If you\u2019re like most lawyers I talk with, that question feels overwhelming. Between law school debt, lifestyle creep, and the constant pressure to keep up with your colleagues\u2019 big houses and shiny cars, retirement planning gets pushed to the back burner. So you may not feel prepared.<\/p>\n
Then there\u2019s the question: How much will my retirement cost anyways?<\/em><\/p>\n But understanding your retirement costs isn\u2019t just important. It\u2019s your biggest lever for making retirement actually work. It\u2019s the number that drives all the rest and can give you clarity with your purpose beyond the law.<\/p>\n I\u2019m going to be brutally honest with you. The difference between understanding your expenses and taking a wild guess could cost you years of retirement funding.<\/p>\n Let me show you what I mean with a simple example. Take a hypothetical example of a $1,000,000 portfolio growing at 7% annually. If you withdraw $7,000 monthly, your money lasts 27 years. Bump that up to just $8,000 monthly? You\u2019re looking at only 20 years.<\/p>\n That\u2019s right\u2014$1,000 per month makes a seven-year difference in the depletion rate of your portfolio throughout your retirement.<\/p>\n This is why getting super clear on your expenses isn\u2019t just helpful financial planning. It\u2019s the difference between a comfortable retirement and running out of money when you\u2019re 85.<\/p>\n Before you can figure out what retirement will cost, you need to know what you\u2019re spending right now. And no, looking at your bank account balance and shrugging doesn\u2019t count.<\/p>\n You\u2019ve got two approaches here, and I\u2019ll walk you through both.<\/p>\n This is perfect for busy attorneys who want answers without drowning in spreadsheets. Here\u2019s how it works:<\/p>\n Grab your tax return and your 401(k) statements. That\u2019s it. (Well, maybe your IRAs, brokerage accounts, or anywhere else you save).<\/p>\n Take your gross income, subtract what you paid in taxes, then subtract what you put into retirement accounts and\/or savings. What\u2019s left? That\u2019s your actual lifestyle spending.<\/p>\n For example, let\u2019s say you earned $300,000 last year. You paid $90,000 in taxes and saved $60,000 for retirement. Your lifestyle spending was $150,000.<\/p>\n Is this method perfect? No. But it\u2019s quick, and it gives you a solid starting point without getting bogged down in the weeds.<\/p>\n Some attorneys prefer tracking every expense category. You know who you are\u2014the ones who color-code your case files and have perfectly organized desk drawers.<\/p>\n This approach means listing everything: mortgage, groceries, insurance, that expensive coffee habit, your kid\u2019s soccer cleats. Everything.<\/p>\n The upside? You get a detailed picture of where your money goes. The downside? It\u2019s tedious, and people often forget important costs anyway. You\u2019ll remember your property taxes but might overlook home maintenance. You\u2019ll include health insurance but miss out-of-pocket medical costs.<\/p>\n If you go this route, track your spending for at least three months first. There are even apps that can help with the heavy lifting here\u2013You link your accounts and watch the breakdown of your spending habits appear. But don\u2019t get hung up on tech as a spreadsheet will do just fine if getting into the weeds is your thing.<\/p>\n Once you know your current spending, you need to account for inflation between now and retirement.<\/p>\n Let\u2019s say you\u2019re spending $150,000 today and plan to retire in five years. With 3% annual inflation, that same lifestyle will cost about $173,000 in five years.<\/p>\n Good news: Your expenses probably won\u2019t stay the same when you retire. In fact, they\u2019ll likely drop more than you think assuming a similar lifestyle.<\/p>\n You\u2019ll need to add taxes back into your overall need for retirement. But taxes might look a bit different.<\/a><\/p>\n First, you wave goodbye to FICA taxes\u2014that\u2019s 7.65% of your paycheck right off the top. If you own your practice, you\u2019re currently paying double that amount!<\/p>\n Social Security benefits get better tax treatment than your salary does. Depending on your other income, only 0% to 85% of your benefits might be taxable.<\/p>\n Many states also cut retirees a break with special tax treatment for retirement account withdrawals as well.<\/p>\n Think about all the costs that simply disappear when you retire: malpractice insurance, bar dues, continuing education, professional clothes, daily commuting, business lunches. These expenses often add up to $10,000 or more every year for many attorneys.