Saving for Retirement

Ready for the two most important pieces of retirement planning advice you’ll ever hear?

Start now.

No really, start now.

The thing is, no matter where you are in your working life, the time to start saving for retirement is immediately. That’s because the sooner you start saving, the more you could potentially end up with when you’re ready to retire. Not sure about first steps? Don’t worry. We can help you figure out the best way to plot a course to a comfortable retirement.

Know how to get there. Accumulating assets for retirement truly is an investment in your future. But finding the best way to invest your assets to achieve your retirement goals can feel a bit daunting. Fortunately, there’s a general rule of thumb that can help you make sense of it all — the closer you are to retirement, the more conservative your investments should be. And inversely, the further you are from retirement the more you should consider equity investments which carry greater risk but in general have achieved historically stronger long-term performance results when compared to more conservative vehicles and possibly allow for you to have time to recover if you happen to experience economic conditions that adversely affect your retirement portfolio. (Please note that past performance does not guarantee future results.)

No matter which stage you’re at you should consider consulting with us to establish an investing approach that best fits your circumstances and learn about the number of vehicles designed to help you prepare for retirement, and begin today.

Approaching Retirement

If you're within 10 or 15 years of retirement, this is when the game changes. The moves you make now can have a profound impact on the retirement you'll enjoy later. That's why it’s so important to keep yourself on track, crank up your contributions, and keep a level head.

Make sure your goals are still your goals. It's the perfect time to take a good long look at where you are and where you want to go. Talk to your spouse and your children to make sure the retirement goals you originally established still reflect what you want your life to look like after you stop working. You may be surprised how much things have changed. Then, talk to us to help ensure your portfolio will still meet your needs.

Refocus your efforts. As you approach retirement, the last thing you should do is coast to the end. Instead, focus on taking actions that can bring you closer to the finish line with more to look forward to in retirement. That means reviewing your portfolio with Arcis and make any changes appropriate to your current situation.

Broaden your horizons. Your workplace savings plan is a wonderful benefit. But as you near retirement, it’s time to start looking beyond your 401(k) to give yourself every advantage you can.

To learn about the number of vehicles designed to help you prepare for retirement

Living in retirement

For years, you’ve been saving for this moment. But now that it’s here, do you have a plan in place to make your retirement income last as long as your retirement does? You don’t have to do it alone. With Arcis, you can create your action plan.

Understand what you have. Knowing what you own is a little more complicated than simply reviewing your 401(k) or IRA balance. In fact, a broad array of retirement income sources could come into play in helping you create the lifestyle you want to live after you finish working. In addition to your workplace savings plan and IRA, you need to factor in the potential income that may come from Social Security, investments, real estate, pensions, and even part-time employment. Woven together, these income sources can form a much stronger retirement plan than they can individually.

Steps forward to long-term income. Once you know your income sources, you'll need to create a budget, figure out how much money you should be withdrawing from your retirement nest egg, establish a timeline for taking distributions from your retirement income sources, find ways to access your money when you need it, and employ a strategy to make it last as long as possible.

In the end it's not the years in your life that count but the life in your years.

- Abraham Lincoln