Key Takeaways:
- Learn how creating investment buckets works to spread your investment risk.
- Find out how laddering investments may reduce overexposure of your portfolio to market downturns.
- Discover the potential advantages of adding hybrid annuities to your portfolio.
Headlines can make you worry: stock market down again; instability in certain parts of the world; oil prices are up; any of these events can make it hard to sleep at night. If you’re retired or near retirement, you may be especially troubled, wondering how the world around you can affect your retirement income and investments. Moore’s Wealth Management understands these concerns. That’s why we recommend a balanced approach to preserving capital and generating income that can potentially give you a better opportunity to weather economic ups and downs. Here we’ll look at a bucket and ladder strategy designed to balance a retirement portfolio.
Start with Three Investment Buckets
These include mixes of investments that can be chosen according to your needs:
- Bucket One: conservative investments (may include CDs and Treasury securities).
- Bucket Two: balanced investments that help preserve capital yet can capture some growth without being overexposed to market volatility (may be comprised of blue-chip dividend-paying stocks and prudently managed, balanced mutual funds)
- Bucket Three: longer-term investments that may include some exposure to volatility while working to achieve growth for the future (software, semiconductors, and financial stocks may be included here). This bucket will be outside our main discussion in this post but can be part of your overall plan, should you desire.
Then set up ladders. This means you can vary the maturities and interest rates of CDs, bonds, and securities and also set up specific timeframes for holding and redeeming other assets, too. With this strategy you aren’t exposing a significant portion of your portfolio at any time to extreme market fluctuations.
Inflation Protection and Seeking to Generate Reliable Income
Bucket and ladder strategies can be used in various combinations to give anyone a potential defense against inflation and what we feel is a greater possibility of a more predictable income in retirement. What’s more, these methods can be repeated and reconfigured to take into account not only external forces but also changes in your personal circumstances. By designating funds into multiple CDs, Treasury securities, or other low-volatility investments with varying maturity dates, interest rates, and dividend payment schedules, you may improve your opportunities to preserve capital and generate income over the short and long terms.
Key benefit to laddering investments: You can lower the stress that can come with trying to time the market and get a solid rate of return with potentially much less exposure to volatility.
Bucket One: Capital Preservation, Fixed Yield, and Defined Outcome Investments
It’s possible that you already have funds allocated to some of these categories. The ladder method helps you set up a timetable so you can take advantage of current interest rates and always have interest payments and maturing assets that can be reinvested or used for living expenses. It also takes into consideration future needs by staggering the maturation date of assets, so overall, you have the opportunity to invest at the best yields over time.
Certificates of Deposit (CD)
These are some of the simplest investments that can be used for the ladder approach (you can use other investments with ladders, too). You select the investment amount and timeframe and choose the best yield available. For example, you may wish to begin by buying a $2,000 CD that matures in nine months and pays 4.25% interest. The goal would be to buy several CDs at varying amounts for varying maturities. In this way, you’d have CDs maturing every few months or every year. The interest can be used as income (deposited into your bank account) or reinvested by renewing the CD at maturity. Your Moore’s advisor can help you address any tax implications if they apply.
- CDs are FDIC-insured.
- CDs can be held in traditional or Roth IRAs.
- You can withdraw your money before maturity but will pay a penalty if you do so.
Please consult your Moore’s financial professional for more information on adding CDs to your portfolio.
Treasury Securities
With Treasury bills, notes, and bonds, you can invest for certain time periods and take advantage of your investment being backed by the full faith and credit of the US government. Federal tax is due on interest earned; interest is exempt from state and local taxes. You can build a ladder (mix of securities and maturity dates) from these Treasury security types:
Treasury Securities Comparison Chart
| Feature | Treasury Bills (T-Bills) | Treasury Notes (T-Notes) | Treasury Bonds (T-Bonds) |
| Time-Frame | Short-term: 4, 6, 8, 13, 17, 26, or 52 weeks | Intermediate: 2, 3, 5, 7, or 10 years | Long-term: 20 or 30 years |
| Primary Benefit | Very liquid; provides stability to offset more volatile assets | Predictable semi-annual income over mid-range investment time period | Long-term income security; highest fixed interest rates among Treasuries |
| Risk Level | Lowest. Little impact from interest rate changes due to short duration | Moderate. Subject to some price fluctuation if interest rates go up | Higher. Can be vulnerable to interest rate and inflation risk over decades |
| Liquidity | Very High. Can be sold easily on secondary markets | High. Extensive secondary market for all durations | High. Easily converted to cash; price may vary if sold early |
| Interest payments | Paid at maturity. | Paid every six months until maturity. | Paid every six months until maturity. |
| Min. Investment | $100 (in $100 increments) | $100 (in $100 increments) | $100 (in $100 increments) |
Treasury Inflation-Protected Securities (TIPS)
The key point to know with these securities is that at maturity you receive no less than the original principal, but you may receive more should inflation go up. TIPS can be bought for as little as $100 each, in maturities of 5, 10, or 30 years. The TIPS interest is fixed, but the principal adjustment can change, and the new interest payment is figured against the new principal. TIPS pay a fixed rate of interest every six months, but your overall payment can vary because of the inflation-adjusted principal.
