Barron’s Retirement’s 10 most read stories of the year include items on retiring abroad and retiring on dividends. Apologies to David Letterman and his Top 10 List segment on the ‘Late Show.’
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One of the best features of digital journalism is the ability to know what readers respond to. Barron’s Retirement tries to use that knowledge to deliver relevant stories on the topics you most want to know about when it comes to saving, investing, and living in retirement.
The past year has delivered a lot of hits, as you’ll see below, on topics running from how to retire abroad to managing your retirement strategy amid turbulent markets to retiring on dividends.
Still, not every story works as we hoped or reaches as broad an audience as we envisioned. Do senior readers want to know about pot? Do we not care as much about the idea of crypto in our workplace retirement accounts as the headlines would make you think? Or have we just not hit upon the right headline to draw in the broadest possible audience?
Whatever the case, here is our second annual rundown of the top 10 most read Barron’s Retirement stores of the year so far, in descending order of the number of readers who clicked on them:
April 3
When to claim Social Security is one of the most personal, and controversial, topics in retirement coverage. Seemingly everyone has an opinion. Here, writer Tom Wilk explored his considerations on when to claim Social Security in this Living in Retirement column.
Feb. 21
Barron’s Retirement launched a new mailbag feature earlier this year, taking reader questions and going to professionals for advice. This one drew a lot of readers, presumably for its headline, but secondary questions on whether to pay off a mortgage and tax-efficient ways to protect taxable investment holdings from inflation were quite informative as well.
July 16
The long bull market that propelled 401(k) balances for more than a decade has ended amid soaring inflation, the prospect of a recession, political strife, and the war in Ukraine. What’s an anxious retirement saver to do?
To find out, Barron’s Retirement reporter Elizabeth O’Brien spoke with a number of financial pros as well as an expert in the budding field of financial therapy.
June 12
Another installment in our mailbag series, this piece looks at Congress’s plan to gradually raise the age for required minimum distributions, to age 75, over the next decade or so. It won’t happen for a while, if it gets approved at all, and in any case it won’t be enacted before this year’s 72-year-olds must take their first minimum distribution.
Plus, we had answers to your questions on Social Security spousal benefits and Social Security’s controversial Windfall Elimination Provision.
July 4
Retirement coverage needn’t be all about spending and saving strategies. Just as important as fiscal concerns are health concerns. That makes sense, as what’s the point in maximizing wealth if we’re not healthy enough or don’t live long enough to enjoy it.
Barron’s Retirement reporter Neal Templin’s latest look at how seniors can improve or optimize their health resonated with readers.
Jan. 8
I’ve long wanted to write the phrase “401(k) millionaire” into a headline, and this On FIRE column, looking at the trend of savers seeking financial independence or to retire early, gave me the first legitimate chance to do so.
June 4
Expat retirement is drawing increasing interest, but it isn’t as simple as picking a place and moving in. From healthcare to taxes, seniors looking to move overseas should figure on a year or so of preparation work, reporter Debbie Carlson found in this piece on retiring abroad.
April 23
Stock market downturns early in retirement often harm the durability of savings, but they can give retirees willing to do some research and steel their nerves an opportunity to juice longer-term returns.
To paraphrase billionaire investor Warren Buffett
July 2
Equal isn’t always equal when parents leave retirement accounts to adult children with big differences in income, as reporter Gail MarksJarvis explored in this piece on how to manage your retirement savings to limit the tax hit on heirs.
March 18
As more investors look to devote a portion of their nest eggs to the steady income that can come from dividend payers, reporter Lawrence C. Strauss talked with financial pros about how to diversify holdings, seek downturn-resistant companies, and do due diligence on fundamentals.
But retiring on dividends requires active engagement and management, so it pays to also understand the downside.
Write to Brian Hershberg at brian.hershberg@dowjones.com