Chris Nye, The 403b Guy

07/13/2023

Jackson Memorial HS is looking for a Business Education teacher. We have an amazing department full of dedicated and passionate teachers and we’re looking forward to finding that next piece. We have a thriving Academy of Business within our department and the new hire would most likely be a big part of that. Reach out to me if you have any interest and I’ll pass along the info. If anyone knows someone looking for a job teaching business, pass this along to them.

01/27/2023

Higher interest rates and inflation were the story of 2022. They resulted in huge losses in bond the market, the stock market (especially tech stocks), and higher monthly payments for new mortgages. However, there has been some silver linings. Higher rates have resulted in risk-free, high-yield savings accounts paying the most they've paid in decades. While Wells Fargo, Bank of America, and TD Bank are still paying a pittance (think 0.03% or lower), online banks are blowing those brand name banks out of the water. Synchrony is offering 3.75% and Capital One 360 Savings is offering 3.3%. Both banks are FDIC insured and therefore carry no risk. I spoke with 2 people in the last few days who were losing out on HUNDREDS of dollars per month due to keeping their money with the brand name banks. Come on people! Make your money work harder for you!

Check out our High Yield Savings accounts and use our calculator to compare our rates to your bank’s rates.

01/07/2023

On Wednesday, January 11th, I'll be doing a 403(b) presentation to teachers from Jackson, Manchester, and Lakewood at Jackson Liberty HS. The topic: How to Invest for Retirement on a Teacher's Salary. I'm thrilled to be able to talk to my colleagues in-person about this very important topic.

I'll be going the 3 most important questions that all investors need to be able to successfully answer:
1. Which accounts should I use?
2. Which companies should I use?
3. Which investments should I choose?

If teachers can get the answers right to those 3 questions, they'll be well on their path to more financial freedom.

12/21/2022

I had to take a screenshot from an excellent article from Humble Dollar. The vast majority of teachers are in a variable annuity, and most don't even know it. Why is that a problem? Take a quick read at the pic below to find out why. You can read the whole article here: https://humbledollar.com/2018/11/seven-deadly-sins/

11/12/2022

Think that all 403(b) providers are the same? Well, if you follow this page, you know the answer. But many of our colleagues still don't get it. Maybe the sheet below will light the necessary fire for them to get out of their high-fee variable annuities.

On another AXA Equitable-related note, it's incredible that they were allowed to be our buildings a week or so ago. You'd think a $50 million fine for intentionally lying to 1.3 million teachers about the huge fees teachers are paying would make them a little embarrassed to show their face. Fat chance! Like I say all the time: This only happens in the 403(b) world.

Sheet1 All 403(b) providers are not created equal! Here's the scenario: Your starting salary is $50,000 and you're committed to contributing 5% of your salary to your 403(b) over the course of 40 years. You'll also receive a 2% raise each year. Your annual rate of return, which you can't cont...

10/19/2022

Together with other 403(b) advocates in NJ and around the country, we created a Change.org petition to try to get a bad 403(b) bill pulled from the NJ Assembly. Special thanks to Dan Otter and Scott Dauenhauer from 403bwise.org for their help with this project. Please click on the link and take a few moments to make it known that teachers in NJ deserve better than this bill, which would guarantee that high-fee variable annuities will always be pushed on teachers. It's already unfair that teachers don't have the same protections that private sector employees have with their 401(k), and this bill will only make things worse. Please consider sharing this post (especially if you're a teacher!), as we'd love to obtain as many signatures as possible.
https://www.change.org/p/bad-new-jersey-bill-will-hurt-teacher-s-retirement-savings

Bad New Jersey Bill Will Hurt Teacher’s Retirement Savings

09/25/2022

Nobody has enjoyed checking their retirement accounts this year. The market, as measured by the S&P 500, is down about 21% for the year, putting stocks back in a bear market. With investing, it's important to take a longer view when thinking about your money. When you zoom out a little, you may realize things aren't as bad as they seem. If you've been investing since 2009, you've experienced outsized gains that will be difficult to replicate. Consider this: From Jan. 1st, 2009 to Dec. 31st, 2021 (a full 13 calendar years), US stocks returned 16% per year, compounded! If you had $50,000 in your account on Jan. 1st, 2009, it would've grown to $345,500 if you just let it sit there! Simply being in the market during that time has allowed you to build quite the nest egg. Don't forget that.

Here's something else to consider: Experiencing a 20% drop in the stock market doesn't feel good, but what's happening right now occurs about once every 3.6 years. What's going on right now is completely normal. And what follows bear markets? Strong bull markets.

