Retirement strategies tailored to your needs

Retirement is one of the most important life events you experience, and getting it right takes planning. Where will your retirement money come from? Social security will likely play a role as a source of income, but in most cases, social security alone will not be enough. By analyzing your specific income needs, risk tolerance, and tax position, we develop a plan that ensures that you have a comfortable and enjoyable retirement.

Ideally, we wish to cover all our retirement “needs” such as housing, food, etc., with guaranteed income so that the success of our retirement is not dependent on stock market performance.  Our retirement “wants” can be funded from investment accounts that may fluctuate in value. This approach provides confidence that our retirement plan will withstand both strong and poor market conditions, taking the guessing game out of our planning.

The only way to truly know how much you need to have saved for retirement is to do an in-depth review of your household income vs spending. The gap between your income sources and expenses must be filled using investments and personal savings.

Managing your retirement lifestyle effectively is an ongoing process to maintain your required level of income. Designing a great plan must also include a deep understanding of your true wants and aspirations for yourself and your family. Our expertise and guidance will help you navigate the complexities of retirement, allowing you to enjoy your golden years with confidence. 

Retirement tips:

• Take advantage of investment accounts with tax benefits, such as 401(k)s, 403(b)s, Traditional IRAs, and Roth IRAs.
   
• Social security benefits are based off your 35 highest years of earned income. Review your benefits summary found on ssa.gov regularly, to ensure your reported income is accurate and consider the potential benefit of working additional years.
   
• Start planning for the required minimum distributions (RMDs) from your pretax accounts before they are required, to make sure you are withdrawing funds from your investments tax efficiently.
   
• Review your household income and expenses at least annually so that you are aware of where your money is going.
   
• Have a gameplan for health care costs. The average American family will spend $315,000 on healthcare costs like co-pays, premiums, and other uncovered medical expenses during their retirement years.¹
   
• Ensure that you are working with a financial advisor. Industry studies estimate that professional financial advice can add up to 5.1% to portfolio returns over the long term, depending on the time period and how returns are calculated.²

¹Source: Ensure that you are working with a financial advisor. Industry studies estimate that professional financial advice can add up to 5.1% to portfolio returns over the long term, depending on the time period and how returns are calculated. Why hire a financial advisor | Fidelity 
²Source: Value of advice sources: Envestnet’s “Capital Sigma: The Advisor Advantage” estimates advisor value add at an average of 3% per year, 2023; Russell Investments 2023 Value of a Financial Advisor estimates value add at approximately 5.12%; and Vanguard, “Putting a value on your value: Quantifying Vanguard Advisor’s Alpha®,” 2022, estimates lifetime value add at an average of 3%. The methodologies for these studies vary greatly. In the Envestnet and Russell studies, the paper sought to identify the absolute value of a set of services, while the Vanguard study compared the expected impact of advisor practices to a hypothetical base-case scenario. Why hire a financial advisor | Fidelity