1 Retirement “Rule” to Rethink in 2026 (and a 10.9% Dividend That Changes the Math)

Our Archive

Search completed

1 Retirement “Rule” to Rethink in 2026 (and a 10.9% Dividend That Changes the Math)

Millions of investors are making a critical mistake that could leave their finances vulnerable—and at the worst possible time, too.

That error? Clinging to so-called “rules of thumb” that sound useful, but are so broad as to be almost irrelevant—even dangerous, depending on your personal circumstances.

Consider the so-called “rule of 25,” which is as simple as it is deceptive. It simply states that, before we retire, we should have saved up 25 times the yearly amount we plan to spend in retirement.

That’s a lot! The chart below matches up how much a retiree plans to spend (setting aside inflation to make things a bit simpler) to see how much they’d need to save, going by this “rule.”… Read more

Read More

Forget the Fear: These 3 Dividends (Up to 17.9%) Are Built for 2026

Stocks are about to do something almost totally unheard of: chalk up three winning years in a row.

And no one is celebrating.

Instead, worry is everywhere: about an AI bubble. Sticky inflation. Or the Fed—everything from the bank’s next chair to its independence and the direction of rates.

This combo—a strong market tempered with a big dose of anxiety—has set up a rare setup in our favorite high-income plays: 8%+ yielding closed-end funds (CEFs). It comes in the form of a pattern I don’t see often, but when I do, it’s almost always a buying opportunity.

That pattern is the following: A drop in a CEF’s market price (driven by investor sentiment), while its underlying portfolio (driven by management’s talents) keeps on growing.… Read more

Read More

2025’s Hottest CEF Is a Trap. Here’s What to Buy Instead for 9% Dividends

One thing I’ve always been astonished by is how fast a winning strategy (in investing and in life!) can suddenly slam into a wall—and start causing a lot of pain.

Consider, for example, the life of a mortgage banker in the 2000s: They made easy money for years, then the subprime-mortgage crisis threw them out of work overnight.

This happens in investing, too, which is why it’s always good to stay humble and well-diversified. Some high-yielding closed-end funds (CEFs), for example, look like big winners at any given moment. But if you buy without looking under the hood, you’re risking sharp losses.… Read more

Read More

This 21% Dividend Yield Looks Great (Until You See This 1 Ugly Chart)

Today we’re going to run a simple “rinse and repeat” trade that—time and time again—gives us income investors what we all really want:

High—but sustainable—dividends, plus a nice capital gains “bonus.”

In other words, the full package of income and upside. In investing, this combo goes by the name total return, and it’s what we really need to focus on to build a portfolio that lets us retire with true peace of mind.

Most investors know this, but then quickly forget it when they run up against a stock with a massive yield, like the 21.1% (!) payout on Prospect Capital Corp.… Read more

Read More

This 21% Dividend Yield Looks Great (Until You See This 1 Ugly Chart)

Today we’re going to run a simple “rinse and repeat” trade that—time and time again—gives us income investors what we all really want:

High—but sustainable—dividends, plus a nice capital gains “bonus.”

In other words, the full package of income and upside. In investing, this combo goes by the name total return, and it’s what we really need to focus on to build a portfolio that lets us retire with true peace of mind.

Most investors know this, but then quickly forget it when they run up against a stock with a massive yield, like the 21.1% (!) payout on Prospect Capital Corp.… Read more

Read More

How to Invest $100,000 For $1,014 Per Month in Income

I hate to see investors (particularly retirees) starving for dividends, especially with inflation stuck around 3% (and you and I both know that the real number is higher—just head down to your local grocery store!).

A big myth around dividends is that you have to invest a lot upfront to get anything meaningful in return. It’s easy to see why people feel that way, with the average S&P 500 stock paying a meager 1.1% as I write this.

This is where my favorite investments, closed-end funds (CEFs), come in. Using the three we’ll delve into below, you could get a little over $1,000 a month in income, thanks to their double-digit yields.… Read more

Read More

How the “Smart Money” Is Playing US Stocks Now (for 9.5% Dividends)

Are US stocks set to lose out to the rest of the world forever? That’s what the press would have us believe. But we contrarian dividend investors are looking at this from a different angle.

Our strategy? Buy America when the rest of the world is selling.

It’s worked before, and we have every reason to believe it will work now, too. So let’s talk about it—and the best way to position ourselves for US stocks’ next leg up, with a healthy dividend payout on the side.

Press Panics, US Stocks Bounce

It’s funny, but not surprising, that the moment “sell America” became a headline earlier this year, US stocks started to recover.… Read more

Read More

The $47,120 Mistake: Why 60/40 Portfolios Are Losing in the Tariff Turmoil

It’s as predictable as night following day: Stock markets crash, and we almost immediately hear more about the so-called “60/40 rule” as a way for investors to protect themselves.

Don’t fall for this overdone “rule of thumb” (which, as the name says, recommends putting 60% of your portfolio into stocks and 40% into bonds).

Today we’re going to look at a much better way—one that pays you 9.7% dividends and delivers far better performance, too.

2025 Is 2022 Redux for the 60/40 Crowd

Today’s setup reminds me of what I heard near the end of 2022, when stocks were crashing. Back then, many advisors were dredging up this old idea to help ease worried investors’ fears.… Read more

Read More

This 7-CEF Portfolio Yields 14.1%

The suits on Wall Street will say that $460K isn’t enough to retire on.

Well, that “modest” nest egg will earn $64,860 in dividends alone when invested in this simple 7-CEF portfolio.

CEFs are the code name for closed-end funds. They are a lesser-known cousin to exchange-traded funds (ETFs) and mutual funds. CEFs tend to have modest assets under management. Which is their superpower. Fewer assets mean greater yields!

Consider the 7-CEF portfolio we are about to discuss versus the standard high-yield stock benchmark ETF:

There is no comparison! But before we buy blindly, let’s do our homework and make sure these CEFs are not paper payout tigers.… Read more

Read More

This Unique China Play Gives Us 9.2%+ Dividends, Upside

We income investors don’t talk about international stocks nearly enough. That’s too bad, because there are ways we can use them to build a massive income stream and make our investments safer, too.

In fact, there’s one way, using high-yield closed-end funds (CEFs), we can “time” US and international stocks to get a 9.2% yield we can build over time by making simple moves to “rebalance” between US and overseas CEFs from time to time.

It all starts with China, because there’s a spark there that sets the stage for our 9.2%+ overseas payout strategy.

Chinese Stocks: 13% Yearly Gains Ahead?… Read more

Read More

Categories