Retire Ready Radio

Nine myths. Nine ways a solid retirement plan quietly falls apart. From the "savings number" that doesn't save you, to the diversification that isn't, to the tax strategy that's really just procrastination — we're calling them out. All of them. This is 9 Retirement Myths That Can Turn the Golden Years Blue.

More yield. Better Social Security timing. Higher returns. Retirees try all of it in the quest for maximum income. Some of it works. Some of it backfires. And almost none of it compares to the one strategy that can increase what you actually keep by 30, 40, even 50 percent — without taking a single dollar of additional risk. This week — the quest for max income.

Here's the cruelest twist in retirement planning: the people most likely to get hit with IRMAA are the ones who saved the most. The harder you worked and the more you saved, the bigger the target on your back. This week we're talking about the IRMAA Ambush — what it is, how it finds you, and what you can do about it.

Think of the Retirement Red Zone as the 8 to 10 year window surrounding retirement — about 4 to 5 years before, and 4 to 5 years after. What happens during this period often has a bigger impact on your financial future than the following 20 years. Sequence of returns, withdrawal timing, and tax decisions all matter more than ever. Get the Red Zone right, and retirement can feel a whole lot more secure.

On this week's episode of Retire Ready Radio, we take you through 7 key estate planning elements to make sure you have checked off. 

When it comes to retirement income planning, the traditional Wall Street Advice - which based on a growth approach - often falls short. There are 8 truths or principles that don't work in Wall Street's favor when you retire and need your hard-earned savings to live on. So, Wall Street is not excited to share them.  We will.  Herein, we tackle the 4% rule, growth vs income approaches, the "retirement red zone", sequence of return risk, and more. 

More important than your asset allocation is your asset location. There are only 3 columns (categories) of financial vehicles: Taxable Tax-deferred Tax-free Before deciding what your allocation should be, you must decide where you want your assets to live. There is a perfect balance for each saver. In this episode, we dive into the advantages and disadvantages of each column, the proper uses of the assets that make up in column, and how to strategically transfer taxable and tax-deferred assets to the tax-free column.

Roth conversions aren’t about avoiding taxes — they’re about deciding when, how, and at what rate you’ll pay them. Too many people focus on the micro view: “How much tax will this cost me this year?” A better question is, “How will this decision impact my entire retirement?” Strategic conversions can create decades of tax-free income, reduce or eliminate required minimum distributions, lower Medicare premiums and Social Security taxation, and provide insulation from future tax increases. Yes, there can be short-term friction — higher taxable income or temporary IRMAA surcharges — but for many households, those are time-boxed issues in exchange for long-term control, certainty, and tax-free wealth.

Why does 90% of wealth disappear by the 3rd generation? What causes 70% of wealth transfer from one generation to the next to fail? For those that create multi-generational wealth and maintain family harmony, what principles and practices fo they adhere to? The answer is a shocking as it is simple. In this episode, we discuss what research and high net-worth advisors all observe amongst the wealthiest and their successes and failures in maintaining the family wealth. We also lay out a blueprint anyone can follow to foster multi-generational wealth. 

How can you create retirement income plans that are more resilient through good and tough times? In this episode, we share 5 core principles designed to help with just that. Also, a deep dive discussion on using a fixed income annuity as a potential bond replacement in the ubiquitous 60/40 stock/bond model portfolio. The results are startling and enlightening. Finally, we cap off this episode with a practical discussion on how to prepare for the “silver tsunami” of long-term care starting to hit the retirement shores. 

In this episode of Retire Ready Radio, we dive into 5 high-level social security updates for 2026 and how they impact your social security decisions. Through a case study, we explore how to make your social security potentially tax-free as well as leaving nearly 3X more to heirs while not sacrificing current life style.

By now, many have heard of the Silver Tsunami—the wave of baby boomers who currently or will shortly need some form of long-term care. This is a reality to the vast majority of retirees—now or in the future—will face. Unfortunately, most have not planned for it—either overlooking it or not being informed on the best choices for their situation. Make no mistake: long-term care planning is part of your retirement planning, whether you actively plan for it or not. Modern advances in long-term care options have largely done away with the “use-it-or-lose-it” type of coverage that gives so many retirees understandable consternation. Further, the choice to “self-insure”—even for those that truly can afford it—is no longer good math with newer planning options. In this episode, we explore these modern approaches and give real-world case studies to demonstrate the advantages of modern long-term care planning.

When creating a retirement strategy, remember the acronym P.L.A.N. Predictability - value predictability over potential Low-correlation - strive include strategies and asset classes that do not require the market to perform in order for you to succeed Alignment - ensure that each component of you strategy reinforces and compliments the others rather than (unknowingly) creating friction Net-income - choosing tax-free/efficient strategies in place of tax-deferred/hostile strategies can be the difference between a retirement of plenty and one of scarcity Also, follow along in our case study where we demonstrate P.L.A.N. in action and create 5 streams of tax-free income while increasing potential net-spendable income by 59%. 

Major updates and impacts are happening in the retirement landscape. Social Security cost of living adjustments, Medicare premium increases, IRMAA surcharge increases, and new taxes. How are you affected, and how you best navigate the landmines? We also explore how create a guaranteed tax-free foundation of income throughout retirement that avoid social security taxation and IRMAA surcharges on Medicare.

As the end of the year approaches, one major question looms: Should I convert to a Roth? And, If so, how much? The One Big Beautiful Bill Act (OBBBA) affords some retirees extra deduction "headspace" for enhanced conversion opportunities. OBBBA can also allow savers to delay social security more confidently while using private assets at a lower tax cost than ever before. In this episode, we share real world examples of these scenarios.