Stocks, Bonds, Bills and Long-Run Returns for Retirement Portfolios

Abstract

A USA Today article, “Investors Look Back on a Decade of Grim Stock Returns,” summed up returns for the first decade of the 21st century—grim. This paper shows the wealth relative, or future value interest factor, for this decade was worse than for the depression years. The other periods of this study are positive. These unpleasant results were nothing that most investors didn’t already ‘feel’. The purpose of this study is to examine various retirement horizons to see how they fared since 1926 with the ups and downs of the stock market.