Many people spend more time planning their vacation than they do for retirement. But believe it or not, retirement planning is a lot like vacation planning. We’ll show you the comparisons on today’s show. Plus, Ryan & Bob will help guard you against some of the financial assassins that might be trying to wipe out your portfolio. And we’ll answer some great questions from listeners like you on the mailbag portion of the show.
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THE WORKOUT
1:33 Vacation (and retirement) planning: where will you go (and how)?
- Think about the end goal of where you are going.
- People plan in detail for vacation, but in retirement they “hope” instead of strategizing.
- Helpful idea: Pick where you are going to go and then work backward.
3:23 Figure out where to stay
- One of the biggest decisions you want to make is whether you will downsize.
- What can you afford?
4:02 Unexpected mishaps
- Whatever you budget for vacation, don’t you always seem to spend a little more?
- In a similar vein, people assume they’ll spend less money in retirement, but that’s hardly ever the case.
- Examples: More vacations & travel in retirement. Higher healthcare costs. Helping out with parental or child expenses.
- Not a bad idea to check-in and run these numbers by your advisor every year.
5:48 Organize things for those you leave behind
- When you are away for vacation you plan for whoever is left behind in the office, pets, or kids you leave at home.
- In retirement, what happens if you “leave” or walk out on life? Make sure your spouse is up to date on the key details.
10:55 Retirement threats: An unexpected crash
- An unexpected stock market crash is one example of the threat volatility poses to our retirement plans.
- But it’s interesting, we spend so much time worrying about something temporary.
- If your portfolio is dependent on the market going up as you near retirement, that’s a bad strategy.
- Is your portfolio market-driven or income-driven?
13:41 Taxes
- If you don’t plan for taxes, you will spend a lot more money than you have to.
- Figure out how to use taxes to your advantage.
- If you retire before 70, it might make sense to take out some of that money from your tax accounts early.
15:32 Death of a spouse
- Have your financial life organized with everything in one place with one password.
- Ryan & Bob share a client example about a spouse left without a pension.
- When was the last time you had your will updated?
22:39 Mailbag: Social Security
- Jerry says he is retiring soon and asked his advisor when to start his Social Security. The advisor was completely befuddled. Shouldn’t that be part of retirement planning?
- You want to work with a fiduciary who is required by law to work in your best interest.
- If someone doesn’t know what your social security benefits are or that it’s important, it’s time to look for a new advisor.
- Your plan should be unique and based around your situation.
25:25 Mailbag: Retiring Early
- Frank is already retired, and his wife was planning on working another three years but now they are about to be grandparents and she wants to retire early. Is this a bad idea?
- You should assemble a retirement plan as a couple, not separate entities.
- When you do the plan together you may recognize opportunities and benefits that you wouldn’t discover doing the planning separately.
- Don’t make a lot of guesses in this process. Make a plan in writing so you can live your life the way you want to.
