Wealth management for retirees

A financial advisor for retirees helps coordinate the decisions that begin when employment income slows or stops. This can include creating a spending plan, generating income from investments, sequencing withdrawals, evaluating Social Security and Medicare, managing taxes and risk, and updating estate plans. At Hightower Signature Wealth, one team works to keep these decisions connected and adjusts the plan as markets, health, family needs, and priorities change.

We believe the ideal time is often several years before retirement, when there may still be flexibility to adjust savings, investment risk, taxes, benefits, and the retirement date. Guidance can also be valuable after retirement begins, especially when required distributions, a market decline, widowhood, healthcare needs, a move, or a major family decision changes the plan. A retirement advisor can provide a second opinion at any stage.

We begin by estimating spending needs and identifying dependable income sources, such as Social Security, pensions, or other benefits. Then we coordinate withdrawals across taxable, tax-deferred, and tax-free accounts while considering investment risk, taxes, liquidity, and longevity. The result is not a fixed formula; it is a flexible income strategy reviewed regularly and adjusted as spending, markets, tax rules, and personal circumstances evolve.

Social Security and Medicare decisions should be considered alongside your retirement date, employment benefits, household income, health coverage and survivor needs. Your advisor can model different claiming and enrollment scenarios, explain how each choice interacts with cash flow and taxes, and coordinate with appropriate benefits or tax professionals when needed. The objective is to make these decisions within the complete retirement plan rather than in isolation.

Retirement income may come from accounts with different tax treatment, making the order and timing of withdrawals important. We evaluate taxable income, capital gains, required distributions, charitable giving and potential Roth conversions as part of the broader plan. These decisions may also affect Medicare premiums and estate outcomes. Your advisor coordinates with your tax professional and revisits the strategy annually as balances, spending and tax rules change.

We help estimate healthcare expenses, review Medicare and supplemental coverage, and evaluate how potential long-term care needs could be funded. At the same time, we coordinate estate documents, beneficiary designations, trusts, charitable goals and family gifting with the retirement income plan. Looking at these priorities together helps protect your lifestyle while preserving flexibility for the people and causes you want to support.

Getting started begins with a conversation about the retirement you are planning or already living. We review your income sources, investments, spending, taxes, healthcare considerations, estate goals and any immediate decisions. From there, we connect you with the appropriate advisor and specialists and outline the next steps for building or refining your plan. Complete the form below to schedule an introductory conversation with a Hightower Signature Wealth retirement advisor.