About
We started this site because most retirement writing is either useless or terrifying.
Retirement Straight Talk is an independent publication covering retirement income, taxes, Social Security, Medicare, and estate planning. Our writers explain the topics in plain English so readers can walk into important decisions informed — and have better conversations with the professionals who help them.
What we believe
- Information beats marketing. Anything we publish should be something a reader can verify.
- Plans should be boring. Excitement in a retirement plan is usually a bug, not a feature.
- Taxes are half the game. Strategies are only as good as the accounts they live inside.
- Confidence beats optimization. A plan you understand and stick to beats a "perfect" plan you abandon.
Who's writing
Ruth Calderón
Editor
Writes about tax planning, Medicare, and the small decisions that quietly compound across a 30-year retirement.
David Whitlock
Senior Contributor
Former pension industry researcher. Covers withdrawal-rate research, Social Security, and the messy reality of sequence risk.
Priya Anand
Markets & Investing
Translates academic investing research into language that doesn't put readers to sleep. Focus on cost, taxes, and behavior.
"If we wouldn't read it ourselves, we don't publish it."
Articles on Retirement Straight Talk are for general information only and are not investment, tax, legal, or financial advice. For your specific situation, please consult a qualified professional.
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