Retirement Income Planning

Because many investors and financial advisors often focus on investments from a singular "wealth accumulation" perspective, many miss opportunities during the asset accumulation phase that may have enhanced the certainty and the tax efficiency of withdrawals during the "wealth distribution" phase.

I believe there is no "silver bullet" when creating investment plans, so I help clients consider a combination of investment products and strategies when investing for retirement. Regardless of age and tolerance for risk, I can help clients craft an investment plan that they can implement with confidence, designed to help them pursue their retirement income goals. In addition to managing traditional investments (like stocks, bonds, mutual funds, etc, in programs like those listed on our "Investment Management" tab), I help clients understand their choices regarding how their assets can be allocated by "tax type," and also evaluate "risk transfer" strategies.  

 

"TAX TYPE" of Account

401(k)? Roth IRA? Non-Qualified tax-deferred annuity? Taxable account? Traditional IRA?
By maintaining a holistic planning perspective in every aspect of your financial life, I can help you understand strategies that not only impact the total return on your investments, but also may provide you with more control over your taxable income when the time comes to take withdrawals. By having a strategy in place as soon as possible, you can begin positioning assets in accounts that are taxed in different ways, which may give you more control of your taxable income when you eventually take withdrawals (or when the IRS forces you to take withdrawals, if applicable). If you are already taking withdrawals, I can work with you and your tax advisor to evaluate alternatives to make your withdrawals more tax efficient going forward.

While we can make you aware of these strategies and explain the general concepts, we do not offer tax advice. We often work together with our clients' tax advisors when creating retirement income plans. Please refer to your tax advisor for tax advice.

 

"RISK TRANSFER" Strategies

Protecting your Retirement Assets and/or your Retirement Income
Everyone has a different tolerance for risk, and clients are often interested in strategies that can help them pursue their retirement income goals with less risk. Depending on the situation, I can help clients evaluate strategies designed for long-term growth, but can also provide some form of guarantee or "safety net." Guarantees are available in a wide variety of forms, such as protecting the value of your asset (Asset Protection) or in the form of protecting income payments (Income Protection) - we can help you understand the options available, and, if applicable, recommend the most cost effective choice(s) for your situation. These "risk transfer" strategies are often complex, but when used as part of an overall retirement income planning strategy, can be useful and provide additional confidence when investing for retirement. 

Investors should obtain a prospectus for an annuity's contract and the underlying subaccounts and consider the investment objective, risks, charges, and expenses carefully before investing.  The prospectus, which contains this and other important information, is available from your Financial Advisor and should be read carefully before investing. Variable annuities are not insured by the FDIC or any government agency and involve market risk, including the possible loss of principal. Guarantees are based on the claims-paying ability of the issuing insurance company.
 
Guaranteed Withdrawal Benefit (GWB) provides income protection, not principal protection.  In other words, your investment may decrease in value due to poor market performance, but your income will not be reduced.  Guarantees are subject solely to the claims-paying ability of the issuing insurance company and do not apply to the safety or performance of amounts invested in the variable investment options.  There may be conditions, limitations, and restrictions associated with a particular GWB.
 
Annuities are suitable for long-term investment and entail fees, such as mortality and expense charges and optional benefit rider charges. All withdrawals of taxable amounts, including earnings, are taxable as ordinary income. Withdrawals may be subject to surrender charges, and if made prior to age 59½, may be subject to a 10% federal tax penalty. Withdrawals reduce the cash surrender value.