THE CASE: A 57-year-old marketing executive was recently laid off by his employer of 17 years.  His savings & investments were significant, and he didn't have much debt.  He wasn't planning to get married or have children, but he did have philanthropic goals and a significant other living with him, so nothing was definite.

​

The big question he had was: how badly did he need to find another job at similar pay?  He was tired and more interested in volunteering or working part-time at his local temple.

​

With life expectancy approaching 90 years of age for people of means with access to good healthcare, the thought of living 30+ years off of savings and investments can be daunting.

​

​

THE PLAN: We spent a few sessions envisioning  the next few decades of life and documenting all assets, liabilities, expenses, and goals into our collaborative planning software.

​

The former employer had been paying for a whole life insurance policy, so we looked at the pros and cons of renewing vs. a tax-efficient 1035 exchange for a policy that would give more of a long-term care benefit than a death benefit.

​

Forecasting that the current year would likely have much higher earnings than subsequent years, we utilized a Donor Advised Fund to receive the tax benefit of several years of giving.

​

His investments has been previously managed by two separate companies that did not coordinate.  We assessed his new risk tolerance and capacity given the new life circumstances, and analyzed the entire portfolio holistically.  We set a plan to allocate across asset types and geographies, to incorporate sustainability, and to do so gradually over several quarters to avoid immediate capital gains taxable events.  By keeping the majority of dividend and interest income in the tax-deferred retirement accounts, we're able to focus on after-tax returns while still keeping a responsible overall asset allocation.

​

We are currently meeting monthly to evaluate the likelihood of employment income changes in the coming years and how that affects the probability of comfortable retirement.