Planning that starts with a conversation.

A financial plan starts with your goals, then maps your income, spending, savings, investments, taxes, insurance, and estate documents against them. After it is built, review it at least once a year and after major life changes, because a plan only works when it reflects your current situation.

Retirement income usually comes from a mix of Social Security, pensions, withdrawals from savings and investment accounts, and sometimes part-time work or rental income. The order you draw from taxable, tax-deferred, and Roth accounts can affect your taxes, so it helps to plan withdrawals as a sequence.

Retirees often focus on three things: which accounts they withdraw from, when they take income, and how they give. Common tools include Roth conversions, qualified charitable distributions, coordinating Social Security timing, and holding investments in the account types where they are taxed most favorably. The right mix depends on your situation, so involve your CPA.

A Roth conversion moves money from a traditional IRA or similar pre-tax account into a Roth IRA. You pay income tax on the amount converted in the year you convert, and after that, qualified withdrawals can be tax-free. Whether it makes sense depends on your current and expected future tax brackets, how you will pay the tax, and your timeline.

No strategy can fully protect investments from a downturn or a bear market, but you can plan for one. Common steps include diversifying, keeping enough cash or stable assets to cover near-term spending, matching risk to your timeline, reviewing the plan regularly and most importantly having a plan in place to strive to Protect your Investments in the event of a Market Downturn. Our Invest and Protect approach is designed to account for market downturns, and of course all investing involves risk.

Often, but not automatically. The most important goal is to invest to meet or exceed the minimum rate of return you need to keep pace with the customized financial plan we will develop with you. Many people shift toward more stability as they near and enter retirement, because they have less time to recover from a downturn and they begin drawing income. The right mix depends on your income needs, your other sources of income, your time horizon, and how much decline you can tolerate.

Not everyone does. Medicare doesn't cover most long-term custodial care, so people generally choose among buying long-term care coverage, setting aside assets to pay for care themselves, or combining both. The right choice depends on your assets, your health, your family, and how you would want care provided.

You need life insurance if someone would face financial hardship if you died, such as a spouse who depends on your income, children, a business partner, or debts that would pass to others. Many retirees need less or none if their assets cover their family's needs, though some keep coverage for estate or legacy goals.