Retirement Planning

Retirement & Social Security Planning: Building Your Confident Future

Retirement should be a golden chapter of life—a time for relaxation, pursuing passions, and enjoying the fruits of your labor, free from financial worry. However, navigating the complexities of saving enough, investing wisely, and strategically drawing income from various sources can be daunting. At Jennifer B Barthol, Financial Planning LLC, we specialize in comprehensive Retirement Planning and expert Social Security Planning, providing you with a clear, personalized roadmap to a confident and secure future. Jennifer B Barthol is your trusted Financial Advisor, dedicated to helping you envision and achieve the retirement lifestyle you’ve always dreamed of.

Our approach to Retirement Planning is holistic and forward-looking. We begin by understanding your vision for retirement—when you want to retire, where you want to live, what activities you plan to pursue, and your desired lifestyle. From there, we meticulously assess your current financial standing, including your savings, investments, income sources, and projected expenses. This forms the foundation for building a personalized strategy that encompasses:

• Goal Setting and Savings Projections: We help you establish realistic retirement goals and project the amount of savings you’ll need. We then create a disciplined savings strategy, advising on optimal contribution amounts and the most tax-efficient savings vehicles (e.g., 401(k)s, IRAs, Roth IRAs).
• Investment Strategy: We work with you to develop a diversified investment portfolio tailored to your risk tolerance, time horizon, and retirement goals. We regularly monitor and adjust your portfolio as you approach and enter retirement, shifting strategies from accumulation to capital preservation and income generation.
• Income Stream Planning: Retirement income often comes from multiple sources. We help you integrate and optimize these, including Social Security, pensions, annuities, and withdrawals from investment accounts, to create a reliable and sustainable income stream throughout your retirement.
• Expense Management in Retirement: We help you anticipate and plan for retirement expenses, which can differ significantly from your working years, including healthcare costs, travel, hobbies, and potential long-term care needs.
• Tax-Efficient Withdrawal Strategies: Jennifer’s expertise in Tax-Efficient strategies extends deeply into retirement. We develop a plan for withdrawing funds from various retirement accounts (taxable, tax-deferred, tax-free) in the most tax-efficient order, minimizing your annual tax burden and allowing your savings to last longer.

A critical component of any robust retirement strategy is maximizing your Social Security Planning. For many, Social Security benefits form a significant portion of their retirement income, yet the rules for claiming benefits are complex, and the timing of your claim can profoundly impact the total amount you receive over your lifetime. Jennifer provides expert guidance on:

• Optimal Claiming Age: We analyze your personal circumstances, health, other income sources, and spousal benefits to determine the optimal age for you to start claiming Social Security benefits, whether it’s early (age 62), at your Full Retirement Age (FRA), or later (up to age 70).
• Spousal and Survivor Benefits: We help married couples and divorcees understand strategies for maximizing spousal benefits and ensuring survivor benefits are optimized, which can add significant value to a household’s total Social Security income.
• Impact of Working in Retirement: We advise on how working while receiving Social Security benefits can affect your benefit amount and potential taxation.

Understanding SSI Planning and SSD Planning: While primarily focused on retirement, Jennifer also provides general information and can help connect you with resources regarding SSI Planning (Supplemental Security Income, a needs-based program for disability/age) and SSD Planning (Social Security Disability, based on work credits). This ensures a comprehensive understanding of all potential Social Security-related benefits.