Retirement Planning in Houston
Serving the unique needs of retirees is a key practice area for Post Oak Private Wealth Advisors. Planning for the day when the paychecks stop can seem overwhelming.
Post Oak Private Wealth Advisors is a Houston-based, fee-based fiduciary wealth management firm serving individuals and families with complex financial planning needs in Houston and across the country.
The guides below cover retirement income, taxes, healthcare and pension decisions.
Building Your Retirement Paycheck
Retirement income comes from several sources. They arrive at different times and are taxed differently. A retirement paycheck plan coordinates them into one monthly cash flow.
- Building a retirement paycheck: How to turn several income sources into one monthly cash flow plan.
- Coordinating pension, Social Security and portfolio income: How the three income sources differ in taxes, timing, inflation and survivor income.
Which Accounts to Draw From First
The order you draw from taxable, tax-deferred and Roth accounts affects your taxes each year, your future required minimum distributions and your Medicare premiums.
- Which accounts to draw from first: The usual withdrawal order and five situations where a different order may fit.
Market Risk in the Early Years
- Sequence of returns risk: Why losses early in retirement affect a portfolio more than later losses.
Taxes Across Retirement
Roth conversions and required minimum distributions add to your income. That can raise your Medicare premiums two years later.
- Roth conversion planning: The variables that decide whether converting traditional IRA money to Roth fits you.
- Required minimum distributions: How RMDs are calculated, combined and timed, and options for unneeded RMDs.
- IRMAA and Medicare premiums: How income from two years earlier sets Medicare Part B and D surcharges.
- Multi-year tax planning: Planning income, gains and distributions across several years instead of one return.
- Capital gains in a major transition: Basis, holding period, rates, loss harvesting and estimated taxes after a large gain.
Healthcare Before Medicare
Medicare eligibility starts at age 65. If you retire earlier, you need coverage for the gap. IRA withdrawals can change what that coverage costs.
- Healthcare before Medicare: Coverage options before 65, estimating total cost, and how income affects premiums.
Pension Decisions
Pension elections can be difficult or impossible to reverse. The decision should be evaluated in the context of the full retirement plan.
- Pension lump sum vs. monthly annuity: The factors to weigh when choosing between a pension lump sum and monthly payments.
- How a pension lump sum is calculated: How benefit formulas, interest rates and mortality tables produce your lump sum offer.
- Choosing a pension survivor benefit: Questions couples should answer about survivor options before submitting the pension election form.
Retiring from an energy company? See financial planning for energy professionals in Houston.
Helping Family Without Hurting Your Retirement
- Helping aging parents without hurting your retirement: Reviewing parents' resources, legal documents, Medicare gaps and how siblings share costs.
Retirement After a Major Change
- Financial planning after selling a business
- Financial guidance for widows
- Inheritance planning guides
- Financial planning for women after divorce
Who You Will Work With
Marium Murphy, CFP®, is Executive Director of Financial Planning at Post Oak Private Wealth Advisors. Her areas of focus include retirement distribution planning and income sustainability analysis, tax-efficient withdrawal sequencing, Roth conversion strategy and timing, Medicare IRMAA planning and management, Social Security optimization, and portfolio analytics across tax-deferred, tax-free, and taxable accounts.
Robert M. Wyrick, Jr. is Managing Director and Chief Investment Officer at Post Oak Private Wealth Advisors.
Post Oak operates under a fee-based fiduciary advisory model, with recommendations evaluated in the context of each client’s financial needs, goals, and best interests.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is retirement distribution planning?
Retirement distribution planning is the process of deciding how and when to draw income from retirement assets such as pensions, 401(k) accounts, company stock options, concentrated stock positions, and after-tax savings.
Which retirement accounts should I draw from first?
The conventional rule on retirement withdrawal sequencing is simple: spend from taxable accounts first, then tax-deferred accounts like the traditional IRA or 401(k), and preserve Roth accounts for last. The logic is sound in its basic form, and it is the right starting point for most retirees. It is not always the right answer.
What is sequence of returns risk?
Sequence of returns risk in retirement is the danger that poor market performance in the early years of withdrawal permanently damages a portfolio in ways that later recoveries cannot fully repair.
How does my income affect Medicare premiums?
Medicare premiums in any given year are based on MAGI (modified adjusted gross income) reported to the IRS two years earlier. Income from investment distributions, Roth conversions and required minimum distributions can push you into a surcharge tier.
Do Roth conversions make sense in retirement?
The question behind Roth conversion planning in retirement is not simply whether conversions are a good idea. The more useful question is whether they make sense for a specific person, in a specific year, given their full income picture, Medicare exposure, cash available to pay the resulting tax, future RMD trajectory, and what they want to leave behind.
Schedule a Consultation
We offer a complimentary introductory conversation, with no cost and no commitment. Contact our team or call 281-580-2100.
This page is for general information and is not individualized investment, tax or legal advice.