The final stretch before retirement can feel both exciting and overwhelming. While you may have spent decades preparing, the last ten years are critical for refining your strategy and addressing the many questions that start to feel more real. Planning the last ten years before retirement involves shifting your mindset—from accumulating assets to preparing for sustainable income, managing risk, and aligning your financial strategy with your lifestyle goals.
Whether you’re just entering this phase or already midway through it, now is the time to ensure your plan reflects the reality of what retirement will look like for you.
From Growth to Preservation: Adjusting Investment Strategy
In the final decade before retirement, many individuals begin to reduce exposure to market volatility and focus on preserving what they’ve built. However, this doesn’t necessarily mean moving everything to ultra-conservative options. It’s about striking the right balance.
This stage of planning includes:
- Evaluating risk tolerance with your shortened timeline
- Reallocating investments based on income needs
- Exploring fixed income tools that align with your retirement goals
- Considering how inflation may impact your purchasing power
The goal isn’t to eliminate risk entirely—it’s to prepare your portfolio to support a withdrawal strategy that works for your lifestyle.
Estimating Your Future Expenses
The more clarity you have on your expected retirement expenses, the more confident you can feel in your plan. This includes both essentials and discretionary spending. It’s especially important to evaluate how your expenses might change when:
- Employer-sponsored benefits end
- Travel and leisure increase in the early years of retirement
- Healthcare costs rise as you age
By creating a retirement budget that reflects both fixed and flexible costs, you can identify whether your current savings and income streams align with your vision—or if adjustments are needed before you retire.
Mapping Out Income Streams
Planning the last ten years before retirement should include a thorough review of potential income sources. These might include:
- Social Security
- Pension distributions
- Required minimum distributions (RMDs)
- Rental or business income
- Annuity payments
- Personal savings and investments
The sequence and timing of how you use these resources can impact taxes, investment growth, and how long your money lasts. Creating a coordinated withdrawal strategy can help you approach retirement with greater clarity.
Paying Down Debt and Managing Big Expenses
Reducing debt before retirement can help create more financial flexibility. While not all debt is inherently bad, high-interest or variable-rate loans may strain your budget during fixed-income years.
Consider the following in this phase:
- Paying off credit cards and personal loans
- Evaluating whether to pay off your mortgage or refinance
- Avoiding new large debts like car loans close to retirement
- Planning for major one-time expenses, like home repairs or tuition for adult children
Clearing—or at least understanding—your liabilities can help reduce uncertainty later.
Healthcare and Insurance Planning
Your health coverage will likely change once you retire. In your final working years, it’s important to prepare for that transition.
Here’s what to address:
- Understand when you’ll qualify for Medicare and what it covers
- Consider whether you’ll need a supplemental policy or long-term care coverage
- Evaluate any employer-provided retiree health benefits
- Factor in increasing healthcare costs into your retirement projections
Healthcare is one of the most significant expenses in retirement, and planning for it early helps reduce the chance of surprise costs.
Timing Your Retirement Date
You don’t need to decide on an exact retirement date right away, but it’s helpful to evaluate your ideal timeline and what may affect it. Think about:
- When you’re eligible for full Social Security benefits
- How long you plan to work for income or healthcare access
- Personal goals or obligations, such as caregiving or relocation
- Whether a phased retirement or part-time work could be appealing
Having a flexible window—rather than a hard deadline—can reduce pressure and allow you to adapt based on life changes.
Communicating with a Planning Partner
If you’re married or share finances with a partner, this is a vital time to communicate openly. Questions to consider include:
- Do you plan to retire at the same time?
- What are your shared goals for retirement activities, travel, or relocation?
- How will you approach differences in spending habits or risk tolerance?
Aligning your expectations and understanding where you differ can strengthen your planning process and reduce tension down the road.
Planning the Last Ten Years Before Retirement with Purpose
The final decade before retirement is about more than just financial projections—it’s about envisioning the life you want and aligning your resources to support it. Planning the last ten years before retirement gives you the opportunity to fine-tune your approach while there’s still time to make impactful decisions.
At Seaman Retirement Planning, we help individuals and couples clarify their goals, organize their resources, and transition into retirement with greater confidence. Let’s work together to make these final ten years count. Contact us today!
