JohnnyBGoode
Recycles dryer sheets
I got a brochure in the mail a few weeks ago about a two-night course around retirement planning at the local community college. Normally I disregard items like that since my own research plus resources like this forum give me what I think is a solid foundation. Plus I'm generally skeptical - no such thing as a free lunch, right?
Anyway, the class writeup was very well done and since it said it was going to talk about taxes, social security optimization, and related topics and since it was free, I figured I could spare two Tuesdays from 6:30pm - 9:00pm.
So the first Tuesday (last week) it was pretty interesting and I did learn some details about SS withdrawal strategies, Roth conversions, etc. that I didn't know before. The instructor was a financial planner but no sales job at all during the class. However, at the end of the "class" he passes out this book to discuss at the next class - it is "The Power of Zero: How to Get to the 0% Tax Bracket and Transform Your Retirement" https://www.amazon.com/Power-Zero-Bracket-Transform-Retirement/dp/0989000192.
So now I see where the whole thing is going and I figure that I won't even go back for the second meeting. It is a sales job for LIRP (Life Insurance Retirement Plan). I have no interest in mixing life insurance (which I do not need since our finances are in great shape and our kids are both out of the house) and my investments. Plus I invest is low-expense (0.05%) broad market funds and I don't need to spend 1.5% on LIRP fees. Seems like a scam or close to it.
But then I thought - just to be sure - is there any validity to this? We do max out our 401K and SIMPLE IRA, so we don't have any other tax-deferred account options. Is there any scenario where it makes sense? Thanks!
Anyway, the class writeup was very well done and since it said it was going to talk about taxes, social security optimization, and related topics and since it was free, I figured I could spare two Tuesdays from 6:30pm - 9:00pm.
So the first Tuesday (last week) it was pretty interesting and I did learn some details about SS withdrawal strategies, Roth conversions, etc. that I didn't know before. The instructor was a financial planner but no sales job at all during the class. However, at the end of the "class" he passes out this book to discuss at the next class - it is "The Power of Zero: How to Get to the 0% Tax Bracket and Transform Your Retirement" https://www.amazon.com/Power-Zero-Bracket-Transform-Retirement/dp/0989000192.
So now I see where the whole thing is going and I figure that I won't even go back for the second meeting. It is a sales job for LIRP (Life Insurance Retirement Plan). I have no interest in mixing life insurance (which I do not need since our finances are in great shape and our kids are both out of the house) and my investments. Plus I invest is low-expense (0.05%) broad market funds and I don't need to spend 1.5% on LIRP fees. Seems like a scam or close to it.
But then I thought - just to be sure - is there any validity to this? We do max out our 401K and SIMPLE IRA, so we don't have any other tax-deferred account options. Is there any scenario where it makes sense? Thanks!
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