Seniors Need to Develop the Right Strategy for Retirement

Brielle, NJ - As thousands of college graduates received their degrees in May to begin their careers, graduates of generations past began leaving the workforce for retirement. Like the students that may be apprehensive about employment opportunities, student loans and possibly relocating to start their work career, retirees face similar worries. Have they saved enough? Are their investments diversified enough? Will their families be protected if something happens?

According to Bill Skillender, principal at William Skillender Wealth Management Tax Advisory in Brielle, thousands of people retire each year without a strategy for retirement. His firm has identified four common misconceptions that keep seniors from bolstering their financial futures.

Misconception #1 – Retirement strategies are only necessary for the wealthy.

It doesn’t matter what your income is. If you have a paycheck, you should have a strategy. The point of having a retirement strategy is to help ensure you can continue living life to its fullest every single day, confident that you’ll have enough money to live comfortably in retirement.

Misconception #2 – Having a retirement strategy means you’re locked in to a pre-determined lifestyle and you lose the ability to change your mind about what you might want to do in retirement.

Sure it’s important to have a basic game plan, but it is also important to leave room for the unexpected. Maybe taxes will increase dramatically in 10 years. Maybe you will have six grandchildren to spoil instead of two.

Misconception #3 – All financial professionals are the same.

Some financial professionals might offer similar products, but that doesn’t mean they’re all the same. When searching for your financial professional, find someone you trust completely. Find someone you can connect to on a personal level, not just professionally. One who truly understands you and your family and will go the extra mile to help you achieve your goals.

Misconception #4 – Putting away a consistent amount of money every month is enough.

It’s true that saving for retirement is great – and the sooner you start the better – but that doesn’t mean that’s all you need to do. It’s equally important to know what amount you should save before retiring. A professional can help you calculate what that number is and how to get there. And don’t forget that a retirement strategy has two phases – the first is accumulating money, but the second is about how you turn that money into income that will last throughout retirement. No matter how much you have, if you don’t know how to turn your savings into income, you’re only halfway prepared for retirement at best.

What makes for a successful retirement? Skillender Wealth Management Tax Advisory points to nine things that help create a playbook for retirement success.

1. Have a strategy for retirement savings written out in advance, as well as a specific strategy for generating income from savings.
2. Start saving early for retirement. By giving yourself plenty of time to save, you can recover from any market losses and allow assets to accumulate.
3. Stick to a budget. Tracking spending habits and not spending more than you earn is part of a successful retirement playbook.
4. Plan wisely. Those getting retirement right are frequently disciplined and know to focus on their long-term goals and stick to their plans. They know how to weight their goals against their individual tolerance levels and they focus on diversifying and rebalancing their assets when necessary.
5. Use tax-efficient strategies. Successful retirees work toward controlling the amount of taxes they’ll pay in retirement, often enlisting the help of a financial professional and tax advisor to determine a tax-efficient retirement income withdrawal strategy that relies on a balance of both tax-deferred and tax-free retirement vehicles.
6. Factor in health care costs. An effective retirement playbook includes careful consideration of potential health care expenses.
7. Update your plans on a regular basis. Those that routinely assess their financial plans are positioned to meet their needs in response to life changes and various external economic forces.
8. Optimize Social Security benefits. Those that build a successful retirement plan educate themselves on the Social Security system and use smart strategies to optimize this benefit. Through research and/or the help of a financial professional, these individuals know how much they can expect from Social Security and when may be the right time to start claiming benefits, as it can have a significant impact on taxes and monthly benefits.
9. Make sure you’re emotionally and physically ready for retirement. Being financially ready for retirement is only one piece of helping to ensure contentment once your working years are finished.

To learn more visit www.williamskillender.com or call 732-722-7888