In this episode of the One of a Kind Financial Show Daily, host Mike Milligan and guest Gary Nolan discuss how retirees can "crisis‑proof" their financial plans against unexpected market downturns, inflation, and scams. They begin by highlighting new retirement threats such as prolonged market volatility, longevity risk, and the fact that 60% of Americans fear outliving their savings. The conversation moves to the importance of maintaining an emergency liquidity buffer—specifically recommending 1‑2 years of cash held in certificates of deposit (CDs) to protect against market losses and phone scams targeting seniors. They then stress the need for broad diversification across stocks, bonds, annuities, cash, and alternative assets to avoid concentration risk, especially when markets are booming. Inflation‑hedging tools like Treasury Inflation‑Protected Securities (TIPS), dividend‑growth stocks, and certain annuities are presented as ways to preserve purchasing power. Finally, the hosts outline a five‑pillar retirement planning framework—taxes, retirement income, investments, long‑term care, and legacy—offered through One Oak Financial, and provide contact information for listeners to schedule a personalized plan. The episode blends educational content with promotional calls to action and includes a disclaimer that the material is for educational purposes only.
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Welcome to the One of a Kind Financial Show Daily with your host, Mike Milligan. Recently on the One of a Kind Financial Show with Gary Nolan, we had a lively discussion on recessions and Inflation market crashes, how they don't wait for your retirement. We broke down how to potentially crisis-proof your retirement plan so you can best navigate storms that may come your way. We even throw in a little weather conversation as an ode to how tricky it is to actually forecast where the weather's going to go. And I've got a, I've got a really big announcement coming to the One of a Kind Financial Show and the One of a Kind Financial Show Daily at the end of this week. I'm actually going to talk about forecasting. We're going to talk about how major investment firms over the last really 5 years, uh, have led us astray in their year forecast. And I'm gonna tell you how to get a copy of that special report into a live event I'm going to host over this weekend. So stay tuned this weekend, listen to the whole episodes this week, but now enjoy this segment from the One of a Kind Financial Show. You are one of a kind. So should your financial plan be.
So we all know the unexpected has a way of showing up right when you least need it. And retirement is no exception. Crashes, rising inflation, job losses late in your career, even unexpected medical bills can quickly turn a solid-looking retirement plan into a scramble for stability. Now, a recent Investopedia article outlines how to prepare for real-world financial storms before they happen. Today, let's unpack how to crisis-proof your retirement strategy, because the question isn't if challenges will come, it's when. Here's the first one: the new retirement threats No one saw coming, Mike.
Well, I love how you started this, Gary, in this little introduction to this segment by talking about how there's financial storms that can come even when you're in retirement. Shout out to all of our amateur and professional weather people listening today, first of all.
Yes, exactly.
I guess this is more of like our weather segment of the One of a Kind Financial Show because we are going to talk about how these storms Or you can navigate around them. So the first one, like Gary said, is the new retirement threats no one saw coming. So many retirees expected to cruise into retirement after decades of saving. That's an expectation that you should have, especially if you've done the right things. But between the 2008 financial crisis, the COVID pandemic, the persistent inflation, and even the political upheaval that has happened that's caused markets to gyrate. It's clear that volatility doesn't stop when you stop working. The Investopedia piece mentions that 60% of Americans are worried they'll outlive their savings. So with longevity actually increasing and many people expected to live to their 80s and 90s, we have to make sure that your money can last as long as you do. That you don't outlive the money needed to continue life.
Yeah, that's one of the biggest fears, people outliving their money. That definitely is. Why does emergency funds still matter in retirement, Mike?
So we usually talk about emergency funds during working years, but they're just as important, if not more, once you retire. We transition though to start talking about emergency funds more as access to liquidity. Because if the market takes a dive, having a cash cushion easily liquid means you're not forced to sell investments at a loss to pay for the living expenses. Our firm, One Oak Financial, recommends that you should have between 1 to 2 years cash buffer liquidity in place in case there is a downturn in the market.
Where should you put that money? In a high-yield savings account, Mike? Where do you suggest you put that emergency savings?
I suggest CDs in banks.
Mm-hmm.
And there's a really rational reason for that, folks, is if you're over 65, scammers are calling you every day. And the thing about when a scammer calls, they can sound so real and authentic. I just got a call from the Norfolk Sheriff's Office on a blocked line that said I missed a warrant, like a warrant was out for my arrest. Because I missed jury duty.