<\/p>\n Some lawyers reach retirement with their home either paid off or close to it. Since housing usually takes up about a third of your expenses, eliminating your mortgage payment makes a huge difference in how much you need each month.<\/p>\n What if you still have a mortgage? Perhaps you\u2019re one of the lucky ones still holding on to a 3% mortgage. Assuming your investments are positioned to earn a higher rate of return, it could make sense to maintain the mortgage. Just account for the eventual drop in expenses when that mortgage is fully paid off.<\/p>\n This one surprises people. Those big chunks of money you\u2019ve been putting into retirement accounts? That cash was never part of your spending money anyway. Many attorneys in their peak earning years have the capacity to put away $50,000 to $70,000 annually for retirement.<\/p>\n Once you retire, you can stop saving for retirement (obviously!), which means you need less income to maintain the same lifestyle.<\/p>\n Now comes the fun part\u2014figuring out exactly how much you need saved to make this whole retirement thing work.<\/p>\n Let\u2019s walk through this step by step with a real example. Say you\u2019ve determined you\u2019ll need $180,000 annually to maintain your lifestyle in retirement (after accounting for inflation).<\/p>\n First, you subtract any guaranteed income sources. For most lawyers, this means Social Security and possibly a pension if you worked in government or academia early in your career. Don\u2019t forget to include your spouse\u2019s resources here as well.<\/p>\n Let\u2019s say Social Security will provide $48,000 annually for you and your spouse combined. Your annual income gap becomes $180,000 \u2013 $48,000 = $132,000.<\/p>\n This is the amount your investment portfolio needs to generate each year.<\/p>\n Here\u2019s where that famous 4% rule comes in handy as a starting point. If you need $132,000 annually and plan to withdraw 4% of your portfolio each year, you\u2019d need $132,000 \u00f7 0.04 = $3,300,000 in total savings.<\/p>\n Yikes, right? But before you panic, remember what we talked about earlier\u2014your expenses will likely be lower than you think, and the 4% rule isn\u2019t the only game in town<\/a>.<\/p>\n Let\u2019s get super clear with numbers that reflect what I actually see with most attorneys. Continuing with our example, this is the step where we begin adjusting different variables to help solve for the retirement goal.<\/p>\n After learning more and discussing a dynamic withdrawal strategy (as opposed to a static 4% withdrawal rate), the couple may decide they\u2019re comfortable with an initial withdrawal rate of 5%. To generate $132,000 per year, they would need $2,640,000 saved ($132,000 \u00f7 0.05).<\/p>\n Still a big number, but suddenly more achievable than $3.3 million.<\/p>\n As a safeguard to the higher withdrawal rate, they\u2019ve identified key portfolio values that would trigger either a small spending decrease or increase depending on the performance of their retirement accounts\u2013Income guardrails.<\/p>\n This exercise often reveals something important: the gap between what you have and what you need might be smaller than you thought. Or it might highlight that working a few extra years could make a dramatic difference. Either way, it provides actionable<\/em> direction<\/em> for what needs to happen next with your retirement plan.<\/p>\n Need to save more? Better to know 5-10 years out from retirement than at retirement.<\/p>\n Realized you spend more than you thought? Not a bad thing\u2013just something to plan around. Money is meant to be spent after all.<\/p>\n In better shape for retirement than you realized? Great! Now you can shift your mindset towards your purpose in retirement<\/a>.<\/p>\n At this point, hopefully you can see the impact that expenses have on your retirement. However, you may also feel a little bit uneasy since everything feels so precise.<\/em><\/p>\n But this next part may help you breathe a bit\u2013You don\u2019t have to get this calculation perfect if you\u2019re willing to make adjustments throughout retirement.<\/p>\n Research shows that most retirees don\u2019t increase their spending with inflation every year anyway. Instead, spending follows more of a \u201csmile\u201d pattern<\/a>: higher in early active years, lower in the middle period, then rising again with healthcare costs in later years.