Why plan? After all, I’m not going to live very long

I often hear the above headline from clients when we are beginning to develop their financial plan. Many are convinced that they just won’t live very long once they reach retirement. They often cite parents’ or family members who died young or had a history of chronic diseases. In the end, they just cannot imagine living into their 90s or 100s.

However, what will you do if you are one of those who lives far longer than others?

Longevity is very important to financial planning. If you think you are going to die early, you will likely not need as much money to support your lifestyle as someone who lives longer. On the other hand, the longer you live, the more money you’ll need to pay for basic necessities, discretionary items and possibly for additional health care services.

Fortunately, these assumptions do not hold up, especially if you live in Massachusetts.

Recently Harvard Pilgrim Health Care published a newsletter citing that “New England states consistently rank among the healthiest in the United States.” In particular, Massachusetts ranked third in the 2025 U.S. News & World Report in terms of overall health. The study considered mortality, obesity, smoking, suicide and mental health in adults.

These results reflect a long period of positive health policies that have contributed to good health outcomes.

In spite of our cold winters, this is good news!

In addition, other studies have indicated that your personal wealth and income are also a meaningful indicator of longevity. In other words, the more money you have, the longer you are likely to live. Since most of our clients are financially successful and higher income, it is more likely that they will live longer, healthier lives than the averages.

This is one area where “back of the envelope” or quick retirement calculators can fall short. They may not consider the likelihood of how long you (and if you are married / with a partner) will live.

Longevity is perhaps most important for women. Men tend to marry younger women and men often pass away before their partners do.

Have you ever been to a retirement community or nursing home? The women outnumber the men by a significant margin!

This means that women need to make sure that they have enough financial resources to carry them through all of their retirement years, even after their spouse or partner has passed away.

Figuring out how long you’ll live and how much money you’ll need in retirement can be challenging. But we’re here to help. If you have questions about planning for retirement, give me a call. While I don’t have a crystal ball for how long you might live, I’m here to help. You can schedule a quick call with me by clicking HERE.

Lyman H. Jackson

Lyman@PlanWithFPS.com

617-630-4978

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