For investors who have faithfully built a retirement fund using stocks and other investments, the most important question to answer is: Will it be enough?
That answer, of course, will be different for each investor, however it doesn't change the fact that the answer is almost impossible to predict.
If you are sitting on piles of cash, you can calculate the answer. For most everyone else, the answer is more complicated.
It is complicated because you must use certain assumptions to arrive at an answer, such as:
- What will interest rates do in the future?
- How will stocks, bonds, savings accounts perform?
- How about inflation - up, down, flat?
- How long will you live?
- What will be your financial needs in retirement? Still have a mortgage? What about health issues?
We could go on with the assumptions you must make to come up with an answer.
The reality is your retirement plan should be a living document that is regularly updated to reflect changed assumptions and new assumptions.
A fee-based financial planner may be the best choice to help you do the math and make adjustments as you go. A fee-based financial planner can also help you with the best asset mix for your retirement fund.
It is money well spent.