<\/p>\n I find this true in practice. Even with the last few years of high inflation, most of my retirees have taken inflationary bumps to their withdrawals, but much lower than the actual rate of inflation.<\/p>\n A flexible spending strategy means adjusting your withdrawals based on how your investments perform. Being willing to reduce spending by just 5-10% during major market downturns can let you start with a higher withdrawal rate and still make your money last. For attorneys used to unpredictable income, this flexibility comes naturally.<\/p>\n Understanding your retirement costs isn\u2019t about creating a perfect budget that you\u2019ll follow for 30 years. It\u2019s about getting clear on what you actually need so you can make informed decisions about when and how to retire\u2013and when to adjust along the way.<\/p>\n The math might seem daunting at first, but remember that small changes in your expenses can add years to how long your money lasts. And with some strategic planning around taxes, work expenses, and flexible spending, you might find that retirement is closer than you think.<\/p>\n Start with the top-down approach\u2014grab your tax return and retirement statements. Figure out what you\u2019re really spending today. Then we can worry about fine-tuning the details.<\/p>\n After all, the goal isn\u2019t perfection. It\u2019s confidence that you can maintain your lifestyle without the pressure of billable hours and court deadlines.<\/p>\n David Hunter, CFP\u00ae is a CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER\u2122 and owner of\u00a0First Light Wealth, LLC<\/a>\u00a0(Opens in a new window), a financial planning & wealth management firm with a unique focus on serving attorneys nationwide. David has over a decade of experience helping clients build financial plans and has been featured in publications such as Attorney at Work, ThinkAdvisor, MarketWatch, Financial Planning, and InvestmentNews. David also writes weekly to attorneys in his popular\u00a0Money Meets Law<\/a>\u00a0(Opens in a new window)\u00a0newsletter. For more about David, visit\u00a0firstlightwealth.com\/lawyers<\/a>\u00a0(Opens in a new window)\u00a0or connect with him on\u00a0LinkedIn<\/a>\u00a0(Opens in a new window).<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n The post Quantifying The Cost Of Retirement: It\u2019s More In Your Control Than You Think<\/a> appeared first on Above the Law<\/a>.<\/p>\n Does this sound familiar? Another late night at the office. It\u2019s 9 p.m. and you\u2019re staring at another stack of briefs. Your phone buzzes with a text from your spouse asking when you\u2019ll be home. Again.<\/p>\n The thought crosses your mind: When can I actually retire from all this?<\/em><\/p>\n If you\u2019re like most lawyers I talk with, that question feels overwhelming. Between law school debt, lifestyle creep, and the constant pressure to keep up with your colleagues\u2019 big houses and shiny cars, retirement planning gets pushed to the back burner. So you may not feel prepared.<\/p>\n Then there\u2019s the question: How much will my retirement cost anyways?<\/em><\/p>\n But understanding your retirement costs isn\u2019t just important. It\u2019s your biggest lever for making retirement actually work. It\u2019s the number that drives all the rest and can give you clarity with your purpose beyond the law.<\/p>\n I\u2019m going to be brutally honest with you. The difference between understanding your expenses and taking a wild guess could cost you years of retirement funding.<\/p>\n Let me show you what I mean with a simple example. Take a hypothetical example of a $1,000,000 portfolio growing at 7% annually. If you withdraw $7,000 monthly, your money lasts 27 years. Bump that up to just $8,000 monthly? You\u2019re looking at only 20 years.<\/p>\n That\u2019s right\u2014$1,000 per month makes a seven-year difference in the depletion rate of your portfolio throughout your retirement.<\/p>\n This is why getting super clear on your expenses isn\u2019t just helpful financial planning. It\u2019s the difference between a comfortable retirement and running out of money when you\u2019re 85.<\/p>\n Before you can figure out what retirement will cost, you need to know what you\u2019re spending right now. And no, looking at your bank account balance and shrugging doesn\u2019t count.<\/p>\n You\u2019ve got two approaches here, and I\u2019ll walk you through both.<\/p>\n This is perfect for busy attorneys who want answers without drowning in spreadsheets. Here\u2019s how it works:<\/p>\n Grab your tax return and your 401(k) statements. That\u2019s it. (Well, maybe your IRAs, brokerage accounts, or anywhere else you save).