Give Clients a Map for the Bumpy Road of Retirement Income Planning

We don’t have to tell you that your retired clients need your advice. For retirees or those planning on retiring in the next few years, the success of their retirement income strategy can depend on their road map. The wrong road map can lead to lost value, avoidable taxes, and even a financially unstable future.

Navigating retirement income planning can be a complex process, and it’s easy for retirees to make mistakes or miss opportunities. They need your advice on when exactly to begin collecting Social Security benefits, which retirement income accounts to withdraw from (and when), and how to manage their retirement income strategy.

However, enlisting the help of a trusted and experienced financial advisor is a huge decision for many retirees who think they can do it fine on their own. But you know that a financial advisor adds significant value for generating retirement income plans. Help make the decision easy — offer clients a road map for retirement income planning.

How Financial Advisors Can Help With a Retirement Income Planning Road Map

As of 2021, nearly 50 million people in the U.S. are retired, collecting around $1,555 in individual monthly Social Security benefits. That’s a total of almost $73 billion each month! Because many Americans are retiring with multiple income streams, how or when they withdraw these funds can significantly affect their overall finances, for better and worse.

Understanding the Importance of Proper Timing

The wrong financial move could cost retirees tens of thousands of dollars, but taking advantage of the right opportunity (or multiple opportunities) could add tens of thousands of dollars (or more!) to the lifetime of their income. For example, correctly optimizing a client’s Social Security benefit claiming time can add more than $100,000 to their retirement income, even when you consider the impact of the Bipartisan Budget Act.

Recognizing the short- and long-term potential tax impact of different income-harvesting techniques is paramount. Make sure you are guiding clients on when to take money from their Roth IRA, when to withdraw from a 401k account, and if — or when — to collect Social Security benefits simultaneously.

It can be beneficial for clients to delay benefits because these funds will increase by a certain percentage each month they’re pushed back. This incremental increase kicks in at an individual's full retirement age, and it stops growing when they reach age 70.

Also, finding the right tax strategies can save your clients significant amounts of money. Retirees thinking they can succeed on their own usually haven’t seen a clear road map for retirement income planning.

Create a Retirement Income Planning Road Map Using the Right Software

The right tools can help financial advisors create better scenarios for their clients, showing them a clear road map toward retirement. Covisum’s® software solutions for retirement income planning can help create insightful road maps for clients. Use the printable PDF reports as your clients’ road maps. They’ll thank you for it. You can plan for different scenarios, such as early death, medical emergencies, and more.

The best part about Covisum solutions is that they’re so client-friendly and easy to use that they can help grow your business. When you bring your clients intuitive and clearly communicated answers to their retirement income planning questions, they’ll make referrals. It’s another tool you can use to serve your clients better, showing them all of their retirement income planning options.

For example, what are the best strategies for clients who are still employed part-time or clients living solely on Social Security benefits? Financial advisors can use Social Security Timing® and Income InSight® together to create realistic strategies that help retirees maximize whatever earnings they’re bringing in. Covisum’s software suite can even create fictional scenarios and plan for different circumstances that may arise.

Find Out Which Solution Is Best for Your Business

Covisum’s financial advisor software simplifies the task of building your clients’ retirement income strategies and highlights the value of your experience and guidance. Covisum’s Product Matchmaker can identify the products that work best for the specific needs of your clients. Get started now!