There are tax aspects to consider and there’s some expert advice available here but that’s not my expertise.
30+ years ago I had a wealthy client who explained to me that he was a member of a group of wealthy guys, who really were wealthy. They had high net worth and lived well, but many had no ‘cash’
It was tied up in investments & tax shelters(in the 80’s)
It didn’t make sense at the time but over the years I’ve fine tuned strategies for myself and clients that have worked well.
There’s a time in life to take risks and there’s a time in life that you want to be more conservative.
Sometimes a person in one stage is trying to give the other stage advice and it’s inappropriate.
I’ve learned that having cash is not important as long as you have ACCESS to cash if you need it.
IMO there’s nothing wrong with manageable debt and dependable income streams to support.
I’d rather have cash flow and income throughout life to enjoy, rather than knowing I could have huge income
10 or 20 years from now.
To just stubbornly say that ‘I want no debt at retirement’ and not explore alternatives, is foolish.
If I could borrow money at 3.5% and earn 5%+ on it,
I’d be happy to be in ‘debt’ for the rest of my life.
If I had a 401K AND a mortgage AND a secure job,
I would max out a 401K loan and pay down/off my mortgage.
I think the entire 401K system is a ticking time bomb and a huge threat to the world economy, far bigger than the
housing bubble of yesteryear.