It’s recommended to create ladders with these securities and potentially hold them in an IRA or other tax-advantaged account so you won’t pay taxes annually on the interest or principal adjustments.
Hybrid or Fixed Annuities
In the past, annuities have been used more as a self-funded personal pension. With this strategy, you get a guaranteed payment every month for the rest of your life; however, annuities have become more advanced lately. Using the right annuity strategy with the right insurance company has many benefits. For example, utilizing a fixed indexed annuity or hybrid annuity will give you principal protection from market losses while still allowing for participation when the market goes up. Also, you never give up access to your principal and no longer need to convert your money into an income stream. Many types allow for withdrawals and access to your funds without penalty. Overall we feel they are great tools to mitigate risk and lower cost, as the right type will provide these features with little to no fees. If you choose to buy an annuity, your Moore’s Wealth Management advisor can guide you and help you select various customization options, including the following:
Additional Points to Consider About Annuities
- Annuities aren’t guaranteed by the FDIC, so the insurance company that you buy the annuity from should be one that is highly rated. Look for “A” or “AAA” ratings from A.M. Best, Fitch, S&P, or Moody’s.
- Guarantees are based on the claims-paying ability of the issuing insurance company.
- Taxation depends on whether the annuity is funded with pre-tax or after-tax dollars.
- As part of an overall portfolio, annuities can give assurances that you won’t outlive your savings.
- While many fixed annuities provide predictable monthly income, some have options to adjust with inflation.
Why Annuities May Be a Good Choice as Part of Your Overall Retirement Portfolio
Some people like annuities for their predictability; they provide a floor of income. Depending on the contract you sign, you can customize the annuity to some of the variables we mentioned above (or others, depending on the contract). Ask your Moore’s advisor about building an overall portfolio that may include an annuity and some moderate-growth investments to potentially give you the opportunity to participate in market upsides with less potential risk than only owning high-growth assets.
Bucket Two: Balancing Stability and Appreciation
You may wish to add some dividend stalwarts, also known as ‘blue-chip dividend stocks’ to your portfolio. While past performance does not guarantee that they will keep paying dividends or how much they will pay, this investment category is often made part of a portfolio for its less volatile characteristics than more aggressive growth stocks. Reliable dividend payers can provide some predictability along with upside growth. Many top performers in this category have paid dividends for decades (again, this is no guarantee of future results). Some example sectors to consider can be utilities, consumer staples, and healthcare.
Note: While we mention some broad sectors to consider here, we recommend consulting your Moore’s advisor to discuss your short-, middle-, and long-term financial goals in retirement. You can explore mixes of less volatile growth stocks, bonds, and balanced mutual funds that may help provide income for today and steady, yet managed, growth for the future.
Bucket Three: Longer-Term, High-Growth Oriented Investments
Please note: Recommendations for Bucket Three, the more aggressive-growth portion of your investment mix, fall outside our discussion here. These can be an important piece of your retirement planning that may be customized to your needs. Your Moore’s professional can go over these investment options with you to potentially add them to your portfolio or review your current holdings.
Contact Moore’s Wealth Management for a Free Portfolio Analysis
Your Moore’s Wealth Management professional can help you create a retirement financial plan designed to meet your current and future needs. We believe aligning your portfolio with your requirements and market conditions, as well as selecting multiple investment categories and yields, can provide you with the best opportunity for capital preservation and growth.
Contact Moore’s Wealth Management today for a free portfolio analysis. Even if you feel comfortable with your present savings and investment allocation, it may not be optimized to provide you with the stability and income you desire. Call Moore’s Wealth Management at (770) 535-5000 or contact us online.
References:
1O’Connell, Brian. “How to Build a CD Ladder for Retirement.” USNews.com, March 26, 2025. Accessed April 9, 2026. https://money.usnews.com/money/retirement/aging/articles/how-to-build-a-cd-ladder-for-retirement.
2Tierney, Spencer. “How to Use (and Not Use) CDs for Retirement.” Nerdwallet.com, September 26, 2025. Accessed April 9, 2026. https://www.nerdwallet.com/banking/learn/cds-for-retirement.
3TreasuryDirect.gov. “FAQs About Treasury Marketable Securities.” n.d. Accessed April 9, 2026. https://treasurydirect.gov/help-center/marketable-faqs/.
4Simon, Javier. “With High Yields, Do Treasury Bonds Belong in Your Retirement Portfolio?” Kiplinger.com, March 3, 2025. Accessed April 9, 2026.
5Kephart, Jason. “Retirees: Take the Risk Out of Your Income With a TIPS Ladder.” Morningstar.com, February 12, 2026. Accessed April 9, 2026.
https://www.morningstar.com/retirement/retirees-take-risk-out-your-income-with-tips-ladder.
6Beebe, Jeanette. “What Is a Fixed Annuity? Uses in Investing, Pros, and Cons.” Investopedia, August 31, 2025. Accessed April 9, 2026. https://www.investopedia.com/terms/f/fixedannuity.asp.
7Noonan, Keith. “How to Invest in Dividend Stocks: A Guide to Dividend Investing.” Fool.com, March 25, 2026. Accessed April 9, 2026. https://www.fool.com/investing/stock-market/types-of-stocks/dividend-stocks/how-to-invest-in-dividend-stocks/.
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