Retirement Rhetoric

The Editors

Not that you’ll ever need it, at this rate.

Illustration by Rose Wong



403(b)

A tax-deferred retirement savings plan for public school employees and workers at certain tax-exempt institutions that is functionally equivalent to the traditional 401(k) offered by private companies. Also known as a tax-sheltered annuity (TSA) plan.

Annual rate of return

The net loss or gain in the value of an investment over a one-year period, rendered as a percentage of the initial cost of the investment.

Annuities

A life insurance contract that guarantees its purchaser a certain amount of money paid out in a series of fixed sums along a set timeline, often deferred by the investor to serve as an income stream during retirement.

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