The Best Places to Retire, and Play It Safer Before Retirement

Motley Fool Hidden Gems Investing

The Motley Fool

Business, Investing

4.3 • 3.1K Ratings

🗓️ 21 March 2026

⏱️ 22 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

The No. 1 investing goal of most Americans is retirement, and a key determinant of happiness in retirement is where you live. Which factors are most important, and where are the places that have those factors? Robert Brokamp and Matt Frankel discuss The Motley Fool’s recent “Best Places to Retire” report.Also in this episode:-The S&P 500’s single-digit decline so far this year masks wide dispersion of the returns of individual stocks and sectors, with many posting gains or losses exceeding 20%.-A recent study shows that portfolio returns right before retirement have an outsized influence on how much an investor can spend in retirement.-Geopolitical turmoil usually results in a flight to safety that drives down the yields on Treasuries, but the Iran war has had the opposite effect.-Gyms and spas now outnumber stores selling stuff, which is good news because people who are healthier tend to also be wealthier.Host: Robert BrokampGuest: Matt FrankelEngineer: Bart Shannon Disclosure: Advertisements are sponsored content and provided for informational purposes only. The Motley Fool and its affiliates (collectively, “TMF”) do not endorse, recommend, or verify the accuracy or completeness of the statements made within advertisements. TMF is not involved in the offer, sale, or solicitation of any securities advertised herein and makes no representations regarding the suitability, or risks associated with any investment opportunity presented. Investors should conduct their own due diligence and consult with legal, tax, and financial advisors before making any investment decisions. TMF assumes no responsibility for any losses or damages arising from this advertisement.We’re committed to transparency: All personal opinions in advertisements from Fools are their own. The product advertised in this episode was loaned to TMF and was returned after a test period or the product advertised in this episode was purchased by TMF. Advertiser has paid for the sponsorship of this episode.Learn more about your ad choices. Visit ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠megaphone.fm/adchoices Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Transcript

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0:00.0	Where are the best places to retire and all the stock turmoil under the market surface?
0:09.4	You're listening to the Saturday personal finance edition of Motleyful Money.
0:25.6	I'm Robert Brokamp, and this week I invite fellow podcast regular Matt Frankel on the show to discuss a report published by The Motley Fool that ask people which factors make for a good
0:30.7	place to retire and then identified the counties that are more likely to have those factors.
0:35.6	But first, a few headlines that jumped out to me from this past
0:38.1	week, as I'm sure you've seen, it's been a volatile year for the stock market, or has it? As of this
0:43.6	taping on Thursday morning, the SEP 500 is down around 3% for the year, but if you look under the hood,
0:49.2	you can see why it feels like a market of extremes. As highlighted in a March 13th Axios article by Emily Peck,
0:56.5	57 stocks in the S&P 500 are up by at least 20%, and 47 stocks are down by at least 20%,
1:03.9	based on data published by the bespoke investment group. Five of the 11 major market sectors are
1:09.5	down for the year so far, with the worst being financials,
1:11.8	down 10% partially on fears about the private credit market. And in a reversal of what we've
1:16.8	seen for much of the past few years, the stocks of many tech-oriented companies have been
1:21.0	foundering the iShare's expanded tech software sector ETF, ticker IGV, has dropped 20% so far in 2026. Of the six sectors that are
1:31.2	in positive territory this year, the clear winner is energy, which is up 30%. What's an investor
1:37.1	to do? Well, one step is to make sure you're sufficiently diversified. I've mentioned on the show
1:41.8	before that we have the Motley Fool believe you should own at least 25 stocks, but in his recent quarterly call with premium members, Motley Fool co-founder
1:48.9	and CEO Tom Gardner suggested that numbers should be moved up to 50 stocks. Tom pointed out that
1:54.3	the market is still richly valued and an internal tool we've created suggests that the SEP 500
1:58.4	will provide slightly below average returns over the next
2:01.3	decade, but perhaps with higher levels of volatility. Diversification can help you write out the bumps
2:06.8	and, in Tom's words, commit to being a lifelong investor. Of course, diversification isn't just about
	...

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