<\/p>\n Take your gross income, subtract what you paid in taxes, then subtract what you put into retirement accounts and\/or savings. What\u2019s left? That\u2019s your actual lifestyle spending.<\/p>\n For example, let\u2019s say you earned $300,000 last year. You paid $90,000 in taxes and saved $60,000 for retirement. Your lifestyle spending was $150,000.<\/p>\n Is this method perfect? No. But it\u2019s quick, and it gives you a solid starting point without getting bogged down in the weeds.<\/p>\n Some attorneys prefer tracking every expense category. You know who you are\u2014the ones who color-code your case files and have perfectly organized desk drawers.<\/p>\n This approach means listing everything: mortgage, groceries, insurance, that expensive coffee habit, your kid\u2019s soccer cleats. Everything.<\/p>\n The upside? You get a detailed picture of where your money goes. The downside? It\u2019s tedious, and people often forget important costs anyway. You\u2019ll remember your property taxes but might overlook home maintenance. You\u2019ll include health insurance but miss out-of-pocket medical costs.<\/p>\n If you go this route, track your spending for at least three months first. There are even apps that can help with the heavy lifting here\u2013You link your accounts and watch the breakdown of your spending habits appear. But don\u2019t get hung up on tech as a spreadsheet will do just fine if getting into the weeds is your thing.<\/p>\n Once you know your current spending, you need to account for inflation between now and retirement.<\/p>\n Let\u2019s say you\u2019re spending $150,000 today and plan to retire in five years. With 3% annual inflation, that same lifestyle will cost about $173,000 in five years.<\/p>\n Good news: Your expenses probably won\u2019t stay the same when you retire. In fact, they\u2019ll likely drop more than you think assuming a similar lifestyle.<\/p>\n You\u2019ll need to add taxes back into your overall need for retirement. But taxes might look a bit different.<\/a><\/p>\n First, you wave goodbye to FICA taxes\u2014that\u2019s 7.65% of your paycheck right off the top. If you own your practice, you\u2019re currently paying double that amount!<\/p>\n Social Security benefits get better tax treatment than your salary does. Depending on your other income, only 0% to 85% of your benefits might be taxable.<\/p>\n Many states also cut retirees a break with special tax treatment for retirement account withdrawals as well.<\/p>\n Think about all the costs that simply disappear when you retire: malpractice insurance, bar dues, continuing education, professional clothes, daily commuting, business lunches. These expenses often add up to $10,000 or more every year for many attorneys.<\/p>\n Some lawyers reach retirement with their home either paid off or close to it. Since housing usually takes up about a third of your expenses, eliminating your mortgage payment makes a huge difference in how much you need each month.<\/p>\n What if you still have a mortgage? Perhaps you\u2019re one of the lucky ones still holding on to a 3% mortgage. Assuming your investments are positioned to earn a higher rate of return, it could make sense to maintain the mortgage. Just account for the eventual drop in expenses when that mortgage is fully paid off.<\/p>\n This one surprises people. Those big chunks of money you\u2019ve been putting into retirement accounts? That cash was never part of your spending money anyway. Many attorneys in their peak earning years have the capacity to put away $50,000 to $70,000 annually for retirement.<\/p>\n Once you retire, you can stop saving for retirement (obviously!), which means you need less income to maintain the same lifestyle.<\/p>\n Now comes the fun part\u2014figuring out exactly how much you need saved to make this whole retirement thing work.<\/p>\n Let\u2019s walk through this step by step with a real example. Say you\u2019ve determined you\u2019ll need $180,000 annually to maintain your lifestyle in retirement (after accounting for inflation).<\/p>\n First, you subtract any guaranteed income sources. For most lawyers, this means Social Security and possibly a pension if you worked in government or academia early in your career. Don\u2019t forget to include your spouse\u2019s resources here as well.<\/p>\n Let\u2019s say Social Security will provide $48,000 annually for you and your spouse combined. Your annual income gap becomes $180,000 \u2013 $48,000 = $132,000.<\/p>\n This is the amount your investment portfolio needs to generate each year.