Getting to Retirement with Minimal Financial Risk (New York Times)

Investing in the market is always a gamble, but somewhere along the way investing for retirement became a manageable risk. With few alternative options for building a nest egg, managing that risk is ever more important. One approach is by calculating bare essential costs in retirement, saving aggressively to cover those costs, and putting the money in risk-free investments. Other approaches include diversification through stocks, bonds and hedging techniques. Buying insurance can help share risks. “The caveat to most risk management techniques is the simple acknowledgment that, taken to extremes, they are no longer risk management techniques but the introduction of new risks or bets themselves,” said Michael Kitces, director of research, Pinnacle Advisory Group.