Our Waypoint Series continues with a closer look at retirement planning. Whether you’re just beginning to make a plan or you’re only a few years away from your goal, we’ve all experienced many of the same challenges recently — from the pandemic itself to all the resulting employment uncertainty and market volatility that followed.
So now what? How do we reset and take on the post-pandemic years with the same confidence we had when we started our financial journeys before?
“I think we’ve all been forced to react to events and circumstances for two years now, and this is our first real chance to come up for air and consider what’s most important going forward,” said Miriam Falaki, CFP®, Wealth Advisor. “There’s a lot we can’t control, but when it comes to retirement planning, it can’t just be a number — it has to start with your goals in mind. That’s how we approach it.”
According to the Employee Benefit Research Institute’s latest Retirement Confidence Survey — the longest running survey of its kind — nearly 33% of working Americans (and half of retirees) are less confident about their retirement prospects in 2022, with the majority citing inflation and cost-of-living issues as their primary concerns.
Still, in the same survey, nearly 7 in 10 reported feeling at least somewhat optimistic about their retirement planning. Financial hurdles remain, however — whether it’s paying for a child’s college education, caring for an elderly family member, managing household debt or taking an unexpected career path later in life.
“One of the things we always say here is ‘talk more and email less’,” said Falaki. “The only way we can help our clients work through difficult issues and challenging times is to understand what’s most important to them. Working on a personal level makes all the difference, especially when it comes to retirement planning.”
No matter where you are in your retirement planning journey, Capital Directions has the experts and resources to meet you where you are. Contact our team today to learn more about how we’re helping clients realize their own retirement planning goals every day.