2017 NJSPBA
Mini-Convention
A little financial advice
Be honest: Who hasn’t thought about
retirement, given the demands of being a
law enforcement officer in the 21st cen-
tury?
According to Craig Reid and John Cica-
la of AXA Advisors, even members who are just getting on the
job should start thinking about retirement. Reid and Cicala pre-
sented innovative ideas for retirement planning, and it wasn’t
hard to notice lightbulbs turning on throughout the meeting in
response to the concepts they advocated.
Reid presented the 457(b) plan, which is a version of a 401(k)
available especially for government employees. The plan is a
way to take your deferred compensation and gain tax breaks
as part of what Reid calls “your need to build that retirement
bucket.”
Cicala expounded on strategies to reduce taxable income in
retirement. Additionally, he preached about the need for diver-
sification. A good retirement portfolio, he suggested, includes
stocks, bonds and alternative tangible investments such as real
estate or commodities.
Cicala also recommended that it’s never too early to seek out
advice to fill the bucket.
“Recent market research indicates clients who work closely
with an advisor end up with account values that are 34 percent
higher than those who don’t,” he explained. “If that guy is there
at your shift change to talk about deferred comp, stop and see
him.” d
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