Pension Decisions“How to Personalize your Defined Benefit Pension”

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George’s Story

Brian Weatherdon MA, CFP, CLU, CPCAAuthor, Speaker, Financial Planner.

Aligning your Wealth & Life to overcome fears andsecure your income, lifestyle, & comfort to age 105

Before hearing this story . . . .

• Continuing into these slides signifies you realize one person’s story cannot be representative of what everyone else should do. This story is personal and not in any way prescriptive for what you should do, nor for how your advisors may guide you.

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• Stories in this wider series capture different approaches to value and decisions in business, pension, savings, and the results for personal security, life income, and family estate.

• More information/insights at educational websitewww.GuaranteedIncome4Life.ca

• And 5-star rated book (Amazon, Kindle, bookstores)

“A Lifetime Of Wealth -- And How Not To Lose It”

Ending 30 years of teaching

• George was 30 years a professor• Vibrant energy: publishing, consulting• Received severance offer from university

• Should he keep teaching or accept severance?• Will he accept the typical life pension?• Does he want more flexibility?

#1 focus was Lifestyle

• George unready to fully retire: opportunities to expand business income from consulting

• Big “bucket-list” for life now & in retirement. #5 (below) means he could draw double income at some points. Slides 9 & 10 below.

• Focus was Lifestyle ...personal & family life.

#2 issue for George was “tax”

• Desire to avoid paying high tax

• Didn’t yet need pension income (optional)

• Will want more flexible income later

• Consulting/business income is sufficient now, with tax-deductible business expenses, and delaying pension income (& its tax burden).

#3: safety of pension plan• His research highlighted pension worries:– Widespread reports: many pension plans are at risk– Ongoing alerts about pension solvency, under-funding– Governments reducing support for defined benefit plans– Pension under-funding stuck despite stock market gains– Many pension plans will be forced to reduce benefits– Limited inflation indexing – may not cover future needs– Question of health costs exceeding pension income

– Question of limiting the income to surviving spouse

– Question of lacking any estate value for family

4th ... concern for his family

• Typical pension plan allows a survivor’s income to spouse, often 60%. If George died & his wife needed 100% (or more) for her personal/health needs, he’d want his wife to have strong access to income.

• George wanted to leave an estate for family; typical or traditional pension offered no value here at all.

• Personalizing (commuting) made George’s pension a family asset, allowing more choice both for survivor’s income & for the estate they’ll leave for their family.

5th is flexibility for Life Dreams

• Discussing values and lifestyle horizons:– Business consulting as he chooses– Partial retirement: sell or reduce business

– Early full retirement: active, high spending– Middle period eg 80s with lower spending– Later seniority: health/personal care costs.

• Can picture this...

George wanted a flexible income

Considering YOUR Retirement

• How do you see your lifestyle, activities, community engagement, business opportunities ...and income best fitted to the way you want to enjoy life?

• Are you considering a staged or partial retirement?

• Need higher income to fully enjoy early retirement?

• Content with lower spending later? (eg in our 80s)

• Agree our later senior years may present the highest need for income to assure health, personal comfort?

Making secure decisions• What are the risks staying in a pension plan?• What risks if you move your pension monies?• What do you want to gain (and avoid losing)?• What family discussions are vital in this?

• We document both-sides-of-the-fence to align lifestyles and income throughout your future. This full analysis of typical versus personalized plan let’s you confidently choose which will serve you best.

Resources for Pension Decisions

• Alongside this presentation are video, blog and other published resources to help you. This also includes educational modules at: www.GuaranteedIncome4Life.ca

• Also view & subscribe for updates, “Exit Strategies from a Pension”. I welcome hearing from you.

http://www.guaranteedincome4life.ca/blog/exit-strategies-from-a-pension/

• As you may have options or questions to discuss I welcome hearing from you directly. We can also set convenient time by email & speak together, brian@sovereignwealth.ca

Resources to secure Life-long Income

• We all want to avoid future regret. Nothing is worse than outliving your money. Money management has been the #1 failure of some people in retirement. Protect your future:

• Life Income Mandates – a process to align wealth & income with the life you choose, offering perpetual & increasing income for life.

See at http://www.guaranteedincome4life.ca/blog/life-income-mandates/

Resources to fit Life’s Horizons

• If you see life as dynamic, changing, and so want to align income with the life you choose:

• Life Horizons Analysis – how we assess your income needs to secure enjoying life through early, mid, and later retirement years.

See & subscribe: http://www.guaranteedincome4life.ca/blog/life-horizons-analysis-assuring-income-life/

Resources for a compelling future

• Some need to prime their imagination to clarify their future dreams and create the enjoyment they seek in retirement. That’s why I created, “Visioning your Retirement Lifestyle” to prime your creative juices design your future lifestyle, activities, joys and comforts

• This video may help you gather and write down your own ideas to create your own compelling future:

http://www.guaranteedincome4life.ca/resources/visioning-your-retirement-lifestyle/

Author and professional support

• Since 1995 helping people align wealth and income for the family they love and lifestyle they enjoy. Author/ speaker: web based learning resources, books, blogs, and more ...(see final slide).

• Advisor/mentor: helping our clients, public, other advisors implement secure plans for life income & family wealth.

• Unbiased: as mentioned above we commit to fully document “both-sides-of-the-fence” to confidently assure your ultimate decision aligns best for your lifestyle, freedom, and security.

• As you may have options or questions to discuss I welcome hearing from you directly. We can set a convenient time by email, brian@sovereignwealth.ca

Resources to secure the life you want

• Experience this website to focus on your future: www.GuaranteedIncome4Life.ca

• 5-star book at Amazon/Kindle/bookstores: “A Lifetime Of Wealth – And How Not To Lose It” http://www.amazon.com/Lifetime-Wealth-how-not-lose/dp/1489579540/ref=sr_1_1?

ie=UTF8&qid=1380311791&sr=8-1&keywords=a+lifetime+of+wealth+--+and+how+not+to+lose+it

• Visit www.ALifetimeOfWealth.info