Retirement Archives - Financial Samurai https://www.financialsamurai.com/category/retirement/ Slicing Through Money's Mysteries Thu, 08 Jan 2026 21:02:29 +0000 en-US hourly 1 https://wordpress.org/?v=6.8.3 https://www.financialsamurai.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/02/cropped-FinancialSamurai-Site-Icon-700x700-32x32.png Retirement Archives - Financial Samurai https://www.financialsamurai.com/category/retirement/ 32 32 New Year’s Resolutions 2026: Less Optimizing, More Living https://www.financialsamurai.com/new-years-resolutions-2026-less-optimizing-more-living/ https://www.financialsamurai.com/new-years-resolutions-2026-less-optimizing-more-living/#comments Wed, 07 Jan 2026 12:18:00 +0000 https://www.financialsamurai.com/?p=288055 By many objective measures, 2025 was a good year. Investment returns were solid. I published another bestseller in Millionaire Milestones. My kids are healthy, happy, and continuing to grow in loving environments. On paper, I should feel satisfied. But the reality is different. The downside of writing consistently, responding to hundreds of questions, managing the […]

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]]> https://www.financialsamurai.com/new-years-resolutions-2026-less-optimizing-more-living/feed/ 27 2025 Year In Review: A For Effort, B Minus For Results https://www.financialsamurai.com/2025-year-in-review-a-for-effort-b-minus-for-results/ https://www.financialsamurai.com/2025-year-in-review-a-for-effort-b-minus-for-results/#comments Fri, 02 Jan 2026 11:18:00 +0000 https://www.financialsamurai.com/?p=288125 Happy New Year 2026 everyone! With another year wrapped up, I thought I’d do a 2025 year in review so I can one day look back fondly as an old man. Overall, I give the year an A for effort, which is all I can really control. Unfortunately, the result didn’t match the effort, as […]

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]]> https://www.financialsamurai.com/2025-year-in-review-a-for-effort-b-minus-for-results/feed/ 14 The Best Of Financial Samurai 2025: Over 100 Million Readers Served https://www.financialsamurai.com/the-best-of-financial-samurai-2025-100-million-readers-served/ https://www.financialsamurai.com/the-best-of-financial-samurai-2025-100-million-readers-served/#comments Wed, 31 Dec 2025 12:18:00 +0000 https://www.financialsamurai.com/?p=288524 In July 2009, I started Financial Samurai to make sense of the financial destruction unfolding at the time. I had been toying with the idea since 2006, when I graduated part time from UC Berkeley’s business school, but kept kicking the can down the road. After losing around 40 percent of my net worth in […]

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]]> https://www.financialsamurai.com/the-best-of-financial-samurai-2025-100-million-readers-served/feed/ 14 Betting On The Santa Claus Rally To Finally Come Through https://www.financialsamurai.com/betting-on-the-santa-claus-rally-to-finally-come-through/ https://www.financialsamurai.com/betting-on-the-santa-claus-rally-to-finally-come-through/#comments Wed, 24 Dec 2025 12:18:00 +0000 https://www.financialsamurai.com/?p=288304 Every year, as December rolls in and holiday lights start appearing on houses, a curious phenomenon shows up in the stock market: the Santa Claus rally. If you’re an investor, it’s the kind of quirky, seasonal pattern that’s worth understanding, both for context and for timing your year-end investment decisions. So what is it, exactly? The […]

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]]> https://www.financialsamurai.com/betting-on-the-santa-claus-rally-to-finally-come-through/feed/ 9 The Third Rule Of Financial Independence Could Also Be Your Biggest Regret https://www.financialsamurai.com/the-third-rule-of-financial-independence/ https://www.financialsamurai.com/the-third-rule-of-financial-independence/#comments Mon, 15 Dec 2025 12:18:00 +0000 https://www.financialsamurai.com/?p=287602 As someone who has been writing about financial independence and escaping corporate America since 2009, I’ve developed several rules that serve as the backbone for achieving FIRE and staying free. They are simple, but not easy. Ignoring any one of them can set you back years. Below are the first two rules as a reminder, […]

