Episode 86: Interest Rates, Inflation, and the Retirement Balancing Act

In this week's episode, Jay Peroni, CFP®, unpacks how even a small Federal Reserve rate cut can ripple across a retiree’s financial life. While a quarter-point shift may seem minor, it alters borrowing costs, savings yields, bond values, and market confidence—changes that retirees cannot afford to ignore. Jay compares interest rates to a ship’s rudder: small turns create big outcomes over time.

For conservative investors relying on CDs and savings accounts, lower rates mean shrinking income streams. Jay recalls a client who once earned $18,000 annually from CDs but now sees less than half that amount. Diversification—across bonds, dividend stocks, annuities, and inflation-protected investments—is key to maintaining income stability. Bonds bring their own paradox: values may rise with falling rates, but reinvested income drops. This tension ...