Whether you’re hoping to retire soon or are just beginning to explore the idea of stepping back
from your job, you’re probably wondering how to make it happen. Will you have enough money? How will you spend your
time? What will you do for health insurance? Here, you’ll find a useful countdown of the five biggest steps to
developing a solid retirement plan.

5. Assess Your Retirement Goals

What does retirement look like for you? Do you plan to or want to continue working
part-time? Will you travel? Do you want to sell your home and hit the road in an RV? At what age will you claim
Social Security? When will you qualify for Medicare?

Everyone’s retirement goals are different, which means your financial plan for retirement will
also be different.

4. Decide How to Draw Down Savings

Depending on whether your assets are held in a pre-tax account, a post-tax account, or a taxable
account, your savings drawdown strategy can vary widely. Your age can also dictate when, how, and how much you
withdraw from your retirement accounts. For example, if you plan to retire before age 59.5, you may want to first
begin withdrawing funds from a taxable account to provide flexibility until you’re able to take penalty-free
withdrawals from a 401(k) or a traditional IRA.

3. Enlist a Financial Professional

If you don’t yet have a dedicated financial professional, now may be the time to assess your
retirement readiness and work to optimize your income and assets as you enter retirement. You don’t want to find
yourself in a position where your retirement needs exceed your income or assets and you’re forced to scale down—or
even go back to work—after you’ve already been enjoying retirement for a few years.

2. Survey Potential Large Expenses

Beginning your retirement with multiple large, unexpected expenses can send even the most
carefully planned budgets off track. Before you retire, consider some of the biggest expenses that are likely to
come your way.

• Will your home need new windows or a new roof soon?
• Are your major appliances—washer and dryer, dishwasher, refrigerator, HVAC—getting
  older?
• How much longer do you expect your vehicle to last?
• Is your health plan switching to a high-deductible one?

By planning for large expenses before you retire, you can work to ensure these costs won’t catch
you by surprise.

1. Begin Planning Your Estate

Whenever you’re making a big financial shift or embarking on a new phase of your life,
it’s important to revisit and assess your estate plan. If you pass away without a valid will or other estate plan,
your heirs could find themselves embroiled in a messy, expensive court battle to reclaim and divide your assets.

In some cases, you may only need a will to dispose of your assets in the way you’d like. Other
situations may call for an irrevocable trust or some other multifaceted approach to managing your estate. Talking to
an attorney and your financial professional can give you a better idea of the options available to you and where
each different path may lead.

Important Disclosures:

Investment advice offered through Planned Financial Services, LLC (“Planned
Financial”), an SEC registered investment adviser.

This material is for general information only and is not intended to provide specific
advice or recommendations for any individual.

This information is not intended to be a substitute for specific individualized tax
advice. We suggest that you discuss your specific tax issues with a qualified tax advisor.

All information is believed to be from reliable sources; however, Planned Financial
Services makes no representation as to its completeness or accuracy. Planned Financial blog articles are meant for
informational purposes only, are not intended to serve as a recommendation to buy or sell any security and are not
an offer or sale of a security. This is not a research report and is not intended to serve as the basis for any
investment decision. Any third-party information provided therein does not reflect the views of Planned Financial
Services, LLC or any of its subsidiaries or affiliates. All investments involve risk, and the past performance of a
security or financial product does not guarantee future results or returns. Planned Financial Services’ blog
contains articles on budgeting, business, insurance, planning, spending, and financial health, etc. The goal is to
make business and financial news accessible to our clients. Writers conduct daily research through a variety of
primary (e.g., press releases, financial reports, public statements, economic data, social media accounts,
interviews, etc.), and secondary sources (e.g., The Wall Street Journal, Bloomberg, etc.). Past performance is no
guarantee of future results. Any historical returns, expected returns, or probability projections are hypothetical
in nature and may not reflect actual future performance. The content on this article is for informational purposes
only and does not constitute a comprehensive description of Planned Financial Services’ investment advisory
services. Please see our website and Brochure for more details.

This article was prepared by WriterAccess.

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