Too often, people think financial planning and retirement planning are synonymous with investing and investments.

 

That's unfortunate because, while important, investing is just a small part of retirement planning and managing one's retirement finances. It should actually receive less attention and resources than many people devote to it.

 

We have no control or influence over what will happen in the markets. We cannot anticipate market movements. Most forecasts are wrong.

 

The areas of retirement finances is where most people can make big differences in their financial security and independence. They have more control over the results of their decisions, and the range of possible outcomes—and thus potential for unpredictability—is narrower.

 

The importance of managing your retirement finances is why your financial or wealth advisor should devote significant resources to non-investment avenues, such as estate planning, income taxes, annuities, Medicare, long-term care, spending plans, Social Security and more. These areas’ best results don't come from rules of thumb or cookie-cutter solutions: They come from independent research and careful analysis, all done on an individual basis.

 

These are topics that don't receive nearly as much attention from other financial resources. Your financial advisor should pay attention to the entire retirement finance picture, with an emphasis on the areas over which we can exert more control and influence.

 

Under the recent economic and political conditions, your asset allocations deserve a second opinion—let us know when we can help.