow, 103
W = Wealth Preserver, 103
E = Easily Understood, 103
R = Risk/Return Percentage, 104
The Power Point System, 104
Investment: Real Estate, 105
Investment: Adjustable-rate U.S. Government Bonds, 107

11. The Deadly Deceptions, 109
Deception #1--Buy Only No Load Funds, 109
Deception #2--Social Security & Retirement, 111
Deception #3--Discount Broker, 111
Deception #4--Single Life Annuitization, 112
Deception #5--Pay Taxes Early, 112
Tax-deferred Compounding Chart, 113
Deception #6--Never Pay a Premium, 114
Deception #7--Market Timing, 115
Deception #8--Guaranteed Return, 116
Deception #9--Collectibles, 117
Deception #10--High Rate of Return, 117
Deception #11--I Can't Afford Retirement, 119
Deception #12--Squeeze for the Last Dollar, 120

12. To Be or Not to Be, 121
Your Attitude Determines Your Retirement Altitude, 121
A Dream Come True, 123
The Simple Life, 126

13. Now It's Up to You--You Can Do it, 129

14. If You Need Help, 133

15. Appendix, 134
Your Investment Pyramid, 135
Your Financial Power Formula, 136

16. Index, 137

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