<\/p>\n Here\u2019s where that famous 4% rule comes in handy as a starting point. If you need $132,000 annually and plan to withdraw 4% of your portfolio each year, you\u2019d need $132,000 \u00f7 0.04 = $3,300,000 in total savings.<\/p>\n Yikes, right? But before you panic, remember what we talked about earlier\u2014your expenses will likely be lower than you think, and the 4% rule isn\u2019t the only game in town<\/a>.<\/p>\n Let\u2019s get super clear with numbers that reflect what I actually see with most attorneys. Continuing with our example, this is the step where we begin adjusting different variables to help solve for the retirement goal.<\/p>\n After learning more and discussing a dynamic withdrawal strategy (as opposed to a static 4% withdrawal rate), the couple may decide they\u2019re comfortable with an initial withdrawal rate of 5%. To generate $132,000 per year, they would need $2,640,000 saved ($132,000 \u00f7 0.05).<\/p>\n Still a big number, but suddenly more achievable than $3.3 million.<\/p>\n As a safeguard to the higher withdrawal rate, they\u2019ve identified key portfolio values that would trigger either a small spending decrease or increase depending on the performance of their retirement accounts\u2013Income guardrails.<\/p>\n This exercise often reveals something important: the gap between what you have and what you need might be smaller than you thought. Or it might highlight that working a few extra years could make a dramatic difference. Either way, it provides actionable<\/em> direction<\/em> for what needs to happen next with your retirement plan.<\/p>\n Need to save more? Better to know 5-10 years out from retirement than at retirement.<\/p>\n Realized you spend more than you thought? Not a bad thing\u2013just something to plan around. Money is meant to be spent after all.<\/p>\n In better shape for retirement than you realized? Great! Now you can shift your mindset towards your purpose in retirement<\/a>.<\/p>\n At this point, hopefully you can see the impact that expenses have on your retirement. However, you may also feel a little bit uneasy since everything feels so precise.<\/em><\/p>\n But this next part may help you breathe a bit\u2013You don\u2019t have to get this calculation perfect if you\u2019re willing to make adjustments throughout retirement.<\/p>\n Research shows that most retirees don\u2019t increase their spending with inflation every year anyway. Instead, spending follows more of a \u201csmile\u201d pattern<\/a>: higher in early active years, lower in the middle period, then rising again with healthcare costs in later years.<\/p>\n I find this true in practice. Even with the last few years of high inflation, most of my retirees have taken inflationary bumps to their withdrawals, but much lower than the actual rate of inflation.<\/p>\n A flexible spending strategy means adjusting your withdrawals based on how your investments perform. Being willing to reduce spending by just 5-10% during major market downturns can let you start with a higher withdrawal rate and still make your money last. For attorneys used to unpredictable income, this flexibility comes naturally.<\/p>\n Understanding your retirement costs isn\u2019t about creating a perfect budget that you\u2019ll follow for 30 years. It\u2019s about getting clear on what you actually need so you can make informed decisions about when and how to retire\u2013and when to adjust along the way.<\/p>\n The math might seem daunting at first, but remember that small changes in your expenses can add years to how long your money lasts. And with some strategic planning around taxes, work expenses, and flexible spending, you might find that retirement is closer than you think.<\/p>\n Start with the top-down approach\u2014grab your tax return and retirement statements. Figure out what you\u2019re really spending today. Then we can worry about fine-tuning the details.<\/p>\n After all, the goal isn\u2019t perfection. It\u2019s confidence that you can maintain your lifestyle without the pressure of billable hours and court deadlines.<\/p>\n David Hunter, CFP\u00ae is a CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER\u2122 and owner of\u00a0First Light Wealth, LLC<\/a>\u00a0(Opens in a new window), a financial planning & wealth management firm with a unique focus on serving attorneys nationwide. David has over a decade of experience helping clients build financial plans and has been featured in publications such as Attorney at Work, ThinkAdvisor, MarketWatch, Financial Planning, and InvestmentNews. David also writes weekly to attorneys in his popular\u00a0Money Meets Law<\/a>\u00a0(Opens in a new window)\u00a0newsletter. For more about David, visit\u00a0firstlightwealth.com\/lawyers<\/a>\u00a0(Opens in a new window)\u00a0or connect with him on\u00a0LinkedIn<\/a>\u00a0(Opens in a new window).