A 401(k) is not a retirement plan. In fact, far from it. Too many people are told to “withdraw 4%” from their 401(k) for retirement without a solid retirement income plan in place. We have never forgotten that thousands of retirees lost their retirements in 2008 by following that very strategy. That’s why we help each and every client look at all their income sources, including retirement accounts, Social Security, investments, rental property, pensions—and we help you build a reliable income stream designed to cover your desired lifestyle expenses. Everything is custom. Some people want to travel the world. Some people want to stay home and learn how to play piano. Some want to visit their grandkids every holiday. We will do the math and develop an income plan based on your dreams.

Once your income is in place, we don’t stop there. We still want you to utilize all the options we have available as an independent firm to help grow your wealth so you can have extra funds to cover more exciting life opportunities, build your emergency savings funds, and be able to leave more to your loved ones and chosen charities someday. Your custom plan is built around your risk profile, need for retirement safety and principal protection, and desire and need for future growth.

Think your taxes will be low in retirement? Think again. If most of your retirement assets are in taxable accounts like traditional 401(k)s, you will owe ordinary income taxes on all of that money—or your heirs will. And you can’t just leave your money in a 401(k) or IRA—the IRS mandates withdrawals every year starting at age 73. We will help you look at these required minimum distributions (RMDs) to see how they might impact you. Without taking action, you could even owe taxes on up to 85% of your Social Security benefit! We’ll help you consider whether or not tax strategies like Roth conversions might make sense in your particular situation, and consider other tax planning strategies to help you and your family members.

If you have a family and/or assets, we provide legacy planning strategies that could help you pass on a tax-advantaged legacy to your heirs and/or charities. Life insurance has undergone a tremendous change in the last 15 years, becoming more customizable and robust in providing client-centric features for retirement. We can help you with advanced legacy plans, using life insurance inside or outside a trust. Optional living benefits can also be added using life insurance or annuity policies with riders to protect you and your family, including spousal income protection, and critical care and long-term care coverage.