A Microwave is Not a Great Retirement Planning Tool

November 21st, 2019 by Jim Allen

When it comes to saving and planning for retirement, that old saying “slow and steady wins the race” is pretty accurate. Regular and consistent saving allows for time (and compound interest) to do the work of growing your nest egg; and is like cooking with a crockpot. The alternative of course is to do nothing and wait until the last moment, which is like trying to cook a turkey in the microwave right before Thanksgiving dinner.

Cooking with a crockpot requires more planning and work up front, but you are usually rewarded with a better meal than just throwing something in the microwave last minute. Planning for retirement is the same way.

Starting your planning and preparation even just a few years before retirement will almost always lead to better results than deciding to retire and then figuring out what to do. When we prepare a retirement income plan for our clients, we are looking at every available strategy and throwing them in the retirement “crockpot.” This will give you the mix of strategies that are right for your individual situation. For example, we may combine a diversified multi-asset portfolio using our Frugal Investor philosophy, that also meets your time horizon, with risk management strategies like long-term care insurance. We may also use tax location planning, optimized Social Security claiming, and strategies for using home equity like trading down or a reverse mortgage. This all blends into a comprehensive, coordinated and personalized retirement income plan that can improve your chances for a successful and rewarding retirement.

We are often asked if it is “too early” to plan when we are consulting with people who are 5-10 years away from their expected retirement. The answer to that is clearly no. By combining time and the wonder of compound interest with a holistic approach to retirement income planning, we can help create a recipe for retirement success for you. It just takes a crockpot instead of a microwave.

We are always pleased to offer a complimentary retirement income consultation. If interested, please contact us to schedule a time.