James M. Beenders,
CFP^®, AAMS^®, AWMA^®
Partner, President
Chief Planning Officer

For decades, retirement planning has focused on one primary goal: accumulating enough wealth to retire comfortably.

For affluent families, the conversation may no longer be about whether you’ll have enough, but how to make the most of what you’ve built.

Thanks to healthier lifestyles and advances in medical care, many people are living well into their 80s and 90s. Yet research has found that only one-third of Americans accurately estimate how long a typical 65-year-old is expected to live.¹

The longer retirement lasts, the more important it becomes to have a plan that can support your lifestyle, your family, and your long-term goals.

The Retirement Timeline Has Changed

Not long ago, planning for a 15- to 20-year retirement was considered reasonable. Today, it’s wise to prepare for a retirement that could last 30 years or more, particularly for women, who tend to live longer than men.

A longer retirement brings decades of financial decisions. Without careful planning, inflation, taxes, healthcare costs, and withdrawal strategies can gradually erode both your purchasing power and the legacy you hope to leave.

That’s why an important question to ask is: “Will my financial plan continue to support the life I want to live—and the legacy I want to leave—throughout a retirement that could last three decades or more?”

A Longer Retirement Calls for a Thoughtful Income Strategy

How you generate income in retirement can be just as important as how much you’ve saved.

An extended retirement often requires balancing predictable income with continued portfolio growth.

Rather than relying on a single account, you may benefit from coordinating withdrawals across taxable, tax-deferred, and tax-free accounts to help manage taxes and extend the longevity of your assets.

The timing of Social Security, Required Minimum Distributions (RMDs), Roth conversions, and charitable giving strategies can also influence your long-term financial picture. When these decisions are coordinated as part of a comprehensive plan, they can help create a more tax-efficient and sustainable source of retirement income.

Preparing for the Cost of Care Over Time

Healthcare is one of the largest unknowns in retirement.

While no one can predict future medical expenses, it’s important to prepare for the possibility that healthcare needs will change over time. Beyond routine medical costs, you should also consider the potential costs of:

• Daily living or facility services
• Home modifications
• Private or concierge care
• Hybrid, long-term care and customized insurance

Planning for these possibilities with strategies like funding tax-advantaged Health Savings Accounts (HSAs) can help build flexibility into your financial strategy so you’re better prepared if circumstances change. Understanding Medicare concepts and coverage choices can also shape how to approach healthcare decisions in retirement as well.

Investing for the Long-Term

A longer life often means your investment strategy needs to work longer, too.

Some retirees assume they should become significantly more conservative once they stop working. While managing risk becomes increasingly important, a portfolio that is too conservative may struggle to keep pace with inflation and support decades of retirement spending.

Instead, you may benefit from an investment strategy that balances growth, income, and preservation.

As your retirement progresses, this may include rebalancing your asset allocation regularly to reflect your changing risk tolerance and income needs, tax-lost harvesting, or adding select alternative investments to your portfolio.

Longevity Can Shape Your Legacy

As life expectancy increases, you may want to rethink the way you look at estate planning.

Rather than waiting to transfer your assets once you’ve passed, you may choose gift appreciated stock to loved ones, establish trusts, or invest in donor advised funds that allow you to see the impact of your wealth while you’re still living.

It’s also important to review the following documents periodically and update them to reflect changes in your health, family, and finances:

• Wills and Trusts
• Titles and Beneficiary Designations
• Powers of Attorney
• Healthcare Directives

Planning for a Longer Future

Longevity can create more time to enjoy family, pursue new interests, give back to your community, and leave a meaningful legacy.

We believe retirement planning should help prepare you not only for the day you stop working, but for the decades that follow. By coordinating your investment strategy, retirement income, healthcare planning, taxes, and long-term goals, you can build a plan that’s designed to support you at every stage.

Let’s talk about your plan for whatever the future may bring.

Frequently Asked Questions

Q: If I expect to live a longer life, should my investment strategy change?
A: Potentially. A retirement that may last 30 years or more often requires balancing growth, income, and preservation. Rather than becoming overly conservative, you may benefit from a strategy designed to support long-term purchasing power while managing risk and providing reliable income.

Q: What if I end up needing less income than I planned for?
A: That’s a good problem to have. A flexible retirement plan can allow you to redirect any excess income toward travel, charitable giving, gifts to family, new business ventures, or preserving more wealth for future generations.

Q: Does retirement have to mean completely stopping work?
A: Not at all. Some people continue consulting, serving on boards, mentoring, or pursuing entrepreneurial ventures, while others choose to travel, volunteer, or spend more time with family.  As your priorities change, your plan should be flexible enough to support new goals and opportunities throughout retirement.

Sources
¹TIAA Institute & Global Financial Literacy Excellence Center, Planning for the Unknown: The Impact of Longevity Expectations on Retirement Readiness (2025)

This presentation is not an offer or a solicitation to buy or sell securities. The information contained in this presentation has been compiled from third-party sources and is believed to be reliable; however, its accuracy is not guaranteed and should not be relied upon in any way whatsoever. This presentation may not be construed as investment, tax or legal advice and does not give investment recommendations. Any opinion included in this report constitutes our judgment as of the date of this report and is subject to change without notice.

Additional information, including management fees and expenses, is provided on our Form ADV Part 2 available upon request or at the SEC’s Investment Adviser Public Disclosure website, www.adviserinfo.sec.gov. Past performance is not indicative of future results.