Have you ever been on your way to an epic summer road trip and then all of a sudden you come upon a roadblock? That can ruin the excitement you feel for the upcoming trip. This can happen in retirement as well. In retirement, you may confront roadblocks on your journey and if you don’t know how to maneuver around them it can leave you feeling stuck. 

On this episode of Financial Symmetry, Allison Berger joins me to discuss 3 not so obvious retirement roadblocks that you may encounter along your retirement journey. We want to be your GPS so that if you experience them you can find your way around them without too much hassle. 

Sequence of return risk 

Your first years of retirement are so important when it comes to investment returns. Sequence of return risk is when you have several years of bad returns at the beginning of retirement when you are starting to withdraw your money. There is no way to control your market returns, but there are ways to mitigate this risk. 

To combat sequence of return risk, you’ll need to maintain a balanced portfolio the way you maintain a balanced diet. Use the financial food groups! In retirement, you can no longer subsist solely on financial junk food (stocks). You’ll want to make sure that you have a healthy serving of vegetables (bonds and cash) thrown into the mix. 

After maintaining a growth mindset in the accumulation stage of life by using mainly stocks, you may be hesitant to reduce your risk load in retirement. However, having a balanced portfolio can ensure that you won’t be forced to sell when prices are down. 

Inflation

You want to ensure that your money will be worth something in retirement, but inflation reduces purchasing power over time. We can visualize how inflation works by thinking about what the price of milk was 20 years ago. Inflation not only impacts the prices of goods but also impacts your retirement income. Even with the cost of living adjustments, your Social Security may not have the same buying power in 20 years. 

Inflation is also known as the silent assassin. It is most dangerous for those who are overly cautious. To fight inflation you’ll need to make sure that there is some growth in your portfolio. You’ll need to take on some risk. 

Unforeseen tax bombs 

It is important to understand how different events can impact your taxes. The best way to combat unforeseen tax bombs is through multi-year tax planning. Most people are used to tax planning one year at a time, but retirement offers an opportunity to plan ahead. You can reduce your lifetime tax burden by thoughtful planning.

Create your retirement road map

If you put together a financial plan for retirement you’ll have a road map for the years ahead. In retirement, you’ll want to become flexible and look for opportunities. This is part of what we do with our clients. If you are interested in using us as your GPS to help you through those retirement roadblocks then check out our website and click Learn More.

Outline of This Episode

• [3:07] Sequence of return risk can ruin your retirement
• [9:45] Inflation is the silent killer of retirements
• [14:14] Unforeseen tax bombs can derail your tax strategy
• [20:47] Today’s progress principle

Resources & People Mentioned

• Episode 89 - Sequence of Return Risk
• Kitces article

Connect With Chad and Mike

• https://www.financialsymmetry.com/podcast-archive/ 
• Connect on Twitter @csmithraleigh @TeamFSINC
• Follow Financial Symmetry on Facebook

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