Earlier this summer, Emily and I decided to take our family of four to the mountains for a few days to escape the Houston heat. We enjoyed the 55 degree weather on our porch with a cup of coffee as the sun was coming up and had a wonderful time hiking (Emily says we only “walked”).
While the trip itself was a success, travelling with two toddlers is not for the faint of heart! It took Mom almost two full days to pack, and Dad was responsible for getting the four suitcases, stroller, golf clubs, and two car seats from the car to the check-in counter.
The extra “work” of getting our family there was well worth it once we arrived. Similarly, planning for retirement can feel like a heavy burden because there are so many moving pieces – sometimes you don’t know where to start.
The Best Place To Start
When building a house, you always start with a solid foundation. The same goes for retirement planning. We believe a solid foundation for retirement can be created in three easy steps.
1. Create a Live Well Plan. We call it a Live Well Plan because we want all of our clients to live well during retirement. Our Live Well Plan encompasses and coordinates ALL areas of your personal finances. The plan includes cash-flow projections and allows us to test adjustments in real time and predict your retirement readiness – making sure you are in the “green zone” (i.e. 75% or greater probability of retirement success).
2. Develop your Family Index Number (FIN). Your FIN is a personalized measurement developed to define and track the progress of your investment portfolio as it relates to your Live Well Plan. This number represents the rate of return you are projected to need to achieve your goals and objectives. The Family Index Number helps replace complexity with clarity by helping you understand the rate of return you need over a complete market cycle. Knowing your Family Index Number will not only help you meet your needs but also potentially reduce the stress of a negative year or trying to outperform a volatile index.
3. Select Investment Strategies. Discipline and income generation are the core principles of our process-driven investment strategies. Multiple strategies are selected based on your unique situation to achieve your Family Index Number with a high level of confidence. Our ultimate goal is to preserve your assets while generating the level of income and growth needed to meet your long-term objectives.
Next Steps
Do you want to review your Live Well Plan? Maybe you would like to create one for your family? Please give us a call.
About the Author
Matt Price serves as a Partner and Senior Vice President for The Price Group of Steward Partners. He resides in Houston with his wife, Emily, their two daughters and the family golden retriever. Matt studied at the University of Pennsylvania – Wharton School of Business for his Certified Investment Management Analyst (CIMA®) designation after receiving his undergraduate degree from the University of Tennessee - Knoxville. Over the past 10 years, Matt has helped families make high quality, common sense decisions regarding their wealth and their legacy. Matt firmly believes that everyone needs a wealth coach!
Content Is Nothing Without Context
Are you looking for a weekly financial market commentary that provides context? Sign up to receive our weekly commentary HERE. We are helping make the complex simple.
The projections or other information generated by Goal Planning & Monitoring and other investment planning tools regarding the likelihood of various investment outcomes are hypothetical in nature, do not reflect actual investment results and are not guarantees of future results. Goal Planning & Monitoring results may vary with each use and over time. Financial forecasts, rates of return, risk, inflation, and other assumptions may be used as the basis for illustrations. They should not be considered a guarantee of future performance or a guarantee of achieving overall financial objectives. Past performance does not guarantee future results. Investing involves risk and you may incur a profit or loss regardless of strategy selected. Actual investor results will vary.