Introduction

In 2022, bonds had their worst year on record and almost every financial publication ran some version of the same headline. The 60/40 portfolio is dead or bonds are dead. Then 3 years later that same portfolio has compounded at roughly 16% a year. The funeral, it turns out, was held in the middle of a recovery. But of course, that's what the financial media loves to do. They love to shout and scream and get a reaction out of us because that's how they sell ad dollars.

And today we're once again seeing an environment where we're starting to see some pressure on bond prices because of inflation. So what I want to do in this video is answer the question, are bonds dead in 2026 or are we just terrible at owning them? But first, my name is Kevin Lum. I'm a certified financial planning professional and this channel is dedicated to helping a million people retire without worry. Now before I dive in, I have to tell you that this is not investment advice.

You should not make any decisions about your life or your portfolio based on anything I say here. I'm just a guy on the internet who likes to run his mouth and for whatever reason a few people decided to start listening. But I need you to know that I am a financial advisor, but I am not your financial advisor. Everything I say here is for educational purposes. Okay, with that long caveat out of the way, let me start with a basic idea.