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]]> https://www.financialsamurai.com/the-third-rule-of-financial-independence/feed/ 39 Living Solely Off Social Security Benefits In Retirement Is Possible https://www.financialsamurai.com/living-solely-off-social-security-benefits-in-retirement-is-possible/ https://www.financialsamurai.com/living-solely-off-social-security-benefits-in-retirement-is-possible/#comments Sun, 30 Nov 2025 12:28:00 +0000 https://www.financialsamurai.com/?p=287269 About 10 years ago, I tried logging onto SSA.gov to check my Social Security benefits. You would think after decades of paying FICA taxes (6.2% for SS, 1.45% for Medicare), the government might make it easy to see what you’re entitled to. Nope. Instead, the system demanded to physically mail me a PIN. I tried three times […]

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]]> https://www.financialsamurai.com/living-solely-off-social-security-benefits-in-retirement-is-possible/feed/ 43 Thankful for the Opportunity to Keep Competing and Thinking https://www.financialsamurai.com/thankful-for-the-opportunity-to-keep-competing/ https://www.financialsamurai.com/thankful-for-the-opportunity-to-keep-competing/#comments Fri, 28 Nov 2025 13:28:00 +0000 https://www.financialsamurai.com/?p=287357 At our core, we all just want a fair chance to compete. We don’t want handouts, and we certainly don’t want to rely on the Bank of Mom & Dad to prop us up as adults. They have their own retirement to worry about. The real satisfaction comes from seeing what we can build through […]

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]]> https://www.financialsamurai.com/thankful-for-the-opportunity-to-keep-competing/feed/ 2 The 2026 401(k) Contribution Limits Feel Like Big Money Now https://www.financialsamurai.com/2026-401k-contribution-limits-feels-like-big-money/ https://www.financialsamurai.com/2026-401k-contribution-limits-feels-like-big-money/#comments Mon, 17 Nov 2025 12:18:00 +0000 https://www.financialsamurai.com/?p=286972 The maximum employee 401(k) contribution limit for 2026 is increasing by $1,000 to $24,500 according to the IRS. For workers over 50, the catch-up contribution rises to $8,000, bringing the total to $32,500. With the median household income of roughly $80,000 today (employee 401(k) max = 30% of income), that’s a substantial amount of money to shelter in […]

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]]> https://www.financialsamurai.com/2026-401k-contribution-limits-feels-like-big-money/feed/ 23 Poor Versus Rich Millionaires: Liquidity Is The Difference https://www.financialsamurai.com/poor-versus-rich-millionaires-liquidity-is-the-difference/ https://www.financialsamurai.com/poor-versus-rich-millionaires-liquidity-is-the-difference/#comments Sun, 02 Nov 2025 13:28:00 +0000 https://www.financialsamurai.com/?p=286006 A poor millionaire sounds like an oxymoron, but they definitely exist. Roughly 6% of U.S. households are millionaires, yet many of them still don’t feel rich. A poor millionaire is someone worth over $1 million but unable to access much of their wealth. In other words, their net worth is highly illiquid. A layoff, bear market, or […]

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]]> https://www.financialsamurai.com/poor-versus-rich-millionaires-liquidity-is-the-difference/feed/ 60 The 8 Scariest Financial Situations You Can Find Yourself In https://www.financialsamurai.com/scariest-financial-situations-you-can-find-yourself-in/ https://www.financialsamurai.com/scariest-financial-situations-you-can-find-yourself-in/#comments Fri, 31 Oct 2025 11:38:00 +0000 https://www.financialsamurai.com/?p=286294 I love Halloween, especially seeing how much fun the kids have. But for financially aware adults, the real chills don’t come from ghosts or goblins. They come from spreadsheets, surprise bills, and market meltdowns that turn your net worth chart into a horror movie graph. After over three decades of studying, working through, and writing […]

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