If you're retiring from the federal government in the next 90 days, this session is built specifically for you.

William Smith walks through the exact three-window countdown he uses with clients: the setup window (90 to 61 days), the sequencing window (60 to 31 days), and the lockdown window (30 to 0 days), and what has to happen in each one so nothing slips through before your last day.

Inside this session:

Why pulling every document early, your SF-50, FEGLI, TSP, and Social Security statements, gives you enough time to catch mistakes agencies actually make, like a wrong service computation date.
The real deadline for submitting your retirement application (and why mid-November beats waiting until December).
Whether you have to leave your money in TSP when you retire, and whether it keeps growing once you do.
How the survivor benefit decision actually works, and when a life insurance policy makes more sense instead.
What happens to your FEGLI coverage the year after you retire, and how the coverage actually drops over time instead of all at once.
How a TSP loan gets handled if you retire before paying it off.
Why building your emergency fund before your last paycheck matters more than most people realize, since your first full payment can take months.

This is a live Q&A session, so most of what's covered comes directly from real questions asked by federal employees who are retiring by the end of this year.

Watch every Wednesday through the end of the year as FedLegacy continues this series for federal employees approaching retirement.

Educational content only. Not individualized tax, legal, investment, or insurance advice. FedLegacy is not affiliated with, endorsed by, or an agency of the U.S. government, OPM, or any federal employer.

Your federal pension and TSP might look solid on paper, but debt and cash flow can quietly push your retirement date back further than you think.

In this session, William Smith walks through a real retirement analyzer case study showing exactly how credit card debt, car notes, and everyday expenses change how long your retirement money actually lasts.

You'll see:

• How debt drag affects your FERS pension, Social Security, and TSP income plan
• Why the gap between your first estimated retirement check and your full payment matters
• How to build an emergency reserve before you file
• What paying off a car note or credit card early can add to your retirement timeline
• When to take TSP withdrawals to avoid unnecessary taxes and penalties
• Real Q&A on Social Security timing, Roth conversions, and RMD age rules

If you're a federal employee within a few years of retirement, this is the debt and cash-flow cleanup checklist to go through before you submit your paperwork.

Want your own numbers run through this same analyzer? Type "PLAN" in the chat during our live sessions, or book a Discovery Call here: https://fedlegacy.zohobookings.com/#/discovery

#FederalRetirement #FERS #TSP #FEGLI #RetirementPlanning

The market has handed federal employees a decade of easy TSP growth. William Smith explains why that run isn't normal, and what changes in the years right before you retire.

This session covers sequence of returns risk using real TSP fund history back to 1988, why a 20% market drop needs more than a 20% gain to recover from, and how the same $500,000 TSP balance can run out in 18 years or grow past $1 million depending only on the ten years you happen to retire into.

William also breaks down the Financial House framework (protected foundation, inflation and tax-proofed walls, market-exposed roof), the rule of 100 for deciding how much TSP risk to carry, and the real difference between contributing to Roth TSP and transferring into it.

What's covered:

• Why the last 10 years of TSP returns are not the historical norm
• Sequence of returns risk, explained with real C Fund and G Fund data since 1988
• Why a market drop while you're withdrawing income does more damage than the same drop while you're still working
• The Financial House: protected foundation, inflation and tax walls, market-exposed roof
• The rule of 100 for deciding how much TSP risk to keep as a federal employee
• Roth TSP contributions vs. Roth TSP transfers, and why the difference matters for your taxes
• Live Q&A with real federal employee questions on reallocation, retirement timing, and protected income options

Your FEGLI premium goes up every five years after you retire. By age 80, a $500,000 Option B policy can cost over $400 a month, and most federal employees never see that number until it's already hitting their check.

In this session, FedLegacy advisor Brandon Tramel walks through the three FEGLI choices federal employees make without realizing it, how to run the free OPM FEGLI calculator to see your own numbers, and the five warning signs that your survivor coverage has a gap in it.