So what should investors be doing right now? Keep on keepin' on. Take advantage of lower asset prices by continuing to purchase your investments while prices are low. Nobody knows when this will turn around, but it will, and everyone will look back and say, "I knew I should've bought more in September 2022!"

People seem to be frightened by stocks right now, which reminds me of one of my favorite Warren Buffett quotes:

09/20/2022

This post is why I’m so passionate about helping teachers better understand their 403(b). So simple and so powerful. I would strongly encourage all teachers to join the 403bwise FB group page. Another job well done by Dan Otter and Scott Dauenhauer.

08/24/2022

Great podcast from Talking Real Money about how teachers get the shaft when it comes to the 403(b). One of the hosts read my article from Humble Dollar and dedicated the first 13-14 minutes of his show to it! Pretty cool. If you're a teacher, you NEED to hear this. It's a fantastic take-down of the whole 403(b) system. The only way we'll see any kind of change is if we demand it. Like the pod says, don't expect the unions and administration to fix it for us. After all, the NEA receives kick-backs from the insurance companies who offer these terrible products! You'll hear all about in the pod. It's worth your time.

Insurance firms mislead health-care workers and teachers.

08/19/2022

An article I wrote for the financial website Humble Dollar is up and running! Pretty cool to be featured on a site that I have so much respect for. The article is about the $50 million fine for fraud that AXA Equitable recently paid. They were "mispresenting" the fees they disclosed to teachers on their statements, which made the vast majority of teachers believe they weren't paying any fees on their accounts. I can't stress just how corrosive those fees are to your financial health.

Fear not though! Each of the 1.4 million teachers who were misled will receive about $35 from Equitable, which is a rounding error compared to the money teachers lost.

Will Equitable be allowed you in a school near you? You better believe it! I would hope that NEA, NJEA, and local unions would take a stand, but I wouldn't hold my breath. It's up to us as teachers to know the game we're playing and avoid the high-fee variable annuities peddled by AXA Equitable and many others. The article can be found below. Any questions about AXA Equitable or the 403(b) in general, don't hesitate to reach out to me!

EQUITABLE FINANCIAL Life Insurance Co. agreed last month to pay a $50 million fine for engaging in fraud. According to the Securities and Exchange Commission, since at least 2016, Equitable gave the false impression to 1.4 million investors that they were paying $0 in fees and expenses for their var...

08/12/2022

With the recent fraud charges against AXA Equitable that resulted in a $50 million fine, teachers are learning the hard way that the variable annuity sales agents who hound us in the faculty lounge are NOT on our side. Teachers are playing a VERY expensive game and most, unfortunately, don't know the rules. A few months back, 403bwise.org put out a 5-part podcast series called "Learned by Being Burned" that provides excellent details on what teachers need to know to make the most of their 403(b). If you're a teacher, you need to listen to this series; there's no way around it. Each episode is about 30 minutes and very well produced. As an added bonus, you can hear me in all 5 episodes! Below is a link to the website, but I'd recommend downloading the series via Apple podcasts or Spotify. It's your money. Take the time to understand the lunacy that is the 403(b).
https://403bwise.org/burned

Teachers are being ripped off in their 401(k)-like supplemental retirement savings plan, the 403(b). Financial companies are preying on them. Unions and school districts aren’t looking out for them. Educators are literally losing out on hundreds of thousands of dollars in retirement savings.

08/05/2022

Think you're in the clear because you dodged a bullet by not having AXA Equitable for your 403(b)? Don't be so sure. Remember: AXA Equitable didn't pay a $50 million fine for fraud because they charged teachers high fees. They paid a $50 million fine because they were misleading teachers about the fees they were paying. Big difference. The sad reality is that most of the big players in the 403(b) world charge similarly high fees and none of the companies are required to show you how those fees impact your account. AXA Equitable is the only company who was either stupid enough or brazen enough to try to say you weren't paying any fees or expenses.

I would encourage any teacher, or any investor for that matter, to take a listen to the most recent episode of "Teach and Retire Rich". The link is below. Scott Dauenhauer and Dan Otter do a great job of breaking down how the 403(b) game is played and how the fees impact your account. Thank you 403bwise.org!

If you want a more visual representation, take a look at the presentation below called "Your 403(b) Fees Explained in 10 Minutes". Share it with other teachers if you'd like. The hidden fees can easily cost you hundreds of thousands of dollars. I always hear things like, "Well, it's only 2% of my money. How bad can it be?" For those people, I'd like to give them a t-shirt that says "I don't understand compound interest". All of those little hidden fees, year after year, add up to significantly less money for us, right when we need it.

https://teachandretirerich.libsyn.com/
https://docs.google.com/presentation/d/1xb6AivZdHuCXO8IteWXUsW3OiOpJ1uhQrelKZZ09gLM/edit =id.p