Here are 5 factors that may affect your retirement savings

(1) Inflation

• Reduces how much you can buy today, compared to last year

• Historically, inflation averages 3% annually

• Your investments need to keep pace with or outpace inflation

(2) Investment Risk

• Determine how much potential gain you are aiming to achieve with your investments, understanding that also means you may potentially lose a similar amount

• More risk equals more volatility in returns and account values go up and down more

• Diversify your portfolio by allocating money to multiple asset classes so you are not totally exposed if one asset type (such as stocks) drops dramatically

(3) Healthcare and Long-Term Care Expenses

• A number of studies show that the average 65 year-old couple can expect to spend hundreds of thousands of dollars on healthcare in retirement

• The combination of increasing life expectancy and growing medical treatment costs can have a huge negative impact on savings

• Consider obtaining Long Term Care insurance

• The premiums can be significant, but having the coverage in place may help avoid disrupting your overall retirement planning strategy

(4) Taxes

• Employer-sponsored and individual pre-tax accounts offer a variety of ways to receive tax breaks when making your retirement savings contributions

• Pre-tax contributions provide a current reduction in taxable income, and therefore a reduction in the taxes you pay each year as you are adding to your accounts

• Roth contributions are done on an after-tax basis, which does not provide a current year tax advantage, but does allow you to make withdrawals on a tax-free basis in retirement

(5) You

• Set goals for what your financial needs will be in retirement

• Evaluate your personal risk profile and asset allocation strategy

• Take advantage of any employer matching contributions for which you may be eligible

• Roll over assets from former employer plans rather than cashing out those accounts

• Seek out trusted professional guidance or use available self-help tools

Is your staff prepared for the future? Visit Envoy Financial to learn how we can help you equip your staff for their retirement.