(908) 340-6000

Retirement Planning


Retirement and its savings options have evolved over the years. This is not "your parents' retirement" in terms of the lifestyle you want to live in retirement or in terms of the methods used to fund it. There are many facets to a successful retirement strategy.

A New Retirement

Traditionally, pensions and Social Security funded a significant portion of retirement income. Today, the burden is on the retiree's shoulders to fund a significant portion of their own retirement. Are you prepared for this?

Additionally, many of us are living not only a much more active retirement but also longer in retirement than past generations. A good majority of us will spend 20-30 years in retirement. Many of us are in fact using this stage in our lives to realize dreams we couldn't while in our working years. This may lead us to live more fulfilling lives, but may also mean we need to prepare for a longer and more expensive retirement.

Planning for Your Income in Retirement

It is particularly important to have an educated guide when you start thinking about planning for what type of income you will have in your retirement years. Income planning requires real talent and a strong knowledge base that not everyone has. The generally required knowledge and understanding includes:

It is important to recognize the impact of maximizing your Social Security benefits and coordinating this with a retirement income strategy that incorporates steady income streams with potential for pay raises. Pay raises are necessary because the impact of inflation, sometimes dubbed a "stealth tax," on your purchasing power.

Let's think about this- if you retire at the age of 60 with an annual income need of $75,000, you would require your income to double to $150,000 by the time you reach the age of 85 (assuming an annual inflation rate of 2.9% per year) in order for you to have the same purchasing power. If your income falls short because your remaining assets cannot support this progressive need for increasing income in retirement, what will you do? At age 85, you are unlikely to want to, or perhaps even be able to, go back to work. This is why it is so important that your long term retirement income strategy focuses on pay raises that can cater to the genuine need for an increasing income in your retirement.

Risk Tolerance

It is important for you to understand your risk tolerance, both personal and situational, when thinking about how to approach your income in retirement. If you aren't as aggressive with your finances, you shouldn't place your nest egg into aggressive arenas. If you are closer to or in retirement, even if you are naturally more aggressive with your money, you will likely need to exercise more caution because of the dramatic impact a sudden and substantial loss could have on your ability to retire or stay retired.

Education Resources

The following information will be useful as you begin thinking about your strategy for your retirement years and beyond. Taking an early, integrated approach is key. The more time you have to build your retirement nest egg and have it work for you in protected yet productive ways, the better prepared you will be for achieving the retirement lifestyle of your dreams.

Retirement Lifestyle

Finances in Retirement

Forced Early Retirement