Retirement planning is the process of applying financial and life strategies to save, invest, take advantage of the tax code, mitigate risks, and ultimately distribute money for sustainable lifetime income to cover the needs in retirement.

Retirement planning is ideally a life-long process for adults. Having a good plan can improve financial security and quality of life in retirement.

1. Understand personal and financial situation
2. Determine retirement goals
3. Analyze current course of action and identify gaps and risks
4. Develop strategies and recommendations
5. Take necessary actions in implementing the strategies and recommendations
6. Monitor progress, review, and improve

1. Income Planning Risk
   Have you saved enough? How to safely distribute your assets into annual income for the rest of your life in retirement? Distributing too much or too little each year has consequences. How to maximize your retirement annual income given your assets before retirement? What is your optimal strategy to claim Social Security?
2. Longevity Risk
   What if you will live longer or much longer than you have planned or the social average?
3. Health Care Risk
   Do you have a plan for health care cost, especially with a potential cost spike towards the end of your retirement? Do you plan for the average or 80th even 90th percentile cost? What is the best way for you to plan for health care in retirement?
4. Long-Term Care Risk
   Do you have a plan for long-term care cost? Do you plan for the average or 80th even 90th percentile cost? How can you be exempt from a potential state long-term care tax? What is the best way for you to plan for long-term care?
5. Investment Risk
   Including investment strategy risk, market risk, investor behavior risk, sequence-of-returns risk, interest rate risk, and credit risk.
6. Tax Risk
   How much will tax erode your investment return and retirement income, especially if there is a tax rate increase due to the record national debt? How to maximize your net (after-tax and after-cost) investment return? How to minimize your total taxes without compromising investment return?
7. Inflation Risk
   How much will inflation erode your investment return and retirement income? How to maintain your purchasing power in retirement? Inflation will likely go up more than 100% in the next 20 years. Are you prepared?
8. Cognitive Decline Risk
   Based on Harvard Professor David Laibson, 50% of the 80-year-old population have difficulty making critical financial decisions due to declining cognitive abilities or diminished mental capacity.
9. Estate Planning Risk
   After your passing especially with large health care bills, how will it impact your family and what legacy do you want to leave? How will your end-of-life matters be handled?

Only when the tide goes out do you discover who’s been swimming naked. -- Warren Buffett

Only after many years in retirement do we discover if you have done a bad job in retirement planning. -- Someone

The following articles may help you understand what retirement planning is and what the main issues it is aimed to resolve.

1. 5 Key Considerations as You Craft Your Retirement Plan
2. Don’t Let Taxes Dim Your Retirement: How to Plan Ahead with Your ‘Tax Bucket List’
3. What Is the 4% Rule?
4. 14 Key Signs You Will Run Out of Money in Retirement
5. Annuities make it easier for retirees to spend, research finds
6. Why All Adults Need an Estate, Long-Term-Care Plan
7. Sequence of Returns Risk
8. Actuaries Longevity Illustrator
9. Michigan Medicaid Income & Asset Limits for Nursing Homes & In-Home Long Term Care

Retirement planning is no easy task. Not doing it right may cost you a lot. Having a good plan will improve your financial security and peace of mind, which ultimately lead to a happier life. We may help you get there by starting with a comprehensive retirement plan.