potential to increase your income over time.
Prepare for health care costs. Good medical care is vital
in retirement, and figuring out the costs now ensures that it
will be available when needed. Those costs could amount to
as much as $1,000 monthly. A comprehensive study of med-
ical benefits and costs should include consideration of long-
term care insurance, supplemental health care insurance
and a review of any medical benefits for which you may be
eligible. For the latter, be sure that you understand coverage
and co-payments.
Develop a tax management strategy. Retirees need to
convert the appropriate assets to income. Every conversion
choice carries a tax implication. Wise choices can minimize
taxes, thus boosting income. It is important to compare your
current tax bracket with the one that you probably will occu-
py during retirement.
Understand market volatility. All markets, including
those for stocks and bonds, rise and fall due to a variety
of circumstances. An individual’s ability to tolerate these
changes will have a huge impact on the composition of his
or her retirement portfolio. Recognizing the inevitability of
market fluctuations (and knowing your tolerance level) al-
lows you to create a strategically balanced portfolio. That
means you can tolerate the changes as they occur. Financial
planners know of many strategies that can help meet your
needs and ensure a sense of security.
Get important documents organized. Everybody should
have some basic documents prepared, including a will, a
living trust, a health care power of attorney and a financial
power of attorney. These basic legal tools can ensure that in-
heritance matters are handled in an orderly and timely fash-
ion. They also help loved ones make important decisions and
gain access to needed funds if you become incapacitated.
Review your retirement plan. Regular meetings with your
financial planner give both of you the opportunity to check
that your retirement plan’s goals are being reflected in its
performance. They also allow timely refinements to the plan
required by major changes in your life. Annual reviews can
be devoted to strategic issues, while quarterly meetings can
cover tactical matters, like rebalancing portfolios. d
Bruce Linger CFP®, CRPC®, CCFS™ ([email protected]) is
a registered representative and investment advisor representa-
tive of Lincoln Financial Advisors Corp., a broker-dealer (mem-
ber SIPC) and registered investment advisor offering insurance
through Lincoln affiliates and other fine companies. He can
be reached at 201-556-4565, [email protected], or his of-
fice at 61 South Paramus Rd., Suite 425, Paramus, NJ 07652.
This information should not be construed as legal or tax ad-
vice. You may want to consult a tax advisor regarding this in-
formation as it relates to your personal circumstances. The con-
tent of this material was provided to you by Lincoln Financial
Advisors for its representatives and their clients.
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