Yeah, a scam.
And they even said, this is Sergeant So-and-so for the Norfolk Sheriff's Department. They gave me a local phone number to call back that when they answered the phone was the Norfolk Sheriff's Department. But it was a scam, folks. See, scammers are out to get you. And if you have your liquid money in a CD, money cannot be wired from a CD. It cannot be transacted unless you go into the bank to do that. And more importantly, a CD is still liquid. You cannot lose principal in a CD, a certificate of deposit. And so for that cash emergency, even if you need it, the worst possible outcome is that you would have to, you would lose some potential interest in that CD.
Yes.
So that's why we recommend that. We recommend you keep money in the market to keep pace inflation, have annuities to earn more than what bond allocations do or provide guaranteed income. But for liquid money, folks, CDs protect you. They'll give you a little bit higher interest than a checking account or a savings account, and they protect you from scammers.
The show is the One of a Kind Financial Show with Mike Milligan with One Oak Financial. I want to give you the phone number again on the calendar to get you all set up with that comprehensive plan: 800-748-1838, 800-748-1838, or text the word IDEAS to 600-700, IDEAS to 600-700. The importance of diversification even late in the game, Mike.
I just spoke about this a little bit when I was talking about having liquid money in CDs and having some money in the stock market to beat inflation and even some annuity protection to earn higher than bonds or get a guaranteed income. But when the market is booming like it has over the last several years, it's tempting just to take, just to try to chase the returns of the stock market. It's tempting to do the same thing when the real estate market is as hot as it is. But concentration in one sector, or asset class can be disastrous if the tide turns. The article from Investopedia points out that broad diversification across stocks and bonds, annuities, cash, and even other alternative assets can soften the blow of market downturns. And so as a boomer or even a Gen Xer, if you're listening now, creating a portfolio that balances both growth with protection and liquidity is so important. to weather any storm in retirement.
Final point we want to make in segment number 1, inflation-proof your income, Mike.
With inflation remaining stubbornly high, remember guys, inflation numbers have come down, but remember, the lower growth rates of inflation right now are still stacked on historically high rates of the last several years. So inflation is still stubborn. It is, and it's eroding your purchasing power, which is a serious threat to retirees. A dollar today, remember, will not buy as much as it did even 10 or 15 years ago. So tools like TIPS, Treasury Inflation Protected Securities, dividend-growing stocks, and certain annuities offer those hedges against the storm, which is inflation.
All right, Mike, wrap up segment 1. What do you do for listeners when you meet with them?
Guys, we know that storms come to even people who've retired. We know, and if we could be truthful with ourselves, we know that many people that call into the show have don't have the same risk capacity that they had when they were working, and that retirement is different. They don't want to tolerate big swings in the market. We also know that nobody does tax planning. Nobody, no investment people do that. The third thing is we know that many people do not have an income plan. And if that's you and you're truthful with yourself, you'll pick up the phone and call us today because the One of a Kind Financial Show and One Oak Financial helps build the one of a kind financial plan. which addresses taxes, retirement income, investments, long-term care, and legacy. The 5 things that matter in retirement so that you can sleep easier at night, so you can dream big for retirement, so you can do the things that bring impact and joy to your life. And we build those one-of-a-kind financial plans because we want you to live a one-of-a-kind life.
800-748-1838, 800-748-1838, or text the word IDEAS 600-700. Do it now. Get on the calendar. You deserve a more confident plan to retire. Want to be stress-free? Peace of mind? Starts by picking up the phone and dial that number.
Thank you for joining us for the One of a Kind Financial Show Daily. This has been Mike Milligan. As a reminder, we do this podcast for educational content purposes only. You should seek professional financial advice either by reaching out to us in the, in how we offered, we offered many different ways to do that in the segment of the radio show that you just listened to. Mike is an investment advisor. Representative with Advisory Alpha LLC outta Holland, Michigan. Ideas by Mike, doing business as One Oak Financial, is an unaffiliated entity of Advisory Alpha LLC. The opinions expressed in the One of a Kind Financial Show and the One of a Kind Financial Show Daily are those of Mike and Gary solely. Please don't take them to make any investment recommendations on your own. Thanks again for joining us on the One of a Kind Financial Show Daily.
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