My parents are getting close to retirement age and I just realized they need help. I don't know everything about their finances, but I'd love to steer them in the right direction. They are in their early 50s and are a couple of years away from paying off their house. They own one car outright and are leasing a pretty anti-mustachian car (they write it off as a business expense). Besides the house, the car, and a meager 401k, they have no other debts or assets. They are definitely not frugal and have enough cash flow to spend money however they want within reason.
I recently spoke to them about 401ks and found out that my father only contributes 4%. A couple of months ago, I convinced them to bump it up so that he can max it this year. I just found out they have been watching their balance daily and get upset when they "lose" money. Because of that, they have been monkeying with their fund allocations. After speaking to them today, I told them about index funds and they are going to move their 401k money into the index fund option.
They work with an accountant, mostly due to my mother's business, and he told them they shouldn't even consider investing until they have $300k in the bank. Some of their friends suggested investing in actual bonds (not a bond fund). The accountant also told them that there would be no benefit to buying the personal IRAs I recommended.
Are there any good MMM posts or forum threads I can send their way? Are index funds the way to go or are their special considerations for their age?