Investing and Retirement

According to the Social Security Administration, there’s a one-in-five chance that at least one member of a married couple will live to age 95 or older.^{Disclosure 1} That means you may need to plan to have income for more than 30 years after retirement. Step one? Max out your and your spouse’s tax-advantaged contributions to workplace and individual retirement plans.

Tip: Since 2001, the IRS has granted catch-up contribution allowances if you’re 50 or older. Starting in 2025, a new “super catch-up” rule lifts the contribution allowance even more for workers ages 60 to 63.

As retirement gets closer, it’s important to work with your wealth advisor to determine how you’ll convert your assets into a regular retirement income stream. You and your advisor will discuss your goals and vision—whether your future includes volunteering, traveling, continuing to work part-time, pursuing a new passion, or even sharing your expertise as a consultant or board member. They’ll also help you make contingency plans for unforeseen events, such as a healthcare emergency or below-average market conditions, as well as determining if deferring withdrawal from your retirement plan may be the right move. You and your advisor can also discuss the impact on your finances if you don’t have long-term care insurance and you need extra care, as well as ways to address rising healthcare costs. 

Your risk tolerance will naturally change as your financial, professional, and family situation evolves. Often, it’s not just your net worth that increases, but also the complexity of that wealth. New strategies and new considerations come into play that your advisor can evaluate with you. Truist Wealth uses an evidence-based investment philosophy to look objectively at conditions in the markets and build an individual portfolio that works for each client.

As your life circumstances change, your advisor can also provide customized plans to allocate assets in a way that balances risk and return. In addition, you can also discuss how capital gains from your investments may impact your tax exposure. Tax mitigation strategies such as tax-loss harvesting may be a way to offset how much you owe in taxes each year. Keep in mind that investing involves risk. The value of your investment will fluctuate over time, and you may gain or lose money.

Tip: Make sure to schedule regular check-ins with your advisor to discuss your overall diversification and investment position. How often should you check in? That will vary based on several factors, but you and your advisor should meet at least once per year and after major life events such as the sale of a business, career changes, divorce, or inheritance. 

Financial resilience is as much defense as offense. Unexpected situations such as job loss, illness, or even a natural disaster may affect you or someone in your family. These events can dramatically influence your ability to achieve your financial goals. Your wealth team, including insurance specialists, can verify you’ve got the right insurance types—from life and long-term care to home and auto—with the right coverages in place.

Tip: Business owners face an additional set of risks. If you own a business, income-producing real estate, or both, your advisor can help you explore insurance strategies to appropriately protect those assets.

The average annual cost of tuition, fees, and other expenses for the 2025-2026 school year was $29,910 for in-state public colleges and $49,080 for private institutions.^{Disclosure 2}  It’s a major expense that needs thoughtful planning—not only to save enough but also to make sure you don’t forgo saving for other important goals like retirement. Your advisor can help you evaluate various education investing and gifting options, including 529 plans and trusts.

Liquidity is vital in your wealth management plan—to keep long-term investments untouched or have funds available for an unexpected expense. At the same time, you can keep too much of your wealth in cash and miss the opportunity for that cash to grow in value.

What’s the right balance? Truist Wealth clients have access to a wide range of banking solutions to address both short-term needs and long-term goals. Working together, you and your advisor can find the right mix of deposit and borrowing solutions to meet your liquidity needs, fund large purchases, and better position you for the future.

Can you be sure your assets will be distributed according to your wishes? Are there ways to protect your and your heirs’ privacy when transferring wealth? What are the most meaningful ways to support causes that are important to you before and after you’re gone? How can you make legacy gifts to your spouse, children, and grandchildren fairly and without conflict? A thoughtfully crafted estate plan—built on solid solutions such as trusts, wills, and power of attorney agreements—can address all these questions and many more.

Your Truist Wealth advisor, together with your legal and tax advisors, can work to structure a plan that meets your family and nonprofit giving goals.

The financial planning process is not just a one-off event—it’s a process that lasts a lifetime. Now that you have these six foundational strategies, it’s time to put them into practice and grow them as your financial picture evolves. Partnering with a trusted advisor to create and reassess your plan can help you live the life you envision and focus on what really matters.

Comments regarding tax implications are informational only. Truist and its representatives do not provide tax or legal advice. You should consult your individual tax or legal professional before taking any action that may have tax or legal consequences.