Protecting Retirement Portfolios In A Bear Market

Many investors putting money away for retirement are on edge due to the recent market slump and are pondering whether or not they should alter their investing plan and, if so. No matter what stage of the game an investor is in, you must pay attention to the bear markets.

However, the contribution rate will be the primary determinant of your plan’s success or failure for investors under 50 who are still in the accumulation phase of retirement savings. Investors can acquire more shares with the same contribution rate in a bear market than they would have been able to purchase in a bull market.

Investors just starting to put money away for retirement should review their asset allocation and make sure they have a plan for rebalancing back to that target asset allocation. It is suggested to invest in a target-date fund since the process of rebalancing is already included in such a fund, making it an ideal choice for maintaining a portfolio’s asset allocation over time.

Advice

Make sure you have a rebalancing strategy if the individual is not using an all-in-one solution. Rebalancing implies that you are doing is increasing your exposure to the asset classes that have declined in value. Most investment portfolios have seen the most significant losses in their equity holdings.

Because additional contributions can still compound and make a difference in one’s plans, older investors and getting closer to retirement should also consider increasing the contribution rates they are making to their plans.

Stages

At this life stage, if you’re in your 50s or early 60s with retirement on the horizon, you generally want to be looking for balance in your retirement portfolio.

If you’re in your 50s or early 60s with retirement on the horizon, you should look for balance at this life stage. Therefore, if you want your wealth to increase over the long run, you must invest in stocks. However, you must also include other less risky assets in your portfolio. 

Therefore, you should look for high-quality bonds with short and intermediate maturities. It would be best to start putting up some financial reserves before it is too early.

Those already taking income from their portfolios throughout retirement will want to direct their attention to the aspects of their situation that they can influence. One factor that is under their control is the rate of their withdrawals. They have to additionally examine the composition of their asset allocation and give some thought to the destinations for their leaves.

Many people prefer the concept of retirees having cash and high-quality short-term bonds to satisfy their income demands continually. That is the most critical component of a Bucket-style plan. When you’re trying to figure out how to organize your investments once you’re retired, that’s a brilliant place to begin.

Also worth considering during a bear market are options-based exchange-traded funds (ETFs), which are available to investors at any point in the process of saving for retirement. 

Option-based exchange-traded funds (ETFs) are designed to shield investors from losses incurred due to a declining market or to complement the income generated by another investing strategy.

Contact Information:
Email: [email protected]
Phone: 8043014291

Bio:
Stuart Hunsicker is a managing partner, retirement specialist and federal employee benefits specialist here at Purpose Driven Financial Services. As firm co-owner with Zar Razack, the two have a natural chemistry that allows them to work together effortlessly. “Once we decided to really commit to pushing the firm forward, we knew that we could be effective,†Stuart says. “We work very well together and complement each other’s strengths and weaknesses.â€

Stuart considers himself more of the “analytical and numbers†half of the duo. With more than 20 years of experience in the financial services industry, he has become an expert at assessing each individual person’s situation and deducing how much they might need in retirement. Once he arrives at the target number, Zar steps in as a specialist to design a plan that includes specific elements that will help clients reach that number.

A VCU-Richmond graduate with a degree in finance specializing in business, Stuart has seen nearly every side of the financial industry. Early in his career, he worked for smaller firms and was in charge of trading and investment portfolios. He also held a Series 24 license and signed off on variable business within the firm. “I wore a lot of hats,†he says. “I focused on the investment side, but when the markets crashed, I just took too many phone calls with crying voices on the other end.â€

Those tough phone calls led him into the insurance side of the business. He now considers “retirement surety†his focal point and believes in making sure that each client is prepared for retirement before they move to the next step. Once the retirement plan is put into place, the rest is icing on the cake, helping give the client financial freedom.

PDFS certainly isn’t exclusive, but Stuart is extremely passionate about working with teachers and federal workers. His beautiful wife of nearly 20 years, Andrea, is a teacher, so he’s very familiar with the issues they face and tends to gravitate toward clients who serve and assist. He has also experienced many of the hypothetical scenarios he raises to clients. What if a spouse passes away suddenly, or what if you’re forced into retirement early? Stuart has been there, and he knows how to navigate those rocky waters.

He and Andrea have one son, one daughter and eight cats. “We’re the crazy cat house,†he says. His oldest cat is almost 20 years old and was the first to join the Hunsicker family, even before Stuart and Andrea married. The first cat needed a friend, of course, so they adopted one more. Andrea always loved tabby cats, so when her colleague told her that a stray tabby gave birth to a litter of kittens in the backyard, the family loaded into the car to have a look. “When we arrived, there were three kittens. My wife fell in love with the tabby, and my daughter took to a different one, then we couldn’t just leave the third one behind,†Stuart says. “At that point we were known for being the cat people, and it was at that point that three more found their way into our family.â€

Stuart is a massive college basketball fan, even making a trip to the 2022 Final Four. Though he doesn’t have much free time, he and Andrea love to attend sporting events. Stuart also enjoys spending time with family, and they often go shopping, to the beach or to try new local restaurants. He says, “We’re just a normal family that loves being around each other.â€