What this covers:

• FEGLI Options A, B, and C explained, including how the cost curve changes after you retire
• How to use the OPM FEGLI calculator to project your own premiums into retirement
• The difference between SF 2817 (active employees) and SF 2818 (retirees) and which form applies to you
• The three FERS survivor annuity election options and what each one costs your monthly pension
• Why your FEGLI beneficiary form, your TSP beneficiary form, and your will need to match
• How FEHB coverage for your spouse is affected by your survivor annuity election

If you're a federal employee within a few years of retirement, or you've already retired and haven't looked at these forms since you signed them, this session walks through exactly what to check and why it matters for the people depending on your plan.

Most federal employees assume FEHB and Medicare have long-term care covered. They don't, and finding that out during a health crisis is the worst possible time to learn it.

In this episode, William Smith breaks down:

• Why FEHB does not cover custodial long-term care, the everyday help with bathing, dressing, and eating that most people assume is included
• What Medicare Part A actually covers, up to 100 days, with a daily cost after day 21 that catches most people off guard
• Why federal employees are often in a better position to self-fund long-term care than people relying on a 401k alone, thanks to pension and Social Security income
• A real client example: a retiree with her TSP sitting almost entirely in the G Fund, and what changed once her allocation was rebalanced into growth and protected buckets
• Whether FEHB alone is enough or if Medicare Part B is worth adding, and the real tradeoffs behind that decision
• How the IRMAA two-year lookback works, and the life-changing-event form that can lower your premium after retirement
• Live Q&A covering Medicare enrollment penalties, hybrid long-term care policies, and survivor benefit elections

Chapters

• 00:00 Understanding Long-Term Care in Retirement
• 01:23 Limitations of FEHB and Medicare for Long-Term Care
• 03:44 Challenges with Long-Term Care Policies
• 05:09 Self-Funding Long-Term Care
• 06:36 TSP Investment for Long-Term Care Planning
• 16:31 Healthcare Options for Federal Employees
• 19:28 Medicare Enrollment and Long-Term Care Considerations
• 22:22 Personalized Retirement Planning

Most federal employees know Roth and Traditional TSP are different. Far fewer know when converting between them actually helps versus when it just moves the tax bill and adds a new problem.

In this episode, William Smith breaks down:

• The real difference between how Traditional and Roth TSP are taxed, and why most people's TSP balance isn't fully theirs
• The TSP Roth conversion window: the years between retirement and your Required Minimum Distribution age (73 or 75, depending on birth year)
• Why converting while still working can push you into a higher tax bracket than expected
• The separate five-year clocks for TSP Roth and outside Roth IRAs, and why they don't count toward each other
• How IRMAA and Medicare premiums factor into conversion decisions

Chapters

• 00:00 The Importance of Taxes in Retirement Planning
• 03:23 Roth vs. Traditional TSP
• 07:41 Roth Conversions and the Five-Year Window
• 09:02 Impact of Roth Conversions on Retirement and Medicare
• 17:00 Considerations for Federal Employees Approaching Retirement

Federal employees have a tax window most people never get, and most people miss it. This episode breaks down the two windows that open right after you retire, why the Secure Act's 10 year rule changed the math on your traditional TSP, and how to fill your tax bracket with Roth conversions without tipping into IRMAA surcharges or a higher bracket than you need.

William Smith walks through a real client case where a $30,000 difference in withdrawal timing kept a retiree out of the 32% bracket and away from higher Medicare premiums, then opens it up to live questions on Roth contribution amounts, the five year rule, fixed index annuity bonuses, and required minimum distributions.

What's covered:

• Why the Secure Act's 10 year inheritance rule changed retirement tax planning
• The 57 to 62 tax window and why your income is lower with no COLA increases
• The 62+ window and the choice between Social Security and TSP withdrawals
• Filling your tax bracket with Roth conversions without overshooting
• IRMAA and Medicare premium triggers to watch for
• Required minimum distributions and why timing matters years in advance
• In-service Roth transfers and why TSP makes this harder than an IRA
• The five year rule for Roth TSP and Roth IRA (they run separately)
• Using TSP as a self-funded long-term care option
• Live Q&A: annuity bonus red flags, two-income household tax rates, Roth contribution amounts, and more

