Retirement investment andwithdrawal advice
Terry,
I am 75 years old and still working. I receive a good salary and very good benefits; however, I think its time for me to retire and have some fun. I have 401’s, a work retirement packet, etc. I don’t know how I am supposed to go about retirement and making sure that I will not be paying too much in taxes. I was wondering if I should seek the services of a CPA for advice. Do you have any recommendations? Thank you in advance.
Terry Says: First of all, congratulations on having a long, successful career. You deserve to have some fun. Well, many people will be there to help you — mostly because they want to make some money off of your investments. In your situation, I suggest you contact T.RowePrice — the no-load mutual fund company — and ask about their Retirement Income Planning services. They will help you roll over the money from your current 40l(k) accounts into more appropriate mutual funds for a retiree. And they will look at your entire situation (you’ll have your own financial planner for this process) and give you an idea of how to invest, how much you can withdraw each year, to make sure your money lasts as long as you do. Contact them at 866-586-0088, and if they try to get you to do it all online, insist that you want to talk to a Certified Financial Planner before doing anything. And please get back to me and let me know about your experience. They have a great service, but I just tried to get thru their toll-free help line and until you get to an actual planner (not an online form) it’s a bit difficult.
You will also want to talk to an estate planning attorney to make sure you have appropriate powers of attorney (depending on your family situation). In Chicago, I always refer people to Janna Dutton at 312) 899-0950. And you might want to consider long-term care insurance, as well. You might also consult an accountant — but basically, you should have ALREADY been taking minimum required distributions from your retirement plans, because you are past age 70-1/2, and MUST take those MRDs even though you are still working. If you haven’t done that yet, then definitely consult a CPA or you might have to pay a big penalty on the money you should have withdrawn, but didn’t.
Write back and let me know how these things go! Terry
