We recently celebrated my daughter’s 4th birthday and I think she is finally at the age where she can begin to understand the concept of money, and what it should (and shouldn’t) be used for. For her birthday, while her grandparents got her the toys she REALLY wanted, I went the practical route and got her these “piggy” banks and a couple of children’s books on being smart with your money.

1. How can I estimate how much I will need during retirement?
This question comes up often because when we prepare financial plans for clients, we usually ask how much they want to spend during retirement. Understandably, the question is not easy to answer. When preparing a financial plan, we initially assume a person will need 70 percent of their current living expenses during retirement and increase or decrease the amount based on the likelihood of meeting the target that goal. For example, if your current annual living expenses are $120,000, we would begin your financial plan assuming you will spend $84,000 a year during retirement. If the results of your plan are unfavorable, we will recommend a combination of the following: save more, retire later, and/or reduce how much you plan to spend during retirement.

1. I just started at Kaiser, how can I maximize my benefits?