Automate Your Edge: Using Covered-Call Funds and Momentum for Income in Your IRA

Can a retirement portfolio pursue cash flow while adjusting its market exposure as conditions change? In the second book in the Automate Your Edge series, David Stafford examines how covered-call funds and momentum can work together in an income-focused IRA. The starting point is a question many investors face: a fund may pay distributions while its share value or net asset value declines. How should you judge the income—and the portfolio behind it? This book lays out a rules-based framework for managing both sides of the portfolio. A B4 momentum scorecard evaluates SPY and QQQ separately, guiding the normal allocations to their corresponding income funds. A defensive sleeve changes its companion holding according to the long-term interest-rate environment. A separate panic ladder sets conditions for staged equity purchases during periods of extreme fear and market declines. You’ll also explore: • How covered-call distributions differ from total return • Why NAV changes and cash payments need to be considered together • How the B4 allocation system and panic ladder are designed to work • What a 2025 market stress period can reveal about the rules • How withdrawals and a regular operating routine fit into the plan The goal is not to promise a fixed payout or eliminate losses. It is to make the allocation rules visible, examine their tradeoffs, and consider the portfolio as a whole—including income, withdrawals, and remaining value. You do not need to have read the first book to follow this one.