RETIREMENT GUIDES
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Straightforward guides to help you understand retirement income, spending, taxes, and the decisions ahead.
40 guides across 5 topics
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12 guides
The Bucket Strategy for Retirement Income: How to Structure Your Withdrawals (2026)
The bucket strategy divides your retirement savings into three pools — cash, bonds, and stocks — organized by when you'll need the money. It's one of the most popular retirement income frameworks because it solves two problems at once: it provides a systematic withdrawal plan, and it gives you the psychological confidence to stay invested through market crashes without panic-selling. This guide explains how to set up your buckets, size them correctly, refill them over time, and understand the strategy's real strengths and weaknesses.
15 min readHow Much Does Long-Term Care Cost in 2026?
A private nursing home room now costs a median of $10,798/month — $129,575/year — and 70% of people turning 65 will need some form of long-term care. Yet most Americans have no plan to pay for it. Medicare covers almost nothing. Long-term care insurance covers fewer than 3% of the population. And Medicaid requires you to spend nearly everything you own before it kicks in. This guide lays out the real costs, who pays, and how to protect yourself.
15 min readHow Much Does Medicare Cost in Retirement? $6,000–$8,000 a Year (2026)
A typical 65-year-old will spend $6,000–$8,000 a year on Medicare premiums and out-of-pocket costs in 2026 — $12,000–$16,000 for a couple. Over a 20-year retirement, that is $150,000–$200,000 per person after inflation. This guide breaks down every 2026 Medicare cost so you can build an accurate healthcare budget.
15 min readSequence of Returns Risk: Why the Order of Returns Can Wreck Your Retirement (2026)
Two retirees with identical average returns over 30 years can end up with wildly different outcomes — one wealthy, one broke — depending entirely on the order those returns arrived. This is sequence of returns risk, and it's the single most dangerous financial concept most retirees have never heard of. This guide explains how it works, why 2026 retirees face elevated risk, and exactly how to protect against it.
15 min readWhat Is IRMAA? How High Income Raises Your Medicare Premiums (2026)
IRMAA is a surcharge on your Medicare Part B and Part D premiums that kicks in when your income exceeds $109,000 (single) or $218,000 (married filing jointly). At the highest bracket, you'll pay $689.90/month for Part B alone — more than triple the standard $202.90 premium. This guide explains how IRMAA works, what triggers it, and how to avoid paying more than you need to.
15 min readWhat Is Medicare Part A, B, C, and D? A Plain-English Guide (2026)
Medicare has four parts — A, B, C, and D — and each one covers different healthcare services at different costs. If you're approaching 65 or helping a parent navigate enrollment, this guide explains exactly what each part covers, what it costs in 2026, and how the pieces fit together.
16 min readThe Best States to Retire In for Low Taxes (2026 Rankings)
The best states to retire for low taxes are Florida, Nevada, Wyoming, South Dakota, and Texas — all with no state income tax whatsoever. But income tax is only one dimension. The best overall retirement tax picture considers whether the state taxes Social Security, whether it exempts pension and retirement account income, property tax rates, sales tax, and estate taxes. This guide ranks all the key states across every dimension that matters to retirees.
17 min readHow Inflation Affects Your Retirement Savings Over 20–30 Years (2026)
At 3% annual inflation, a retirement lifestyle that costs $60,000/year today will cost $81,000 by year 12, $108,000 by year 21, and $145,000 by year 30. Your savings don't just need to last 30 years — they need to fund a spending level that nearly doubles in nominal dollars over that period. Most retirement plans either account for this correctly or dramatically underestimate how much money they'll need in their 70s, 80s, and 90s.
18 min readHow Long Will $1 Million Last in Retirement? $40,000/Year at 4%
At the standard 4% withdrawal rate, $1 million produces $40,000 a year — roughly $3,333/month. Add Social Security and that can last comfortably into your 90s. Run your own scenario with the 4% rule calculator or the how long will my money last calculator.
15 min readReady to put the ideas to work?
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