Finance

Vanguard Research recently released a whitepaper titled Vanguard’s Principles for Retirement Income (direct PDF link) and I was surprised to find it rather substantial – almost a short book on retirement income planning that provides valuable insight into their (growing!) financial advisory services. The focus is clearly about creating a sustainable income from your portfolio, not the usual stuff about growing your portfolio.

Focusing on income rather than account balances can lead to clearer decision-making in retirement.

Without a defined income plan, investors may spend too cautiously or risk drawing down their assets too quickly. With an income-focused framework, you can better understand how to turn your savings into spending by having a clearer view of:

– How much you can withdraw over time.
– How long your assets may need to last.
– How different risks can affect outcomes.

As a start, you have your sources of guaranteed income (pensions, annuities, Social Security) and roughly 3.5% to 4% of your portfolio, based on historical numbers:

Here are some of the recommended strategies to help stretch things further to create enough income for the rest of your lifetime. Some are more for those that really need to make some big, hard decisions in order to not run out of money, while others are more about marginal improvements.

• Work longer. Not ideal, but powerful. You earn more, you also delay the start of Social Security claiming, and you have a shorter retirement period to cover.
• Dynamic spending. Rather than a fixed percentage withdrawal rate, dynamic spending extends the life of the portfolio by reducing withdrawals if there are poor market returns. There are many ways to implement this.
• Convert some assets to SPIA (single-premium income annuity). If you need to support a hard floor in your income to support essentials, an SPIA can help provide the reliable income needed.
• Tapping home equity. Something to consider if necessary to provide for essentials, especially later in retirement.
• Roth conversions. Converting tax-deferred investments to Roth when your marginal tax brackets are lower (like right after you stop working) can reduce your overall tax paid.
• Tax-efficient withdrawal strategy. In general, you should withdraw from taxable accounts
  first, then tax-deferred, then save Roth for last.

If anything, this paper provides some good places to dig deeper when the time comes.

Amazon Prime Days 2026 is now live will run June 23-26, 2026. Beyog the “early” deals, I always look out for reset points credits and extended free trials to try out again. As usual, I recommend checking for discounts on the things you already buy. Check your “Buy Again” past purchases here. I’ve listed a few of my favorite things below as well.

(Note: If you are reading this in an email/RSS reader, unfortunately I am not allowed to include any Amazon affiliate links in e-mails, so they have been removed. Please click here to view the links.)

As the name suggests, most deals require a Prime membership. New members can sign up for a 30-day free trial. Amazon Prime for Students (age 18-24) has a 7-day trial for 99 cents and $7.49/month after that (50% off regular). If you’ve already done the trial, you can simply buy a single month of Prime for $14.99 ($6.99 with SNAP, EBT or Medicaid card).

Deals and Offers

• List of all current product-specific Prime deals (updated constantly). This list appears to be targeted to your browsing history.
• Live Amazon Device Deals (Echo, Blink, Eero, Ring, Kindle, Fire, etc).
• $5 Large Pizza from Little Caesars. Will be live 6/15-6/26. Up to 5 redemptions. Once per order, per day.
• $200 Instant Amazon Gift card bonus with Prime Visa. Will be live 6/1-7/9. “Get a $200 Amazon gift card instantly upon approval for Prime Visa (June 11–July 9) or $120 for Prime Store Card (June 23–26). Earn 10% back or more on exclusive deals, plus unlimited 5% back year-round at Amazon.com, Whole Foods Market, and more—with no annual fees. During Prime Day, cardmembers can also earn 7% back on eligible Amazon.com purchases (June 23-26) when they choose No-Rush Delivery.”

Amazon Free Trials

• Kindle Unlimited – 3 month free trial. Usually $11.99 a month. Might be a different length for you. Targeted.
• Amazon Music – 4 month free trial. Usually $11.99 a month. Targeted.
• Audible Standard – 3 month free trial. Usually $8.99 a month. This is the basic plan that doesn’t allow you to keep any audiobooks, but you can stream during the trial. Targeted.
• Remember that you can cancel these trials immediately after activation, and they will still work until the end of the trial period. This avoids you forgetting to cancel.

“Shop with Points” Promos (Check again if reset/targeted)

• Discover Cash Back.
• Chase Ultimate Rewards points.
• American Express Membership Rewards points.
• American Express Rewards Dollars (Ex. Blue Cash, Blue Cash Preferred).
• U.S. Bank Rewards points.
• Capital One Rewards points
• Citi Thank You points.

Random Favorite Things & Recent Discoveries (Not necessarily on sale right now)

• Amazon Eero 6E mesh WiFi router system 3-pack (sale). If you have WiFi coverage issues and haven’t upgraded your router recently, I do recommend an upgrade. It just makes WiFi something you don’t worry about anymore. No more dead spots. This “6E” model supports speeds up to 2.5Gbps and up to 6,000 sf, while the cheaper “6” version supports up to 500 Mbps and 4,500 sf.
• COSORI Air Fryer. We still use our air fryer nearly every day; heats things up like a microwave, except it keeps them crispy instead of soggy. Easy to clean in dishwasher.
• Coway Airmega AP-1512HH True HEPA Air Purifier. I have two of these air purifiers, one in each of the kids’ rooms. I think they are over 5 years old now and still going fine. Simple design, reliable, and easy to change filters. I use these cheaper VEVA brand replacement filters that are still of good quality.
• Bosch ICON windshield wipers. These are the most expensive, but they are also the best and longest-lasting in my experience. No longer mess with the rest.
• Tiptree Passion Fruit Curd. Delicious on so many things, their lemon curd is excellent as well but the passionfruit (aka “lilikoi butter”) flavor is one of those things that I can only find easily on Amazon.