Preparing for Retirement 

Page and Warren 

AGES: 53 AND 56

Main Goals

Page and Warren are now empty-nesters. It’s time for them to start thinking about their next phase of life. They want to know that they will be all set for retirement. With housing prices and mortgage rates still high, they also would like to help their young adult kids get a good start by paying for potential weddings and home purchase downpayments. Page and Warren want to know that they can do all of these things and still have a secure and comfortable retirement.  

Background

Page has a demanding job at a non-profit as Executive Director and is wondering if she can retire earlier than her husband. Warren is in a senior level position at a technology firm but worries about the unpredictable nature of his industry and his variable income. He has a lot of Restricted Stock Units that mature over time but is uncertain about the best way to harvest this investment. They have accumulated retirement assets in 403(b), 401(k) and IRAs but are wondering if they have saved enough. They own a home in a Boston suburb and a vacation home on Cape Cod. Both properties have mortgages.  

At retirement, Page and Warren would like to purchase an RV and tour the National Parks for a few years while they are still healthy. They would like to retire at age 65 but realize that they may have to adjust given their other goals.  

Our Strategy for Page and Warren:

• Discussed Page’s and Warren’s ideal retirement, family and life goals. Set priorities and the sequence of goals so that they can be modeled.
  
  
• Collected all of their financial information including: incomes and expenses, asset and liability (debt) statements, employee benefits, Social Security statements, pension benefits, real estate, personal property owned, insurance policies, and estate planning documents.
  
  
• Calculate their current projections (e.g., If we keep doing what we are doing now, where will we end up?). Also, prepared several spreadsheets to calculate appropriate approaches for Warren’s restricted stock units and funding accounts for weddings and downpayments.
  
  
• Analyzed current asset allocation and individual investments; determined appropriate risk tolerance and rates of return required to achieve goals; prepared new recommended asset allocation and individual investment recommendations.
  
  
• Developed potential “what if?” scenarios and discussed pros and cons of each approach that includes specific goals such as the purchase of an RV.
  
  
• Presented the finalized plan that incorporates each area: retirement, cash flow and budgeting, investments, taxes, insurance, estate, and special goals.
  
  
• Provide an Executive Summary that contains each Action Item and the corresponding recommendations.

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_{Disclaimer - This case study is provided for illustrative purposes only and is hypothetical in nature. It is provided to help you better understand the kinds of situations we commonly encounter and how we approach them. An individual’s experience will vary based on his or her individual circumstances.}