Have you hit this retirement number?

Good afternoon. Retirement money questions rarely stay simple once you actually dig into the details. Today's issue cuts through three of the messiest ones.

On The Money Today:

Let's get into it.

Household debt dipped only briefly after the 2008 crash before climbing past every prior record, and it hasn't slowed down since. That works out to roughly $105,444 in debt for the average American household today, according to Experian. Keep reading to see why Robert Kiyosaki says the same forces driving that number higher are quietly eating into your own savings, and what he says actually protects you from it.

Rich Dad Poor Dad author Robert Kiyosaki says the setup goes deeper than sticker shock at the grocery store, it's a financial system that depends on prices always rising. He points to one asset central banks can't simply print more of, the same one many retirees are missing from their own portfolio.

Why it matters: If inflation keeps outrunning your income, every dollar sitting in a savings account or fixed-rate CD quietly buys less each year. A federal debt load pushing toward $40 trillion makes it harder for the Fed to bring prices back down anytime soon, which means that erosion isn't likely to let up.

A leased 4-bedroom home in Greensboro, North Carolina is already collecting rent — and Arrived, backed by Jeff Bezos, lets you buy in for as little as $100 with zero landlord duties. No tenant calls, no repair bills, no property manager to coordinate — you just collect a share of the rent.

New Deal: The Salsa

When Nora Rowland couldn't get into her father's house, a voice through the door told her he'd died three days earlier, and someone else was already living there. It's not just a story for adult children checking in on aging parents. Anyone who brings a caretaker into their own home faces the same risk if the wrong safeguards aren't in place.

Why it matters: Elder financial abuse costs Americans over 60 an estimated $28.3 billion a year, according to AARP, and in 72% of cases the person responsible is someone the victim already knew and trusted.

For most people, the "magic number" for retirement is around $1.46 million. But many savers overlook a much smaller threshold where your portfolio switches gears, and your investment returns start doing more of the heavy lifting than your own contributions. If you haven't considered this tipping point before, there's a good chance you've already crossed it without realizing.

Why it matters: Once your portfolio crosses this threshold, often around $200,000 for someone saving $10,000 a year, you can safely reduce how much you're setting aside and start enjoying more of your income now without derailing your retirement date.

The correct answer is C) 20%. 2024 AARP survey found roughly 1 in 5 Americans 50 and older has no retirement savings at all, and 61% of that group worry they won't have enough to last.