A 3% Real Return? "It Doesn't Sell"

From In Search of Competent (and Honest) Advisers in the NYT:

Investors focus on relative and real returns. But Thornburg Investment Management has published a report saying they should also look at a different number — the return after fees, inflation and taxes. A more realistic number going forward is around 3 percent. To achieve it, a balanced portfolio needs a nominal return in the high single digits.

George Strickland, managing director at Thornburg, said most advisers will not tell their clients this because no one wants to hear it. “The vast majority say, ‘That may be true, but that doesn’t help me promote my business. I just can’t sell 3 percent. I can sell 10 percent. I can sell 15 percent,’ ” he said.