The Financial Plan Or The Lifestyle Retirement Plan?
Many retirees imagine that retirement is an extension of their current life.
It isn’t.
Retirement is anything but easy.
A few examples (of the 100+ issues that need to be considered) might be worth looking at.
When was the last time you lived 24/7 with your life partner for more than a month?
Has your will been vetted recently by your legal advisor?
What is an Advanced Health Directive?
What is the difference between a Legal Will and an Ethical Will?
How will you keep mentally and physically active in retirement?
Was your last medical check up within the last 12 months?
These are not the kind of questions that most financial planners ask.
For many years financial planners have used the term “retirement planning” and “financial planning” as synonymous. In the words of Professor Julius Sumner Miller “Why is it so?” The facts are they aren’t synonymous. They are complementary, but they are not the same. There are two sides to a complete financial plan. There are Lifestyle Issues and there are Financial Issues. Indeed, Alan Greig, a leading Lifestyle Retirement Planner and coach, operates on the premise that : A Lifestyle Retirement Plan + a Financial Plan = a complete Third Age Retirement Plan. That makes sense – doesn’t it?
Alan’s question is:
How can a client have a financial plan when they don’t know what they are planning for?
What are their desires in retirement?
What sort of lifestyle do they want in retirement?
When they can answer those questions, they can approach a financial planner and say “here is the lifestyle we want in retirement. Now I would like you to design a financial plan that will allow us to live our desired lifestyle.” A competent financial planner should be able to tell them the amount they need to meet the desired lifestyle. The problem is that few people can name more than about 6 lifestyle retirement issues that concern them, when perhaps 30 or 40 of the 120 recognised lifestyle issues will apply to them. No two couples have the same needs or desires.
Unfortunately for some, they will run out of money before they run out of breath. So the financial planner needs to come up with a different financial strategy. Alternatively their sights may need to be set somewhat lower. It is crucial to start the lifestyle plan as soon as possible after age 40 to give your financial planner sufficient time to work on the different options available to meet your desired lifestyle. A Lifestyle Retirement Plan is not set in concrete. It is subject to the vagaries of life so it must be flexible. You owe it to yourself to get the best possible advice that you can including elder law advice, tax planning, financial planning and lifestyle retirement planning.
You can discuss your planning issues with the author, Alan Greig.
His web address is – www.agacoaching.com
Email – agreig@gil.com.au