Madrone Investment Advisory, LLC

https://www.nytimes.com//obi/john-bogle-vanguard-dead.html "My only regret about money is that I don't have more of it to give away."

https://www.washingtonpost.com//5347f40e-2d50-11e3-97a3-ff Self-confidence, while useful in many areas of life, is almost always harmful in the world of investing. As this article explains, men are far more likely to suffer from the effects of it when investing.

Mike Zaidlin's article, "Making Optimal Decisions with Social Security Benefits", was published in the June, 2018 issue of The Marin Lawyer. https://marinbar.org/news/article/?type=news&id=332

https://www.bloomberg.com//the-rich-are-betting-on-living-

https://www.ft.com/con/2d70469c-140a-11e7-b0c1-37e417ee6c76

On Friday, November 4, I'll be speaking on financial and retirement planning topics at the East Bay Trusts and Estates Lawyers annual luncheon. http://ebtel.org/resources/11.2016+NOVEMBER+Newsletter.pdf

On Tuesday October 18, I'll be speaking before the Family Law section of the Marin County Bar Association on Social Security rules and strategies, as well as on financial and tax planning with Social Security.

In an interview titled "The Train Wreck Awaiting America's Retirement", Vanguard founder John Bogle explains how two percent in annual investment fees - an amount millions of Americans routinely pay, nearly always without being aware of it - will wipe out 70% or more of everything the investor would have earned over their working lifetime, leaving him or her to enter retirement with less than one-third of their investment returns. http://www.pbs.org//john-bogle-the-train-wreck-awaiting-a/

On March 2, I will be speaking on Social Security and retirement account planning issues to the Estate Planning section of the San Francisco Bar Association. As with my other presentations, I'll be discussing why making the right Social Security filing decision can often result in as much as $200,000-$300,000 in additional income. http://content.sfbar.org/source/BASF_Pages/PDF/G160504.pdf

The passage of the Bipartisan Budget Act this past November means that the popular "file and suspend" Social Security strategy is now only available to those who meet a specific deadline. The file and suspend strategy should be used by anyone who does not want to collect their retirement benefit, but who still needs to file in order to enable their spouse to collect a spousal benefit. (A spousal benefit for a married spouse cannot be collected until the other spouse has fi...led for his or her retirement benefit.) Filing and suspending is now only allowed for those who will turn 66 on or before May 1, 2016, and who file and suspend no later than April 29, 2016. For example, a 66-year old spouse may want to file and suspend in order to let a 64-year old spouse be able to collect a spousal benefit, now or at some point in the future, while the older spouse refrains from actually collecting a retirement benefit. See more

For those who were born on or before May 1, 1950, the Bipartisan Budget Act allows those individuals to still engage in a Social Security strategy known as "filing and suspending". In a nutshell, one spouse cannot file for a spousal benefit unless and until the other spouse has filed for his or her retirement benefit. However, many individuals are postponing filing for their retirement benefit because they wish to grow their retirement benefit by approx. 8% per year from a...ge 66 to age 70. But doing so has the potential downside of preventing the other spouse from filing for her spousal benefit. But if one was born on or before May 1, 1950, that individual has until April 29, 2016 to file and suspend their retirement benefit. That strategy holds the benefit of allowing for that worker to still grown his or her retirement benefit until age 70 - while also allowing the other spouse to obtain a spousal benefit. After that date, the file and suspend strategy can no longer be used. See more

One of the most important Social Security filing decisions involves deciding exactly when both spouses should each file. The reason that this is so important is because the lower earning spouse will, if he or she outlives the other spouse, "inherit" the higher benefit that the deceased spouse was receiving. Which means that higher earning spouse should often file as late as possible. As an example, lets say that the higher earning spouse is entitled to an annual benefit of... $30k at age 66. By waiting until age 70 to file, that benefit increases to just under $40k. On the other hand, if that spouse took their benefit at age 62, that $30k benefit would be reduced to $22.5k. So if that spouse passes away at age 82, the lower earning spouse could inherit a benefit that might be as low as $22.5k, or as high as $40k. That's one reason the filing decision for the older, higher-earning spouse is so important. See more

This past Thursday, I gave a presentation on "Social Security Claiming Strategies" to the Marin County Section on Aging, a coalition of agencies and individuals that work with the elderly in Marin and throughout the SF Bay Area. Although many topics were covered, the key point I emphasized was that the wrong filing decision can easily mean that the amount of money left on the table can exceed several hundred thousand of dollars in lost benefits over the lifetime of a married couple. As a result, the filing decision should only be made with full consideration of all of the relevant factors. I'll be writing more about Social Security over the next few weeks.