Broker Check

Case Study [$650,000 - Ages 53/53]

September 15, 2025

Client Facts

  • Married - ages 53/53
  • He plans to work until 60, she is self-employed.  
  • Income: $450,000
  • Cash: $50,000
  • Brokerage: $15,000
  • IRA: $450,000
  • Roth: $180,000
  • Social Security: 
    • Him: $3,000/mo at 67
    • Her: $1,800/mo at 67
  • Spending Goal: $144,000/year

Retirement Goals & Concerns

  • They wanted to be sure they were saving enough to continue their current lifestyle through retirement.
  • They had excess cash flows and wanted to know the best way to save their money. 
  • They wanted to ensure when they get to retirement, they had plenty of options to spend money. 
  • They wanted to be sure their planning accounted for healthcare costs prior to Medicare. 
  • They wanted to be sure what they were investing in was best for them. 
  • They were considering purchasing a long-term care policy and wanted to know the pros/cons. 
  • They both owned term life insurance policies and wanted to know if they were worth keeping. 
  • They wanted a clear outline for their estate plan.

What we did...

Cash-flow Planning

  • We calculated exactly how much money they would need to save each month to spend $144,000/year starting at age 60.
  • We determined what savings vehicles they had available to them. 
    • 401k, Roth 401k, IRA, Roth IRA, Solo 401k, Brokerage. 
  • We outlined how much excess cash flow they have after spending that could be used towards saving for retirement. 
  • We had them fully fund a traditional 401k, open a solo 401k for more tax-deferred savings, fund a backdoor Roth IRA and execute a Mega backdoor Roth. 
    • They will start funding a brokerage account as well.

Investment Planning

  • We increased the growth side of their portfolio. 
    • They had a 70/30 allocation which isn't needed when retirement is 7+ years away. 
  • We reviewed their current 401k options and gave them our recommended allocation. 
  • We reviewed their current Roth IRA investments and recommended a simplified ETF portfolio consisting of 12 ETFs. 
  • Around 5 years from retirement, we will start increasing the income side of the portfolio. 

Tax Planning

  • We reviewed their most recent tax return and ran a full analysis to determine what planning opportunities were available. 
  • We ran a detailed income/tax projection for this year along with all future years. 
    • This helped us determine the best way save money. 
  • Because of their high income this year, up until retirement, we recommended they fund traditional accounts to delay paying the taxes. 
  • We reviewed what investments they had in their accounts and switched some to make their accounts more tax efficient. 

Estate Planning

  • They own property in 2 states so we recommended they have a trust drafted and funded. 
  • We discussed what they would want to happen with their money after they pass. 
    • We used this information to detail an efficient estate plan. 
  • We reviewed every account's beneficiary and confirmed the correct person(s) was listed. 
  • We recommended they update their Will and Power of Attorney since they were over 10 years old. 

Insurance & Risk Management 

  • We reviewed their current life insurance policies and recommended they keep them. 
    • This was based on the current premium, term left and insurable need/want. 
  • We outlined the pros/cons of purchasing a long-term policy considering their family health history and assets available. 
  • We reviewed their current home/auto policies and had them increase their liability amounts. 
    • We will also need to inform their insurance carriers the homes are owned by the trust once that's complete. 
  • We had them purchase a $1M umbrella policy.