One of the biggest misconceptions about retirement is that once you get there, your financial decisions are set in stone. In reality, that’s not true. While you can’t change the past, there are still meaningful adjustments you can make that can improve your situation moving forward. Retirement is not the end of financial planning – it’s just a new phase of it.
1. Claiming Social Security too early can be adjusted
Many people claim Social Security as soon as they’re eligible, often without fully understanding the long-term impact of that decision.
What most don’t realize is that there are ways to adjust. In some cases, you can reverse your claim within a certain window, and even later, you may be able to pause benefits and allow them to grow. These changes can meaningfully increase your monthly income and provide more stability later in retirement.
2. Healthcare costs are often underestimated
Healthcare is one of the most commonly overlooked expenses in retirement. Many assume that Medicare will cover everything, but that’s rarely the case.
Out-of-pocket costs for things like dental, vision, hearing, and co-pays can add up quickly over time. Reviewing your coverage regularly and planning for these expenses as a dedicated part of your budget can help you avoid surprises and reduce long-term financial strain.
3. Being too conservative – or too aggressive – can hurt you
Some retirees move everything into cash to avoid risk, while others take on too much risk trying to make up for lost time.
Both approaches can create problems. Cash may not keep up with inflation, slowly eroding your purchasing power, while too much market exposure can lead to volatility and losses. A balanced approach that aligns with your needs, timeline, and comfort level is key to maintaining both stability and growth.
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4. Required withdrawals can catch you off guard
At a certain age, you are required to start taking withdrawals from certain retirement accounts. These required minimum distributions can impact your taxes and overall income strategy more than expected.
Planning ahead allows you to manage these withdrawals more efficiently, reduce the risk of penalties, and better control how they affect your tax situation over time.
5. Where you withdraw from matters more than you think
Many retirees take money from whichever account is most convenient, but that can lead to higher taxes and missed opportunities over time.
A more strategic approach – considering which accounts to draw from first – can help reduce your tax burden and allow your money to last longer. Even small adjustments here can create meaningful long-term benefits.
Retirement still requires active planning
A common mistake is thinking that financial planning ends once you retire. In reality, it just shifts into a different phase with new priorities and decisions.
The way you manage withdrawals, structure your income, and plan for expenses becomes just as important as saving and investing during your working years.
Bottom line
Even if you’ve made mistakes in the past, retirement still gives you opportunities to improve your financial situation. Small, thoughtful adjustments can have a meaningful impact over time. The key is staying engaged, being intentional, and focusing on what you can still control moving forward.
All the Best,
Geoffrey Schmidt, CPA
RECOMMENDED RESOURCES
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Center For Retirement Research at Boston College
CRR is one of the best websites if you want in depth retirement data – I use it frequently. You can find it here: https://crr.bc.edu/
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About Geoff Schmidt
Geoff is an award-winning author, frequent public speaker, and CPA. He is a Registered Social Security Analyst (RSSA) and spent 25 years on Wall Street working at firms such as Deutsche Bank and Nomura. He has an MBA from the Kellogg School of Management at Northwestern University and is considered one of the foremost advocates for retirees and Social Security.
Disclaimer: The contents of this email are for education and entertainment purposes only. The content is also subject to errors, missing information and is not the complete body of work on the subject. This newsletter should not be used as a substitute for financial, tax, health, or other professional advice. If you need help in any of these areas seek the help of a competent professional. Not affiliated with the Social Security Administration
Chapter Disclaimer: Chapter and its affiliates are not connected with or endorsed by any government entity or the federal Medicare program. Chapter Advisory, LLC represents Medicare Advantage HMO, PPO, and PFFS organizations and stand alone prescription drug plans that have a Medicare contract. Enrollment depends on the plan’s contract renewal While we have a database of every Medicare plan nationwide and can help you to search among all plans, we have contracts with many but not all plans. As a result, we do not offer every plan available in your area. Currently we represent 50 organizations which offer 18,160 products nationwide. We search and recommend all plans, even those we don’t directly offer. You can contact a licensed Chapter agent to find out the number of products available in your specific area. Please contact Medicare.gov, 1-800-Medicare, or your local State Health Insurance Program (SHIP) to get information on all of your option.[1]
