Retirement is a significant milestone that marks the end of a long and successful career. After working for 30+ years and diligently saving, you deserve to enjoy financial independence during your golden years. However, achieving a comfortable and secure retirement requires careful planning and the right strategy tailored to your unique needs and goals.
As a retired professional, you may be wondering about your next steps and how to make the most of your hard-earned savings. Retirement planning can seem daunting at first, with complexities like market volatility, Required Minimum Distributions (RMDs), and optimizing Social Security benefits to navigate. It is not right that you should have to figure this out on your own! That is why Wichita Wealth exists. To help you craft an effective retirement plan to reduce the overwhelm and empower your retirement.
The Importance of Holistic Retirement Planning
Many retirees underestimate their expenses in retirement. It's critical to take a comprehensive view of your lifestyle, goals, and potential costs to ensure you have sufficient income and savings. A key consideration is having enough cash reserves on hand. We generally recommend setting aside 12-24 months worth of portfolio withdrawals in cash or cash equivalents. This provides a buffer against market downturns and unexpected expenses.
However, retirement income planning goes beyond just having an emergency fund. It requires strategically decumulation and spending down your assets in a tax-efficient, sustainable way. It also means making sure your loved ones are provided for through proper estate planning. Navigating all the interconnected pieces of a retirement plan can quickly get overwhelming.
This is where partnering with the right financial advisor makes all the difference. An experienced advisor acts as your guide and advocate, simplifying the complexities and providing clarity on your options. They'll help you look at the big picture, prepare for multiple scenarios, and adjust your plan as life unfolds, so you can retire with confidence.
The Value of a Long-Term, Team Approach
When choosing a financial advisor for retirement planning, consider not just the individual but the team and firm behind them. The average age of a financial advisor in the U.S. is 58 years old. While experience matters, you also want an advisor and firm that will be with you for the long haul.
Avoid partnering with an advisor who may end up retiring before you do. Instead, look for a well-established firm that will be around as long as you are! This means that as your life and needs evolve over time, you'll have the ongoing support and expertise to continue making sound financial decisions.
At Wichita Wealth, we think of retirement as the 50-yard line, not the end zone. Getting you to retirement is just the first half. We're here to support you through the entire journey, for the decades of life ahead. We'll help you not only save and invest wisely but create a "decumulation" strategy to maximize your nest egg. No matter what life brings or how the markets perform, we'll keep you focused on the aspects of your financial life that you can control, through a long-term lens aligned with your goals and values.
A Process Tailored to Your Needs
So how do you know if we might be the right partner for your retirement planning needs? Let's start with a few key characteristics of clients we tend to serve best:
Are you over the age of 60 and would consider yourself a "millionaire next door"? In other words, have you saved diligently over time?
Are you anticipating a wave of RMDs at age 73 and looking to optimize your tax strategy? Strategic retirement withdrawal planning can make a huge difference.
Do you have at least $250,000 in investable assets that you are looking to grow and protect during retirement? Partnering with an advisor becomes even more valuable as your wealth and needs become more complex.
Do you believe in the power of advice and delegating to experts so you can focus on what matters most in life? We work best with people who value professional guidance and see advice as an investment not a cost.
Are you kind, respectful, and committed to an open, collaborative relationship with your advisor built on mutual trust? For us, integrity and shared values are a must.
If this sounds like you, we would love to start a conversation about how we can help you make these retirement years your very best years. We invite you to schedule an introductory call to get to know us better and explore if we might be a fit.
Why Partner With Us for Your Retirement
Our firm specializes in serving the unique financial planning needs of retired professionals like you. We combine experience from working with hundreds of clients with cutting-edge tools and technology to provide comprehensive, personalized service that evolves with you over time.
Unlike many firms that focus primarily on investment management, we take a holistic, planning-centric approach. We recognize that each piece of your financial life is interconnected and a decision in one area impacts the others. We excel at seeing the big picture and optimizing how all the puzzle pieces fit together.
We also know that even the absolute best investment portfolio can be undone if you are not prepared for life's what-ifs. That's why we take the time to understand what a fulfilling retirement looks like to you - and then prepare for the good, the bad, and the unexpected. We help you invest and spend to pursue your goals while putting strategies in place to mitigate risks like health issues, untimely death, accidents, lawsuits, and more.
Finally, we walk the talk when it comes to following financial planning best practices. We believe strongly in practicing what we preach. Our own financial lives are built upon the same evidence-based strategies we recommend to clients. We're on this journey together and we never ask clients to do something we don't do ourselves.
The Bottom Line
Retirement is an exciting new chapter. You've worked incredibly hard to get here. Now you deserve to make these years the most rewarding and fulfilling of your life. But that doesn't happen by accident - it takes intention, planning, and ongoing adjustments as life happens.
No matter where you are on your retirement journey, know that you don't have to figure it all out alone. And in fact, trying to go it alone could cost you big time in terms of missed opportunities, unnecessary taxes, and undue risk. Find a trusted partner who gets where you're trying to go and who will put your interests first and help make these years your best years.
If you're looking for a collaborative relationship with an advisor committed to helping you retire fearlessly, we'd love to see if we're a fit. Reach out today to start the conversation. Your best years are still ahead.