Overview
- New guidance highlights longevity, early market losses, inflation, rising medical bills, and Medicare’s IRMAA surcharge as a combined threat to retirement savings.
- Planners recommend engineering cash flow first through Social Security, pensions, and slices of savings converted to guaranteed lifetime income.
- Advisors urge keeping 12 to 24 months of essential expenses in cash to avoid selling investments during downturns and to segment assets by time horizon.
- Behavioral mistakes such as panic selling or chasing hot investments are flagged as a leading risk that can derail even solid plans.
- Because longer lifespans demand more growth, experts say many retirees should maintain more equity exposure than a traditional 60/40 mix, noting that assisted or memory care can run an estimated $12,000 to $20,000 per month.