Timestamps:
00:00 Why the tax window exists now (Secure Act, 10 year rule)
02:24 What qualified money means to the government
04:39 You can't avoid taxes, only reduce them through planning
07:02 The 57–62 window and filling your tax bracket
09:27 Client case: avoiding the 32% bracket and IRMAA
11:53 The RMD window and why it changes everything
14:22 In-service Roth transfers and why TSP makes it harder
16:52 The five year Roth rule and using Roth funds debt-free
19:18 TSP as a self-funded long-term care option
21:42 Q&A: fixed index annuity bonuses, real return or red flag?
24:41 Q&A: two-income households and Roth strategy
27:23 Q&A: how tax brackets shift by year and administration
28:39 Q&A: how much to contribute to Roth TSP
31:14 Q&A: the five year rule, TSP vs. IRA
31:45 Q&A: what makes an IRA "good"
33:45 Q&A: RMDs while still working
35:09 Closing

If you want a plan built around your own numbers, book a free Discovery Call: https://fedlegacy.zohobookings.com/#/discovery

FedLegacy helps federal employees navigate FERS, TSP, FEGLI, and Social Security so retirement decisions get made with a plan instead of guesswork.

The conversation covers the key considerations for federal employees attending retirement seminars, including the differences in retirement strategies, the 4% rule, TSP strategy, safety and growth in federal benefits, simplicity of federal employee retirement, and long-term care considerations.

Takeaways

• Federal employees have unique retirement needs
• TSP strategy and federal benefits differ from private sector approaches

Chapters

• 00:00 Navigating Retirement Seminars
• 03:24 The 4% Rule and TSP Strategy
• 07:11 Safety and Growth in Federal Benefits
• 10:58 Simplicity of Federal Employee Retirement
• 13:50 Long-Term Care Considerations

The conversation delves into the TSP income gap, the impact of market performance on TSP funds, strategies for managing TSP funds, balancing growth and protection, the importance of historical returns, managing income drawdown, creating wealth and peace of mind, maximizing TSP contributions for options, the power of compound growth, planning for retirement and future income, optimizing retirement income, long-term financial security, strategies for TSP growth and stability, building wealth and reducing stress, living off interest and TSP contributions, and the importance of maximizing TSP contributions for options.

Takeaways

• Understanding the TSP income gap is crucial for federal employees.
• Balancing growth and protection in TSP funds is essential for long-term financial security.

Chapters

• 00:00 Understanding the TSP Income Gap
• 01:01 Impact of Market Performance on TSP Funds
• 02:24 Addressing the Income Gap with TSP
• 03:22 Strategies for Managing TSP Funds
• 04:22 Balancing Growth and Protection
• 05:21 The Importance of Historical Returns
• 06:18 Managing Income Drawdown
• 07:14 Creating Wealth and Peace of Mind
• 08:13 Maximizing TSP Contributions for Options
• 09:11 The Power of Compound Growth
• 10:10 Planning for Retirement and Future Income
• 11:08 Importance of TSP Contributions
• 12:04 Optimizing Retirement Income
• 13:04 Long-Term Financial Security
• 14:05 Strategies for TSP Growth and Stability
• 15:02 Building Wealth and Reducing Stress
• 16:01 Living Off Interest and TSP Contributions
• 17:29 Maximizing TSP Contributions for Options

In this session, William Smith breaks down exactly how long the federal retirement process takes from start to finish, what happens to your income during the gap, and how to make sure you are not caught off guard when your first pension check is different from what you expected.

What you will learn:

• The ORA processing timeline from application to first full pension check
• Why your interim check is 60-80% of your expected pension and what is missing from it
• How to bridge the income gap without making a costly TSP withdrawal
• When you can access your TSP after retirement without the 10% penalty
• How to calculate your FERS pension using the 1% and 1.1% formula
• Why Roth TSP conversions are cheaper to do after retirement than before
• How estate planning protects everything you have built
  

  If you are retiring in the next one to three years, this is the session to watch before you submit your paperwork.

Chapters

• 00:00 Introduction to Online Retirement
• 00:59 The Digital Retirement System
• 02:57 Timeline of Retirement Process
• 08:14 Financial Considerations in Retirement
• 12:07 Transitioning into Retirement
• 14:03 Preparing for Retirement