Success Stories
Retirees
Does Anyone Ever Really Feel Financially Secure Enough to Retire?
Case Study:
Consider a couple in their early 60s with an adult son who has special needs. The husband was the primary income earner for many years, while the wife managed the household and family responsibilities. Together, they’ve accumulated about $2 million in investments and are now approaching retirement.
Despite their success in building wealth, they are concerned about whether their savings will be enough to sustain their standard of living throughout retirement. They are particularly sensitive to ensuring their son’s long-term financial security and want to be certain that his needs will continue to be met.
The question becomes: How can they transition into retirement with confidence while addressing both their own lifestyle goals and their son’s ongoing needs?
Key Concerns
In this scenario, the couple is entering retirement while also carrying added family responsibilities. Their goal is not only to retire comfortably but also to ensure that their family remains financially secure under all circumstances.
One of their biggest challenges is shifting from a mindset of saving and accumulating wealth to one of spending, while still preserving what they’ve built. This transition raises several important questions, including:
We’ve lived an above average standard of living while working. Can we sustain that same standard in retirement?
How do we ensure our disabled son will be financially secure now that we are retired?
We feel disorganized with multiple professionals handing different aspects of our portfolio and financial plan. Can you help us coordinate and feel less stressed?
A Thoughtful Approach
In this example, the couple worked through a planning process designed to give them a clearer picture of their current financial life and a strategy to help support the retirement lifestyle they envisioned. A central takeaway was shifting their outlook from accumulation toward distribution — focusing less on building wealth and more on creating a sustainable income plan.
Key elements of the approach included:
Education
A major part of retirement planning is understanding the differences between accumulation strategies (during working years) and distribution strategies (during retirement years). For example, portfolio stress-testing can illustrate how withdrawals may be affected by:
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Drawing down in the early years of retirement
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Experiencing a prolonged market downturn
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The need to sustain income while keeping pace with inflation
Values-Based Planning
Helping retirees envision their ideal retirement — guided by their core values — can provide clarity and direction. Defining goals around personal fulfillment creates a stronger foundation for financial strategies, and ensures that the plan supports what matters most in retirement.
Legacy Planning
Education and clarity are equally important in planning for how wealth will be transferred to loved ones. For families with children or dependents who have special needs, legacy planning may include designing strategies to provide long-term financial security in a manner consistent with family values and priorities.
The Results
Achieving Clarity in Retirement
In this example, the couple shifted their mindset from accumulation to distribution, gaining greater confidence in their ability to sustain retirement without the constant worry of running out of money.
Their plan addressed several important areas:
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Retirement Income Planning: Structuring accumulated wealth in a way that supported their current lifestyle while also accounting for inflation over time. Portfolio stress-testing helped illustrate how a prolonged market downturn during early retirement could impact their income, and strategies were developed to help mitigate that risk.
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Coordination of Advisors: Rather than leaving the couple to coordinate among different professionals — CPA, investment advisor, estate attorney — a more integrated approach allowed all subject matter experts to work together under one overarching plan.
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Estate & Legacy Planning: For families with children who have ongoing needs, estate planning may involve creating trust structures designed to protect assets from creditors, divorce, or taxes while providing long-term financial security. Working with an estate attorney can help ensure documents reflect both legal requirements and family priorities.
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Ongoing Review: Since circumstances, economic conditions, and laws change over time, a proactive review process helps keep the plan aligned with evolving goals and needs.
In Summary:
Retirement planning is not about eliminating uncertainty but about creating a structured approach that provides clarity and direction. A well-coordinated plan can help families spend less time worrying about financial logistics and more time focusing on the aspects of life that matter most to them.
*This is a case study and is for illustrative purposes only. Actual performance and results will vary. This case study does not constitute a recommendation as to the suitability of any investment for any person or persons having circumstances similar to those portrayed, and a financial advisor should be consulted. This case study does not represent actual clients but a hypothetical composite of various client experiences and issues. Any resemblance to actual people or situations is purely coincidental. In a fee-based account, clients pay a quarterly fee, based on the level of assets in the account, for the services of a financial advisor as part of an advisory relationship. In deciding to pay a fee rather than commissions, clients should understand that the fee may be higher than a commission alternative during periods of lower trading. Advisory fees are in addition to the internal expenses charged by mutual funds and other investment company securities. To the extent that clients intend to hold these securities, the internal expenses should be included when evaluating the costs of a fee-based account. Clients should periodically re-evaluate whether the use of an asset-based fee continues to be appropriate in servicing their needs. A list of additional considerations, as well as the fee schedule, is available in the firm's Form ADV Part 2 as well as the client agreement.
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