Case Study: Robert and Linda

Robert and Linda

Nearing Retirement

When will we have enough to retire?

older couple on the beach

The Dilemma 

Robert and Linda sought out an expert to help them solve their burning question of “When can we afford to retire?”

Despite the late start on savings and investing, they were making up ground quickly and doing everything right. For the past 5 years they had been aggressively growing their retirement assets, living below their means, and nearly owned their house outright.

The problem was they had no idea when they’d be able to call it quits and walk away from their jobs. Especially given today’s high inflation rates and future taxes. They wanted help knowing how to manage their investments in a way that would be able to provide them with income for the rest of their lives and account for the timing and taxation of Linda’s pension and both of their Social Security.  

The Approach

Before any planning or strategy occurred, it was important to first sit down with Robert and Linda and hear what was truly most important to them and how they wanted to spend their time in retirement.

To avoid any major surprises, the first step was to establish a starting point, get organized, and identify any urgent issues or tax challenges they may facing today.

By collaborating with Robert and Linda’s CPA and Estate Planning Attorney, their written financial plan included:

  • Aligning all of their various investment accounts into a consolidated and congruent investment strategy

  • Walking them through their proposed tax rates today and in retirement

  • Reviewing their current income and the monthly leftover they have to determine how much to begin directing towards savings and investing

  • Determining the highest and most tax-effective use for their savings today and withdrawal strategies come retirement

Planning for retirement is a collaborative process and Robert and Linda needed to be able to see and understand all of the available options and decide together on a plan. Once a plan of action was agreed upon and put into place, Robert and Linda were able to move forward with confidence knowing their plan would be constantly monitored and looked after with care.

The Results  

Robert and Linda’s plan of action allowed them to begin taking action towards:

  • Reducing taxes today and in the future

  • Strategically time when to take Linda’s CalSTRS pension and maximize their Social Security benefits

  • Structuring their investments to create a predictable monthly amount of income that they could not outlive

Now, Robert and Linda can rest knowing that their retirement plan is in place and they have CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER™ by their side to monitor their plan on an ongoing basis. They now have the ability fully enjoy a stress-free retirement just as they imagined knowing their finances are being looked after and taken care of.  

Most importantly, they finally have the clarity they desired around when they could afford to retire and how much they could spend. Robert and Linda now look forward to knowing their ideal retirement is just within reach and that time with the grandkids and their new endeavor is just around the corner.