Retirement
1
Are you living life to its fullest today while saving enough
for retirement?
2
Have you estimated how much retirement will cost?
3
Do you know how much you will need in savings to fund your
retirement?
4
Do you have a retirement savings plan?
5
Have you factored in the cost of old-age care during
retirement?
6
Are you comfortable being on government welfare during
retirement?
7
Are you saving at least 10% of your gross income?
8
Do you know the rate of return needed to achieve your
retirement goal?
9
Does your current investment strategy match your retirement
objective?
10
Have you evaluated your Social Security retirement benefit
options?
11
Have you evaluated your Medicare benefit options?
12
Do you know the difference between Medicare Part – A, B, C, &
D?
Budgeting:
13
Do you pay off your credit card balances every month?
14
Do you ever pay penalty fees – Late fees, bank fees, etc.?
15
Is your monthly income more than your monthly expenses?
16
Is your FICO score over 740?
17
Do you know the difference between cost and opportunity cost?
Investing:
18
Do you understand the concept of the time value of money?
19
Do you understand the concept of compounding interest?
20
Do you understand the concept of Dollar-Cost Averaging?
21
Do you understand the concept of Sequence of Return Risk?
22
Do you know what your investment risk-adjusted performance is?
23
Do you compare your investment returns to an index or benchmark?
24
Are your investments optimally diversified?
25
Do you know the difference between mutual funds, ETFs, CEFs, and
UITs?
26
Do you have more than one investment advisor?
27
Do you know what bonds to purchase in a rising interest-rate
environment?
28
Do you know what bonds to purchase in a falling interest-rate
environment?
29
Do you know and understand all your different bond investment
options?
Insurance (Risk Management):
30
Do you own life insurance?
31
Do you understand the pros and cons of Life Insurance?
32
If you were to die unexpectedly today, would your family be okay
financially?
33
Do you understand the difference between whole life, VUL & UL
insurance?
34
Is your guaranteed retirement income sufficient to cover your
expenses?
35
Do you own any annuities?
36
Do you understand the pros and cons of annuities?
37
Do you know the difference between fixed, variable, and index
annuities?
38
Would your family be financially secure in the event of a
disability?
Financial Planning:
39
Do you have a comprehensive financial Plan?
40
Was your financial plan created by a CFP® professional?
41
Have you updated your financial Plan in the last 5 years?
42
Is your current financial plan as flexible as it can be?
43
Do you know the difference between Goal- and Cash-Flow-Based
Planning?
44
Have you stress-tested your financial plan for higher rates of
inflation?
45
Have you stress-tested your financial plan for a bear market?
46
Have you stress-tested your financial plan for an unexpected
death?
47
Have you stress-tested your financial plan for an unexpected
disability?
48
Have you stress-tested your financial plan for a future
long-term care event?
49
Have you stress-tested your financial plan for atypical interest
rates?
50
Have you stress-tested your financial plan for higher future tax
rates?
Tax Planning:
51
Do you like paying the amount of taxes you’re paying?
52
Are you confident you are maximizing all tax breaks you’re
entitled to?
53
Has someone other than your tax preparer reviewed your tax
returns?
54
Is your current tax advisor a tax planner or tax preparer?
55
Has your current tax advisor asked to see your current
employer's benefits?
56
Does your current tax advisor consult with your other financial
advisors?
57
Has your tax advisor discussed future tax reduction strategies
with you?
58
Are you utilizing and maximizing all tax-advantaged accounts?
59
Are you familiar with HSAs and Roth IRAs (back-door & MEGA
back-door)?
60
Do you know what IRMAA (Income-Related Monthly Adjustment
Amount) is?
61
Do you understand the Net Investment Income Tax (NIIT)?
62
Do you know your capital gain exposure on your primary
residence?
63
Do you know the difference between a 121 Exclusion and a 1031
Exchange?
64
Are you familiar with the tax term Step-up in basis?
65
Do you know the tax difference between JTWROS and CPWROS?
66
For Californians, are you familiar with Propositions 13, 19, 58,
60, 90 & 193?
67
Are you familiar with Opportunity Zones?
68
Are you familiar with a Delaware Statutory Trust (DST)?
Estate Planning:
69
Do you have a Trust, Will, Pour-over Will, DPOAs, & AHCD?
70
Has someone other than your attorney reviewed your estate
documents?
71
Has your trust attorney covered all your estate planning
options?
72
Have all your designated beneficiaries been reviewed and
updated?
73
Are you familiar with all these Trusts – QTIP, SLAT, GST, ILIT,
QPRT, CRT, CLT, GRAT, or IDGT?
74
Have you ensured your parent’s estate is in order?
Miscellaneous:
75
Have you started saving for your children’s future education
needs?
76
Do you know the difference between a 529 Plan and a Coverdell
ESA?
77
Do you know why a 15-year mortgage is riskier than a 30-year
mortgage?
78
Has anyone other than you reviewed your employer’s employee
benefits?
