Most people know what inflation is, but few truly understand how inflation can hurt them, especially when they’re saving and preparing for retirement. Quite simply, inflation is the measure of how much the things we buy increase in cost each year. During the past 30+ years, the inflation rate in the United States each year has ranged from less than 2% to more than 15%, with an average of more than 3.7% per year, compounded. That means that, with few exceptions, the cost of the things we buy goes up consistently.

Despite this fact, we hear relatively little about … Read the rest