<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n The post Quantifying The Cost Of Retirement: It\u2019s More In Your Control Than You Think<\/a> appeared first on Above the Law<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Does this sound familiar? Another late night at the office. It\u2019s 9 p.m. and you\u2019re staring at another stack of briefs. Your phone buzzes with a text from your spouse asking when you\u2019ll be home. Again. The thought crosses your mind: When can I actually retire from all this? If you\u2019re like most lawyers I […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":126995,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_et_pb_use_builder":"","_et_pb_old_content":"","_et_gb_content_width":"","_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[16],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-127009","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-above_the_law"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/xira.com\/p\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/David-Hunter-Headshot-jnRT9u.png?fit=500%2C500&ssl=1","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/xira.com\/p\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/127009","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/xira.com\/p\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/xira.com\/p\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/xira.com\/p\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/xira.com\/p\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=127009"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/xira.com\/p\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/127009\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/xira.com\/p\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/126995"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/xira.com\/p\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=127009"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/xira.com\/p\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=127009"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/xira.com\/p\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=127009"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}<\/a>Why This Math Actually Matters<\/strong><\/h2>\n
<\/a>Step One: Know What You\u2019re Actually Spending Today<\/strong><\/h2>\n
<\/a>The Top-Down Approach (My Personal Favorite)<\/strong><\/h3>\n
<\/a>The Bottom-Up Approach (For the Detail-Oriented)<\/strong><\/h3>\n
<\/a>Step Two: Factor in Inflation<\/strong><\/h2>\n
<\/a>How Your Expenses Change in Retirement<\/strong><\/h2>\n
<\/a>Your Tax Bill May Shrink<\/strong><\/h3>\n
<\/a>Work Expenses May Vanish<\/strong><\/h3>\n
<\/a>The Mortgage Factor<\/strong><\/h3>\n
<\/a>No More Saving for Retirement<\/strong><\/h3>\n
<\/a>Putting It All Together: Your Retirement Portfolio Target<\/strong><\/h2>\n
<\/a>Step One: Subtract Your Guaranteed Income<\/strong><\/h3>\n
<\/a>Step Two: Calculate Your Portfolio Target<\/strong><\/h3>\n
<\/a>A More Realistic Example<\/strong><\/h3>\n
<\/a>The Income Gap Reality Check<\/strong><\/h3>\n
<\/a>The Dynamic Spending Strategy<\/strong><\/h2>\n
<\/a>Bottom Line<\/strong><\/h2>\n
\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/abovethelaw.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2025\/02\/David-Hunter-Headshot.png?resize=500%2C500&ssl=1\" "\\"\\"")
<\/a>Why This Math Actually Matters<\/strong><\/h2>\n
<\/a>Step One: Know What You\u2019re Actually Spending Today<\/strong><\/h2>\n
<\/a>The Top-Down Approach (My Personal Favorite)<\/strong><\/h3>\n
<\/a>The Bottom-Up Approach (For the Detail-Oriented)<\/strong><\/h3>\n
<\/a>Step Two: Factor in Inflation<\/strong><\/h2>\n
<\/a>How Your Expenses Change in Retirement<\/strong><\/h2>\n
<\/a>Your Tax Bill May Shrink<\/strong><\/h3>\n
<\/a>Work Expenses May Vanish<\/strong><\/h3>\n
<\/a>The Mortgage Factor<\/strong><\/h3>\n
<\/a>No More Saving for Retirement<\/strong><\/h3>\n
<\/a>Putting It All Together: Your Retirement Portfolio Target<\/strong><\/h2>\n
<\/a>Step One: Subtract Your Guaranteed Income<\/strong><\/h3>\n
<\/a>Step Two: Calculate Your Portfolio Target<\/strong><\/h3>\n
<\/a>A More Realistic Example<\/strong><\/h3>\n
<\/a>The Income Gap Reality Check<\/strong><\/h3>\n
<\/a>The Dynamic Spending Strategy<\/strong><\/h2>\n
<\/a>Bottom Line<\/strong><\/h2>\n
\n