Morningstar's director of personal finance recommends locking down short-term income needs in cash-like investments, stress-testing your bond holdings, and staying poised to buy on the dips.<br/><br/><b>[0:00:12]</b> ... some volatility. Here to help us weather that bumpy ride is Morningstar's <b>Christine</b> <b>Benz</b>, our director of personal finance. Thanks for joining me, Christine. <b>Christine</b> <b>Benz</b>: Jason, great to be here. Stipp: Before we talk about some tips for preparing for volatility--not sure if we'll see it or ... <br/> Ahead of Portfolio Makeover Week, Morningstar's Christine Benz offers tips to alleviate common concerns over retirement readiness, inflation, allocation, and more.<br/><br/><b>[0:00:03]</b> ... Stipp for Morningstar. Our Portfolio Makeover Week kicks off May 20, and <b>Christine</b> <b>Benz</b>, our director of personal finance, has been gleaning some insights from readers' submissions, submitting their portfolios for review. She is here to talk about some frequent concerns and how investors might address them on their own. Thanks for joining me, Christine. <b>Christine</b> <b>Benz</b>: Jason, great to be here. Stipp: Among the concerns that you've seen over and over from readers who have submitted their portfolios ... <br/> Morningstar's Christine Benz addresses who sequestration will and won't affect, changing prices for long-term care, and a timely mortgage-paydown strategy.<br/><br/><b>[0:00:10]</b> ... effect of these cuts on seniors is Morningstar's director of personal finance, <b>Christine</b> <b>Benz</b>. Christine, thanks for being here. <b>Christine</b> <b>Benz</b>: Adam, great to here. Zoll: So many seniors may be concerned that the sequestration cuts may affect their Social Security. Should they ... <br/> Inefficient contributions and withdrawals and poorly timed asset purchases are among the many common tax-related blunders, but Morningstar's Christine Benz offers solutions to avoid such pitfalls.<br/><br/><b>[0:00:19]</b> ... So here to help us avoid some common tax blunders is Morningstar's <b>Christine</b> <b>Benz</b>, our director of personal finance. Thanks for joining me, Christine. <b>Christine</b> <b>Benz</b>: Jason, great to be here. Stipp: The first mistake to avoid is thinking I am saving in my 401(k), I am maxing ... <br/> Morningstar's Christine Benz shows you how to uncover portfolio strengths and weaknesses, determine the impact of market movements on your asset mix, and more.<br/><br/><b>[0:00:00]</b> ... <b>Christine</b> <b>Benz</b>: Welcome our next session of today's conference. We will be talking about how to give your portfolio a checkup. As in all ... <br/> Bonds are a better option than cash and less volatile than stocks, but investors should be mindful of headwinds and possibly rethink their fixed-income allocations, says Morningstar's Christine Benz.<br/><br/><b>[0:00:13]</b> ... fixed income. Here to talk about dealing with this situation is Morningstar's <b>Christine</b> <b>Benz</b>, our director of personal finance. Thanks for joining me, Christine. <b>Christine</b> <b>Benz</b>: Jason, great to be here. Stipp: We're going to talk about some ways you can think about your portfolio and fixed income, ... <br/> Director of personal finance Christine Benz will help you check your true exposures and stress-test your holdings in session 2 of Morningstar's 2012 Midyear Financial Checkup.<br/><br/><b>[0:00:09]</b> ... going to move to our portfolio piece of the presentation. We've got <b>Christine</b> <b>Benz</b> here. She's our director of personal finance. She has also served as Morningstar's director of fund analysis in the many years that ... <br/><b>[0:00:57]</b> ... be able to access those slides. So I'd like to welcome now <b>Christine</b> <b>Benz</b>, our director of personal finance. Christine? <b>Christine</b> <b>Benz</b>: Thank you, Jason, and thanks to all of you for watching today. Before I get into the presentation, I would like to ... <br/> Several low-cost, subadvised, and wider-ranging funds made Christine Benz's shortlist of investment candidates for retirees using the so-called 'bucket approach.'<br/><br/><b>[0:00:00]</b> ... Jason Stipp : I'm Jason Stipp for Morningstar. <b>Christine</b> <b>Benz</b>, our director of personal finance, has often talked about the "bucket approach" to retirement, a practical approach to help investors get their minds around how to deal with their portfolios in those golden years. She recently on Morningstar.com created a model portfolio to illustrate what kinds of investments might you use in the bucket approach. She is here with me to give a little more definition around those investments today. Christine, thanks for joining me. <b>Christine</b> <b>Benz</b> : Jason, great to be here. Stipp : So, you recently you did put out a portfolio, but before we get to ... <br/> Morningstar's Christine Benz outlines the advantages and drawbacks of working longer, tapping Social Security early, upping your savings rate, and tilting toward riskier assets to offset retirement-saving shortfalls.<br/><br/><b>[0:00:14]</b> ... on the levers that pre-retirees can pull to play catch-up is Morningstar's <b>Christine</b> <b>Benz</b>, our director of personal finance. Thanks for joining me, Christine. <b>Christine</b> <b>Benz</b> : Jason, great to be here. Stipp : Christine, one of the first things that folks who are concerned they haven't saved ... <br/> Morningstar's Christine Benz and Miriam Sjoblom debrief investors on the floating NAV, capital buffer, and redemption restriction proposals for money market funds.<br/><br/><b>[0:00:04]</b> ... <b>Christine</b> <b>Benz</b> : Hi, I'm <b>Christine</b> <b>Benz</b> for Morningstar. The Securities and Exchange Commission is considering a proposal that would change the way money market funds are regulated. Joining me to discuss these proposals is Miriam Sjoblom. She is associate director of fund analysis for Morningstar. Miriam, thank you so much for being here. Miriam Sjoblom : Thanks for having me, <b>Christine</b>. <b>Benz</b> : So, let's start with a little bit of stage-setting. Why is the SEC considering reforming the money market fund industry? Sjoblom ... <br/><b>[0:06:05]</b> ... joining me. Sjoblom : Thank you. Benz : Thanks for watching. I'm <b>Christine</b> <b>Benz</b> for Morningstar.com. ... <br/>