Over the years I have gained lots of experience in financial planning with seeing so many different scenarios-not one person’s situation is the same. Also, the CFP(R) curriculum consists of an education piece that really lays out a great framework in the Financial Planning process. When you start with a good framework that has pieces that can be replicated and add real life situations to this framework, it becomes second nature.
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Let’s start with what FIRE stands for—Financial Independence, Retire Early. Isn’t this what everyone wants? I have a theory about how this movement started. There has been a lot of research in the financial planning space and trying to figure out how much you need in investment assets and how much you can take out over the course of your retirement (safe withdrawal rate) without running out of money.
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Tax planning is considering your whole situation and making any necessary changes or decisions before the tax year is complete. Think of it as forward looking. When you prepare your tax return, you are looking backwards at things that have already happened and figuring out any credits or deductions that you can take based on things you cannot change.
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Typically, all retirement accounts have named beneficiaries and do not go through your will. That being said, you do have to name the beneficiaries. If you do not have named beneficiaries, then most likely, the account will pass by your will. If you do not have a will—then the state you live in dictates what happens.
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There are pros and cons to leaving your 401k plan with your previous employer that should be evaluated before any moves are made. This is not an exhaustive list, just some main points to get you thinking about things that are involved.
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