Author name: John Stevenson

How much guaranteed income do you actually need in retirement? I would start with your expenses, where you live, and what you want retirement to look like, because one average cannot answer that question for everyone. Some retirees are comfortable with a modest income and a paid-off home. Others want more room for travel, healthcare,

When you retire, having money saved is only part of the equation. You also need a plan for turning those savings into income you can count on. The three retirement income sources I want you to understand are Social Security, pensions or annuities, and your personal retirement savings. Each plays a different role, and together

You have spent years saving and investing. Now retirement is approaching, and the question changes: How do you replace your paycheck when you retire and turn that portfolio into income you can count on? That transition can feel a little scary, especially if Social Security or a small pension will not cover the lifestyle you

I’m not retired yet, but I already know what I want from my retirement income strategy: dependable lifetime income and the freedom to keep growing my other investments. I don’t want every market decline to make me question whether I can keep spending. The approach I would use is straightforward. I would use annuities to

If I didn’t trust Social Security, I would build a retirement income strategy that could cover my bills without it. I would use part of my savings to create guaranteed lifetime income, keep money liquid, and leave another portion invested for growth. Do I think Social Security will still exist in some form? Personally, I

If I wanted zero market stress in retirement, I would start by deciding how much of my financial life I wanted tied to the stock market. Then I would compare annuity contracts designed for lifetime income, guaranteed fixed growth, or index-linked growth with protection from market losses. I like the stock market, and I use

If I had to retire tomorrow, my first priority would be figuring out how to replace my paycheck without running through my savings. I would want a retirement income plan that covers my bills today and provides income I cannot outlive. Sometimes retirement happens before you expect it. A layoff, a health problem, or a

If I wanted retirement income I could never outlive, I would start with one question: What income will keep coming for as long as my wife and I are alive? I can build a portfolio that produces income, but for this part of my retirement plan, I want a contractual lifetime guarantee. I always tell

If I was 65 years old with no pension, what would I do? My first goal would be to create a reliable stream of income that I could not outlive. I would not want my retirement lifestyle to depend entirely on what the stock market happened to do that year. That’s because although I am

If I was 60 years old with $1 million saved for retirement, my first question would not be, “Which investment will produce the highest return?” I would ask, “How can I turn this money into dependable income without sacrificing all my liquidity?” I would want enough guaranteed income to cover my lifestyle, protection against market