Retire With Ashley

The standard advice when it comes to Social Security is that if you can afford to wait to claim benefits, you'll be better off by maximizing your lifetime benefit and the amount you'll receive each month. And generally speaking, that's good advice. But in reality, most people claim Social Security as early as possible at age 62, simply because they can't afford to wait any longer. For many retirees, Social Security is going to be their main source of income. And waiting until age 70 just isn't a realistic option. But what if you can afford to wait? Does that automatically mean you should? Well, not necessarily. There are actually some pretty compelling reasons to consider claiming Social Security earlier, even if you have enough money saved for retirement that you don't need the income right away. And some of these reasons fly in the face of conventional advice. So today, I'm talking about five situations where it might make sense to claim Social Security earlier rather than later, and some of the things you should consider when making this decision in your own situation.

Whether you're dealing with an expensive emergency repair like we were, or you're planning a major home renovation, the question that you'll inevitably ask is: How am I going to pay for it? Should you use savings? Sell investments? Borrow against your house? Or maybe take a loan from your 401(k)? There are other options, too, but these are three of the most common ones available to people, so we're going to look at all three, and I'm going to share some of the biggest mistakes I see people make when paying for home improvements. These different options might all seem reasonable, but they come with very different costs and risks, especially if you're getting close to retirement or you're already retired. And the biggest takeaway I want you to remember is that how you pay for a remodel can be just as important as the renovation budget itself.

Welcome back to the Retirement Quick Tips Podcast! I'm your host, Ashley Micciche, and today I have some exciting news to share about the future of the podcast. First of all, if you've been a longtime listener, you've probably noticed that I've been away for most of the summer. And now that I'm back, I'm making some changes to the podcast. So I wanted to take a few minutes today to explain what's changing, why I'm making these changes, and what you can expect going forward.

Hi there, welcome to the retirement quick tips podcast, I'm your host Ashley Micciche, I've been a financial advisor for 19 years and my team and I currently manage $480 million in client assets for about 300 clients. We've got a lot to cover today during an interesting quarter for markets (where I spent much of it on the sidelines feeding and caring for a newborn!) so let's get into it!

What happens when you save for decades, you stop working, and then the market completely falls apart? If you've asked this question and you worry about retiring at the worst possible time, you are not alone. I've seen people get so paralyzed by the thought of retiring into a bad market or a bad economy that they put off retirement indefinitely. So today, I'm going to talk about why it can be truly devastating if you retire at the wrong time - and how you can take steps now to make sure that doesn't happen to you. If you're new here, hi, I'm Ashley, and I'm a financial advisor. For the last 19 years, I've been helping my clients navigate their retirement. If you're trying to plan for and live a fulfilled and financially secure retirement, that's exactly what this podcast is dedicated to. Please subscribe. All right, so I actually have been through this firsthand with my clients because I started my career back in 2007. In fact, September of 2007 is when I started, and it was right before the market peaked—before everything completely fell apart during the great financial crisis. I had clients who I was brand new to working with, and they were on the cusp of retirement or had just recently retired when the financial crisis hit.   Sequence of returns risk:  Before I talk about what you can do to prevent bad timing leading to really bad consequences, we need to talk about why investment losses early in retirement can be especially damaging… Why the order of your investment returns matters when you're taking withdrawals --  If you don't take steps to build a moat around your retirement to protect yourself from sequence of returns risk, it can and has been devastating for many people who unfortunately simply retired at the wrong time.    Here's what I tell my clients, and here's how you can build that moat:  Stress test your plan: What a significant market decline could mean for your retirement income, spending, and investment portfolio. Backup income: How part-time work, consulting, or gradually transitioning into retirement can reduce pressure on your investments. Cash reserves: Why I recommend setting aside emergency savings, money for upcoming major purchases, and a separate reserve for planned portfolio withdrawals. Spending flexibility: How knowing your expenses and entering retirement debt free can make it easier to adjust during a downturn. Social Security timing: Why revisiting your claiming strategy may be worth considering, depending on your circumstances.   Your takeaway: Look at your retirement plan and ask: Where can I be flexible? What could I adjust now to give my portfolio more breathing room during the next downturn?   Thanks so much for listening! If you found this useful and you're looking for time-tested ideas and strategies to plan a financially secure retirement, please hit that subscribe button and I'll see you next time! ---------- >>> Apple Podcasts: https://apple.co/2DI2LSP               >>> Spotify: https://bit.ly/41sTKHs  >>> Pandora: https://bit.ly/47YTXnt >>> Stream Online: https://truenorthra.com/podcast/  ---------- Tags: retirement, investing, money, finance, financial planning, retirement planning, saving money, personal finance

Welcome back to Retirement Quick Tips. I'm your host, Ashley Micciche, and today's episode is a little different. There's no retirement topic, unless you consider my summer sabbatical a lesson in mini-retirements.  Instead, here's a quick update on what's happening with the podcast this summer. As many of you loyal listeners know, I am pregnant with my 5th child. Hard to believe myself, as I never grew up around a lot of other kids or siblings. I didn't babysit much, and I wasn't even sure I wanted to have kids until my husband and I decided we wanted to grow our family a couple years into our marriage. Since then we've been open to adding more children, and the good Lord has blessed us abundantly with now 5 children. And that 5th baby is coming very, very soon. My due date is June 11th, so by the time you listen to this episode, it's likely she's already arrived.  Which means that this summer, I'll be taking a break from recording new episodes for the podcast. New episodes are going to be on pause for a bit, and I'll be back in September with fresh content. September. Now, I know what you might be thinking. "Ashley, what am I supposed to do without my Retirement Quick Tips fix all summer?" Fear not! Here's what I want you to do. Head over to YouTube and subscribe to my channel. It's called Retire with Ashley, and I'm still going to be posting videos over there from time to time throughout the summer. So that's where you'll want to be if you want to stay connected and keep the retirement tips coming your way. You can search "Retire with Ashley" on YouTube and you'll find it. Subscribe, turn on the notifications, and you won't miss a thing. Lastly, thank you so much for listening. Whether you've been here since episode one or you just found this podcast last week, I'm so grateful for all of you who tune in, share the show, and send me your questions and feedback. It means a lot and I can't wait to be back with you again in September. Until then, take care & enjoy your summer. My name is Ashley Micciche and this is the Retirement Quick Tips Podcast

We talked about why inflation is so dangerous in retirement, how stocks can help you stay ahead of inflation, why dividend growth matters, how bonds behave in rising rate environments, and how tools like TIPS and I Bonds can fit into a broader strategy. We also talked about practical steps like reducing high-interest debt and managing spending more intentionally. Today I want to zoom out and talk about the bigger picture.

Yesterday I talked about TIPS and I Bonds—two investment tools designed to help offset inflation. But today I want to zoom out and talk about something just as important: the practical, everyday decisions that can help you fight inflation outside of your portfolio.

Today I want to talk about two tools that are often used specifically for inflation protection: Treasury Inflation-Protected Securities, or TIPS, and I Bonds.