Most people believe that retirement planning consists of a three-pronged approach: 1) accumulating assets early in your career while young enough to withstand stock market corrections; 2) protecting those assets as you get older by adopting a more conservative investment mix; and 3) drawing down those assets in retirement.
For many people, retirement is the last thing on their mind – either because it is too far in the distance or because it may not even be an option (many people believe they will have to work later in life than they would like).
For others, retirement planning is accomplished with advice from Money Magazine, or maybe a Vanguard model portfolio.
Some people even have “a guy” (or gal) who manages their money, so they think “he” has it all covered for them. But does he?
Regardless of which of the above categories you fall into, everybody has blind spots – the things that you’re not aware of that could make a huge difference in ensuring your retirement is a comfortable reality.
Do you know yours? “I find even those who research extensively miss important factors in retirement planning.”
Here are a few questions that will help make you aware of some possible blind spots:
- How much do you need to have saved to retire comfortably?
- Do you know when to claim Social Security?
- If you are fortunate enough to have a pension, should you take a lump sum or lifetime income?
- Do you know the difference between Medicare and Medicaid?
- What happens if you or your spouse face large medical bills in retirement?
- How long are you expected to live? Will you run out of money before you die?
- Do you have a plan in place to pay for long-term care?
- What do you know about sequence-of-returns risk and how to manage it?
- Should you consider a Roth conversion? Do you know how they work?
- What do you know about reverse mortgages?
- Do you understand RMDs and what they mean from a tax perspective?
- Do you understand what annuities are and why you might need one? (or have you rejected them out of hand because Ken Fisher hates them?)
- If you have an investment manager, is she a registered investment advisor (a fiduciary), or is she a registered representative with a broker dealer? Do you know the difference, or why you should care about the difference?
If you haven’t been asked these questions, or don’t know the answers, or if you are embarrassed that you haven’t thought through this, we should talk.
I founded W.R. Borton & Associates in 2011 to help my clients live better, longer. We are independent, objective and a fiduciary, which means that our sole focus is on acting in your best interests.
We understand and manage the risks that can derail your plans, like the high cost of healthcare, stock and bond market corrections, and the need for long-term care. We create retirement income strategies that are easy to understand and ensure that you won’t run out of money in retirement in the face of these inevitabilities.
I regularly work closely with my client’s investment manager, attorney, accountant – anyone who is in their inner-circle of decision making – to ensure that everyone is aligned with one common objective: your ideal future.
