Case Study · Retiree
Retiring the Portfolio Along With the Paycheck
How a new retiree moved from whichever account was easiest to a coordinated withdrawal plan.
This is a hypothetical case study created for illustrative purposes only. It does not represent an actual client, and any resemblance to a real person is coincidental. It is not indicative of future results and should not be construed as a guarantee of any outcome.
The Situation
A portfolio still positioned for a paycheck that had stopped
Recently retired at 66, he had a mix of taxable, IRA, and Roth accounts, but nothing had been coordinated since he stopped working. Withdrawals came from whichever account happened to be easiest to touch that month, and the portfolio itself was still positioned the same way it had been during his working years.
Age
66
Status
Newly Retired
Primary Concern
Withdrawal Sequencing
The Challenge
Three gaps left over from working-years habits
- No coordinated withdrawal sequence existed — money came out of whichever account was easiest, not the one that made the most tax sense.
- Portfolio risk hadn’t been revisited since retiring — it still carried more risk than his own guardrails would have called for at this stage.
- No rebalancing discipline was in place — the allocation had drifted meaningfully since anyone had last looked at it closely.
The Approach
Building a plan for spending, not just saving
- Built a written allocation tied to a Time-Weighted structure so near-term spending was protected from market swings.
- Set spending guardrails that adjust based on portfolio performance, instead of pulling a fixed amount regardless of the market.
- Established a tax-aware withdrawal sequence across taxable, IRA, and Roth accounts to manage bracket and IRMAA exposure.
Illustrative Outcome
Retirement income now comes from a coordinated plan instead of whichever account was easiest to touch, with risk levels that actually match the stage of life he’s in.
