Advice Formula
John (58) and Sarah (55) Thompson are five years from John's planned retirement and holding $2.4M across four uncoordinated accounts — two IRAs, a taxable brokerage, and a legacy 401(k) at John's former employer. Home equity sits at roughly $800K against a $220K mortgage.
They want to retire on $150K/year of spendable income, but the current $24K/year savings rate leaves a projected $1.2M gap by age 63. No single plan reconciles the four accounts, and no tax strategy has been run against the rollover or Roth conversion windows that open the year John stops working.
Decisions are made jointly — John runs investments, Sarah runs cash flow — but their CPA (Robert Chen) has never been looped into retirement planning. Sarah's mother (82) has early-stage dementia, which introduces a realistic $60-80K/year caregiving exposure that isn't modeled anywhere.
The opening question for Quadrant 3 is whether John and Sarah want to solve the coordination gap first (consolidate + tax plan) or the caregiving exposure first (long-term care funding decision).
- ✓ Specific numbers and financials (not vague)
- ✓ All stakeholders identified (spouse, CPA, attorney, business partners)
- ✓ Timeline and deadlines
- ✓ Current gaps or risks quantified
- ✓ Who makes decisions and how
- ✗ Vague language ("they have some savings")
- ✗ Missing stakeholders (only talking to one decision-maker)
- ✗ No timeline (when do they need this resolved?)
- ✗ No quantified risk (what's at stake in dollars?)
David and Linda,
Thanks for making the time today. I left with a clearer picture of where you stand and what's in the way. Here's how I heard it — flag anything I got wrong before our next meeting.
Where you are today
Retirement assets are spread across four uncoordinated accounts, plus rental income from three aging units. Robert handles tax; the investment side hasn't been integrated.
Where you want to land
- David retires at 63 on $150K/year of spendable income.
- Travel, optional support for the kids, and continued funding for your mom's care.
- Most importantly: not working an extra year because we didn't plan well.
What's in the way
- No single plan across the four accounts — tax windows pass every year we don't act.
- Your mother's care is $7K/month with no long-term care funding decision.
- The rentals are an open question — keep, simplify, or sell.
What it costs to not solve this
You said it: retirement pushed to 65 or later, plus another $30–40K/year out of pocket if your mom needs memory care. And the part that doesn't show up in dollars — "we'd just keep wondering if we're doing it right."
Next week I'll come back with a starting point on consolidation and the long-term care funding decision. If anything above lands wrong, just reply.
Thanks again,
Wesley