If you’re 65 or older, you’ve likely made dozens of smart money decisions over the years. But retirement adds new questions that don’t live in separate boxes. A choice in one area—like starting Social Security—can ripple into taxes, Medicare (and IRMAA), Roth conversions, required minimum distributions (RMDs), cash flow, and even what your spouse inherits.
At Cardinal Advisors, our comprehensive financial plan puts all the pieces on one table so the final picture fits your life—your goals, your income needs, your health, your family, your timeline.
The “Seven Worries” We Solve—Together
We organize your plan around seven areas that matter most in retirement:
- Social Security – When to file, how it affects your spouse, and how benefits interact with taxes and Roth conversions.
- Medicare & IRMAA – Choosing the right coverage and managing income to avoid surprise surcharges.
- Long-Term Care – Insure it, self-fund it, or blend approaches—without jeopardizing a spouse or your legacy.
- IRA/401(k) – Turning savings into a smart withdrawal strategy (not just an investment account you “tap when needed”).
- Retirement Income – Building a monthly paycheck from Social Security, pensions, investments, and cash reserves—after tax.
- Estate Planning – Aligning wills, POAs, beneficiaries, trusts, and tax strategy so your wishes are honored.
- Taxes – Proactive bracket management, Roth conversions, and coordinating all income sources to keep more of what you earn.
You won’t get a pile of generic handouts. You’ll get a coherent plan that shows how decisions in one area affect the other six.
Why Our Plans Are Different
Plenty of firms can talk about any single topic above. What’s unique about our approach is how we connect them. We use planning software (RightCapital) to run the math, but your plan isn’t “just software.” It’s a series of conversations where we learn your preferences, test trade-offs, and write clear recommendations you can actually follow.
- Specific, not vague. Your final plan includes clear next steps in all seven areas—tailored to you.
- Interactive, not one-and-done. We meet, refine, and make sure you understand why each recommendation fits.
- Coordinated, not siloed. Every choice is weighed against taxes, IRMAA, cash flow, RMDs, survivorship, and legacy.
You can always view example “boards” and show notes at cardinalguide.com (also linked below our videos), but the value is the conversation and the custom plan we build together.
Real-Life Examples of How Areas Interact
1) Roth Conversions: Great Idea…But At What Cost?
Roth conversions can reduce future RMDs and create tax-free dollars for you or your heirs. But conversions can also:
- Increase the taxable share of Social Security today
- Trigger IRMAA surcharges two years later
- Temporarily reduce your spendable income due to higher taxes in the conversion year
For many clients, the “why” behind converting is an estate goal (leaving tax-free assets to kids/grandkids). That’s fine—but we still weigh the timing, amounts, brackets, and IRMAA so the plan works for both of you now and later.
2) Long-Term Care: A Cash-Flow Problem First
“I’ll self-fund if I ever need care.” Maybe—but let’s see the ripple effects:
- Will a large new monthly expense force a spouse to cut back?
- Which accounts would you sell first—and what taxes would that trigger?
- How does this affect your legacy goals?
Whether you insure, self-fund, or blend, planning ahead turns a scary unknown into a manageable line item.
3) IRMAA: Avoid All of It—or Just the Worst of It?
Avoiding IRMAA at all costs can be shortsighted. For households with sizable pre-tax savings, RMDs and widow(er) filing status later can push you into higher IRMAA brackets anyway. Sometimes paying a little IRMAA now (in service of a smarter Roth or income plan) helps you avoid a lot later.
Key Questions We’ll Work Through (So You Don’t Have To)
- Social Security: Should you file now or wait? If you delay, can we replace that check from your IRA efficiently—and does that open more room for smart Roth conversions?
- Roth Conversions: How much, when, and why (estate, taxes, or cash-flow flexibility)? What’s your line in the sand for tax brackets and IRMAA?
- RMD Strategy: Doing nothing until age 73 is a strategy—but is it your best one? How do RMDs change for a surviving spouse (“widow’s penalty”)?
- Income Plan: What’s the monthly number—after tax? Which accounts fund it first? What’s our guardrail if markets dip?
- Estate Plan: Are beneficiaries up to date? Do your documents (will, POAs, maybe a trust) match your financial plan? Are you unintentionally handing children a tax headache?
- Tax Management: Which brackets do we fill on purpose? Can we smooth taxes across your lifetimes (not just this year)?
What You Receive
- A written, plain-English plan with specific recommendations in all seven areas
- Income and cash-flow mapping (what comes from where, and when)
- A Roth/RMD/IRMAA roadmap that anticipates future filing status changes
- Coordination with your attorney and tax professional when needed
- Ongoing refinements as life changes
Typical fee: $1,000 for the comprehensive plan (we may adjust up or down depending on complexity). Most clients tell us the value far exceeds the cost.
How We Work With You
We serve clients nationwide—most planning meetings happen conveniently over Zoom. We’ll ask detailed questions, run scenarios, explain trade-offs, and agree on clear next steps. You stay in control; we provide the math, the options, and our professional recommendation.
Ready to See Your Whole Picture?
If you’re 65+ and want a plan where every decision supports the rest, we’d love to help.
- Visit cardinalguide.com to view show notes and schedule a conversation
- Prefer to talk to a person? Call our office at 919-535-8261
- Or email us through the contact page and we’ll follow up promptly
Cardinal Advisors — putting all the pieces together so retirement feels simpler, safer, and more coordinated.
