Pillar · Chapter IV
04/ 07
Retirement Planning
Services · Pillar IV

Retirement Planning

Income for a longer life.

Retirement is not the day work stops, but the act of sequencing thirty years of cashflow, tax brackets, and healthcare risk.

Retirement planning turns accounts into a sequence: what to use first, what to convert, what to delay, and what to protect.

Reading
Ten minutes
Accounts
401(k) · IRA · Roth · HSA
Ages
50 · 55 · 59½ · 62 · 65 · 67 · 70 · 73
Focus
Tax brackets, withdrawal order, cross-border residence
Why Retirement Planning

Not one account,
but a
withdrawal route.

Sequence shapes the outcome.

401(k), Traditional IRA, Roth IRA, SEP-IRA, HSA, annuities, and taxable accounts each carry a different tax clock. The core of retirement planning is keeping those clocks from all ringing in the same year.

The same portfolio can produce different lives depending on the order of withdrawals, conversions, Medicare income, and Social Security claiming.

We place pre-tax, Roth, taxable accounts, and Social Security into one retirement cashflow model: when to do a Roth Conversion, when to avoid IRMAA, when to keep assets deferred, and when to bridge with taxable capital. Cross-border families also need China pension reporting, residence planning, and treaty analysis.

Retirement planning is not the search for one magic number. It gives each withdrawal a place and each conversion a reason.

The Signature · Three Buckets

Name the tax buckets first,
then choose the order.

Three buckets, one withdrawal order.

The same dollar has a different retirement tax life inside a 401(k), Roth IRA, or taxable account. We use three buckets to decide contributions, conversions, withdrawals, and legacy planning.

IPRE-TAX

Pre-tax bucket

Deduct today, pay later.
Now401(k), Traditional IRA, and SEP-IRA accounts are generally built for deferral and may provide current deductions or pre-tax contributions.
WithdrawalRetirement withdrawals are generally taxed as ordinary income and may affect Medicare IRMAA and Social Security taxation.
Tax timingRMDs generally begin at age 73 under SECURE 2.0 and are scheduled to move to 75 after 2033; the conversion window often appears after retirement and before RMDs.
  • 401(k) and 403(b)
  • Traditional IRA
  • SEP-IRA
  • RMD and QCD
  • Roth Conversion source candidates
IIROTH

Roth bucket

Pay now, protect later.
NowRoth IRA, Roth 401(k), and Backdoor Roth strategies use after-tax dollars to build future tax-free space.
WithdrawalQualified withdrawals are generally free from federal income tax, and Roth IRAs have no lifetime RMD for the original owner.
Tax timingA Roth Conversion creates income in the conversion year, so bracket space and cash available for tax must control the pace.
  • Roth IRA
  • Roth 401(k)
  • Backdoor Roth
  • Conversion Ladder
  • Long-term legacy flexibility
IIITAXABLE

Taxable bucket

Flexible bridge capital.
NowBrokerage accounts, cash, and some annuities provide the most flexible bridge capital before and after retirement.
WithdrawalSelling assets may create capital gains; qualified dividends and long-term gains depend on income bands.
Tax timingTax-loss harvesting, asset location, staged gain realization, and annuity-income design can help smooth brackets.
  • Cash reserves
  • Brokerage accounts
  • Tax-loss harvesting
  • Annuity income
  • Pre-retirement bridge capital
Withdrawal order
Taxable accountsPre-tax accountsRoth accounts

The default order is not a rule. Execution must account for brackets, RMDs, Social Security, Medicare income thresholds, estate goals, and sequence-of-returns risk.

Bracket management before withdrawalThe order of cash flows is a tax decision.
Horizon · Statutory Ages

Every age
opens a door.

Retirement is a sequence of statutory doors.
50

Catch-up contributions

Catch-up begins

Beginning at age 50, many retirement accounts allow catch-up contributions, often useful in peak earning years.

55

Rule of 55

Rule of 55

When conditions are met, a worker who separates from service in or after the year they turn 55 may access the current employer plan without the 10% early-distribution penalty.

59½

Penalty line

Penalty line

Most retirement accounts can avoid the early-distribution penalty after 59½, but income tax, conversion five-year rules, and plan rules still need review.

62

Earliest Social Security

SSA earliest

Social Security can start as early as 62, but the lifetime monthly benefit is permanently reduced and spouse or survivor planning may be affected.

65

Medicare

Healthcare gate

Age 65 opens the key Medicare window. Income can affect Part B and Part D IRMAA surcharges.

67

Full retirement age

Full retirement age

For many households, 67 is full retirement age for Social Security and a natural point to compare work, delayed claiming, and spouse strategies.

70

Delay maximum

Delay max

Delayed Social Security credits generally stop at 70; waiting longer usually does not increase the monthly benefit.

73

RMD begins

SECURE 2.0

Under SECURE 2.0, RMDs begin at 73 for many accounts and are scheduled to move to 75 after 2033. Lower-bracket years before RMDs are often conversion windows.

Ages are planning deadlinesThe calendar is part of the portfolio.
How We Work

Five moves
turn accounts into income.

01

Retirement Cashflow

Income Floor

Estimate basic living costs, healthcare, housing, family support, travel, and long-term care, separating necessary spending from optional spending.

02

Tax Bucket Inventory

Bucket Inventory

Inventory 401(k), IRA, Roth, HSA, taxable accounts, annuities, and China pension benefits, then reclassify each by tax timing.

03

Roth Conversion Ladder

Conversion Ladder

Identify lower-bracket years after retirement, convert pre-tax assets over time, and avoid unnecessarily pushing brackets, IRMAA, or state tax higher.

04

Withdrawal Sequence Design

Withdrawal Sequence

Compare taxable, pre-tax, and Roth withdrawal order while adding cash-buffer and rebalancing rules for market drawdowns.

05

Social Security and Cross-Border

SSA & Cross-Border

Model claiming at 62, 67, and 70, then address China pension income, US reporting obligations, and US-China Tax Treaty §17 and §18 analysis.

FAQ

Retirement planning
asks about order.

It depends on current bracket, expected future bracket, employer match, cashflow, and retirement location. High-bracket years often favor pre-tax deferral; lower-bracket or early-career years often make Roth space more valuable. Many families need both.

The next step

Turn the account list
into a retirement income table.

In thirty minutes, we first review account types, statutory ages, Social Security strategy, RMD exposure, and cross-border residence plans, then decide whether a full retirement model is needed.

Book a retirement planning consultation →
401(k) · IRA · Roth · HSA · Social Security — by appointment only