It may be time to schedule your retirement checkup
by Ronald Stevenson and Barbara Clark Stevenson
When was the last time you reviewed your financial life? In the same way that it’s important to go to the doctor for a physical, comprehensive retirement checkups are crucial to your financial success down the road.
In today’s technology-driven world, it’s easy to put your finances on autopilot. From automatic deposits, online statements and automatic 401(k) contributions, it can be easy to leave your retirement plan unsupervised.
But how do you go about starting the retirement checkup process? Well, first and foremost, you need to consider what your goals are. Whether you want to travel, have a winter home in a warm state, etc., it’s important to have goals to frame your retirement plans around.
Another important part of a checkup of your retirement is to monitor your account balances. Most of your retirement accounts are accessible online now, so log in and see how much you are saving and what is in your accounts.
Obviously the more you squirrel away now, even if it’s only a few extra dollars here and there a month, means the possibility for more money in the future.
You may want to consider increasing your contribution amounts, even if by just a few percentages. Some accounts allow you to set up automatic increases to your contribution that can go into effect each year.
Another aspect of your retirement checkup should be to ensure that your investment strategy makes sense. Staying in conservative investments may be appealing — especially to your emotions that may fear market crashes, but the yields that you will earn on overly conservative investments can be too low to provide the income and purchasing power you may need down the road.
This is especially true when you take inflation into consideration or consider that your retirement may last over 30 years with the life expectancy rates of today.
When it comes to investing, you just need to find the right balance. At American Financial Investments, LLC, we can help categorize your assets so they are in a good position to help you reach your retirement goals.
When you choose to work with a financial services professional, they are able to assist you in creating financial plans that will work for your unique situation. You may want to consult a trusted financial services professional to help you check up on your finances.
About the Authors: Ronald F. Stevenson & Barbara Clark Stevenson own American Financial Investments, LLC. American Financial Investments, LLC, offer Retirement Income Planning, Social Security Maximization, Personal & Corporate Tax Preparation and Planning. For more information, call (928) 771-8368 or visit AFSprescott.com, 3112 Clearwater Drive., Suite B, Prescott, AZ 86305.
Advisory services are offered through American Financial Investments, LLC, a Registered Investment Advisor & Fiduciary firm in Arizona. Insurance products and services are offered through American Financial Security, LLC. American Financial Investments, LLC, and American Financial Security, LLC, are affiliated companies. Whenever you invest, you are at risk of loss of principal as the market does fluctuate. Past performance is not indicative of future results. Purchases are subject to suitability. This requires a review of an investor’s objective, risk tolerance and time horizons. Investing always involves risk and possible loss of capital.
