Plan Well 

Even after you retire you need to plan well.

The first few years of retirement are so critical.  Let us help you plan with our free one-hour "Retirement Checklist Consultation"

If things don't work out the way you want them in the first few years, that can have an impact on the rest of your life. So you want to plan well.

Most importantly, you need a retirement plan design (budget and planned expenses). A design that includes upcoming expenses (and some expenses you may not have though about).

3 Tips for Prudent Management of Retirement

For more tips and planning advice, please call to schedule your Free One-Hour Retirement Consulation today.

Call 410-677-4848 or email: ericj@infocusfin.com

1. Careful Spending of Lump Sums -- Now that you are in retirement, you need to be careful of how you spend of course, but most importantly when spending lump sums. If you spend $10,000 in a lump sum, you not only spend the money, but also the money that the $10,000 would have earned over the coming years. Over twenty years at an 8% compounded return, the $10,000 spent would have grown to $40,000. So when you spent $10,000, it actually cost you $40,000 over your retirement. Be careful when you decide to pay cash for a new car or take all the grandkids to Disney World.

2. Managing Your Retirement Portfolio -- If you did proper pre-retirement planning, then you have a portfolio that can pursue smoother returns, and also has a significant income reserve of cash or more stable investments than stocks and bonds. Knowing when to spend out of the cash reserve is tricky business. When stock prices are down, or the economy is struggling it may feel like a prudent

time to spend out of your "reserve dollars". You really should have a good strategy in place that dictates when you will use your reserve dollars. If you use these "rainy day" funds when it really "isn't raining that hard" you may depelete your reserve and find yourself short when things are worse. Establish with us when a good time to spend from your reserves and when to spend out of the rest of your investments is a good idea.

3. Take Good Care of Your Portfolio -- Some basic investment principles come into play that historically help reduce volatility and enhance your investment returns. Rebalance your accounts at least once a year to the portfolio that matches your goals and risk tolerance. If you want to have a 25% Stock and 75% Bond portfolio and over the last year it has become 35% Stock and 65% Bond due to market movements, rebalance your portfolio back to the 25%/75% portfolio that you desire each year. Each person's portfolio will be different. Don't forget you may need your income to double over twenty years due to inflation, so being far too conservative might not pay off here.

All situations are different, please consult your financial professional for information regarding your needs and suitability issues.

For more tips and good planning advice, please schedule a free one-hour retirement consultation today. 410-677-4848 or email:ericj@infocusfin.com

If you have come in before and used a one-hour free consultation, we bill hourly for our meeting time.

Investments in securities do not offer a fix rate of return. Principal, yield and/or share price will fluctuate with changes in market conditions and, when sold or redeemed, you may receive more or less than originally invested.  No system or financial planning strategy can guarantee future results.  Therefore, no current or prospective client should assume that future performance or any specific investment, investment strategy or product will be profitable.