Stock Market & Retirement Planning

[CTRosarian]

Tax arbitrage.
I retired early in the year to put myself in a lower tax bracket.
The benefit of being in the lowest tax bracket is the possibility of paying 0% in Long Term Capital gains to the IRS.
If capital gains are too high that may be adjusted by taking a loss. Gotta stay in the bracket!

This can allow you to take paper profits out of a 401k with a minimal tax hit.

 

[jonnys009]

The math is fine as far as you took it, but it's not reflective of real-life conditions. Add in the real-life variables you left out like capital gains, inflation, bracket creep, and changes to the tax code. Then layer the fact that with traditional IRAs you have flexibility on when and how much you withdraw or convert to a Roth to create a taxable event, while if you start with a Roth you are locked in.

100%. Was just helping map out a point on how the real benefit of choosing the deferrals is playing off a rate arbitrage. Tax rate / legislative changes play the biggest role which was the point to begin with.

 

[Iceman!]

Topgolf Callaway spikes after unconfirmed report of potential sale

Topgolf Callaway Brands Corp. (NYSE:MODG) shot higher in early trading after South Korean newspaper The Chosun Daily reported that the golf equipment company could be up for sale. No other major media source has confirmed the report yet.

Major shareholders BlackRock Advisors LLC , Providence Equity Partners LLC, and Thomas Dundon were said to have selected a lead manager and be in the process of selling their stakes and management rights. The plan as reported is for the company to spin off the Topgolf entertainment business and sell the Callaway Golf equipment and apparel business for about $2.98B.

Chosun Daily said a strategic South Korean investor is in the running to land the Callaway Golf business. Of note, Titleist was acquired by KRX-listed FILA Holdings Corp. in 2011 and TaylorMade was also sold to Seoul-based private equity firm Centroid Investment Partners LC in 2021.

Topgolf Callaway Brands Corp. (MODG) finished 2023 ranked at the top of U.S. market share for total clubs, woods, drivers, fairway woods, hybrids and irons. The Topgolf business opened 11 new venues in 2023 and acquired the BigShots franchise, while expanding venue-level margins.

Shares of Topgolf Callaway Brands (MODG) soared 12.94% in premarket action on Wednesday to a 2024 high of $16.25. The 52-week high for the stock is $23.01.

 

[tequila4kapp]

I have been doing some numbers crunching on my own and it looks like retirement could be happening in the 3-5 year range, depending on how a few things break. We have been responsible for most of our adult lives, often sacrificing short term pleasures for longer term benefits. Man, is it nice to be on the cusp of realizing the benefits of those decisions and seeing that things could/should be really solid in our retirement years. It is exciting. I think the next step is to connect with a retirement/financial planner to validate what I think I am seeing.

To the younger THPers out there, always remember that compound interest is your friend. Maximize those retirement contributions now. Trust me, when you get into your 50s you do NOT want to be one of the people who is staring down the barrel of needing to work well into your 60's or even 70s (remember, full SSN starts at 67).

 

[jonnys009]

Congrats and well done!

 

[leftshot]

I have been doing some numbers crunching on my own and it looks like retirement could be happening in the 3-5 year range, depending on how a few things break. We have been responsible for most of our adult lives, often sacrificing short term pleasures for longer term benefits. Man, is it nice to be on the cusp of realizing the benefits of those decisions and seeing that things could/should be really solid in our retirement years. It is exciting. I think the next step is to connect with a retirement/financial planner to validate what I think I am seeing.

To the younger THPers out there, always remember that compound interest is your friend. Maximize those retirement contributions now. Trust me, when you get into your 50s you do NOT want to be one of the people who is staring down the barrel of needing to work well into your 60's or even 70s (remember, full SSN starts at 67).

^^^THIS^^^ is what you are shooting for!

For those under 50, it’s best to plan ahead assuming SS is NOT going to be there for you. It doesn’t appear anyone in government is interested in addressing the problems projected.

 

[lester2]

I retired 10 years ago at age 52. My wife did the same, she was 57. We had my military retirement check coming monthly plus military retiree healthcare. We sold our primary home and moved to our camp/cottage by a small lake that we’d renovated to a year round home while we were still working. No mortgage on the cottage. We took the proceeds from the home sale, both our 401k’s, and her lump sum retirement funds and invested with a retirement financial planner. Total amount was ~$500K. Three years ago we bought an older double wide mobile home on a golf course in Florida, hired a contractor and had it completely renovated. It’s a very comfortable home now for the winter and we still have our cottage up north. We have about $160K into the FL home and we did that by withdrawing from our retirement nest egg over two years, so no mortgage there either. We also withdrew about $25K to help our kids out. As of our last quarterly statement our nest egg is back up to ~$475K, so we’re not far off from where we started 10 years ago with zero contributions since then. Overall pretty happy with how things have turned out.

 

[NeverWiff]

^^^THIS^^^ is what you are shooting for!

For those under 50, it’s best to plan ahead assuming SS is NOT going to be there for you. It doesn’t appear anyone in government is interested in addressing the problems projected.

This is what i tell my kids and anyone else their age who will listen. I'm sure there will be some form of Social Security in existence 30 years from now (the gov't never gets rid of a program) but it won't be anything like today.

Consider this: Soc. Sec. became law in 1935 the first payroll deductions began in 1937 and the first monthly retirement checks going out in 1940 to those age 65 and over. HOWEVER the average life expectancy in the US was only 58 for men and 62 for women.

Maybe it was a harbinger of things to come but the first Soc Sec check recipient was Ida May Fuller from Vermont who lived to be 100 and collected more from the system than was ever anticipated. The first monthly check? $22.45 which in todays dollars is $ 497.63 (The AVERAGE social security check in 2023 was $1,767.03)

Up until relatively recently, the age to start collecting benefits remained at 65, with allowances for people to collect early at 62 or for disability. Average life expectancy now is well into the 70's. The numbers alone indicate a massive change is required.

I've read articles recently urging an increase to 70 as the age to start collecting Soc. Sec. (for those just entering the workforce). I also wouldn't be surprised if, at some point, the government started basing Soc. Sec benefits on need, not what you put into it. "So, you paid a ton into the system but are fortunate enough to retire comfortably? Guess what, you don't need Social Security.... thanks for contributing, and have a nice day."