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If you are retired or expect to be in the near future, what is your primary concern (planning issue) income or spending?
‘Once retired, managing spending may be easier than trying to adjust income, but many people see expenses as the main issue.
‘’What is your opinion?
Maybe the question should be asked a different way.
Funds available to spend*, or spending? Top priority in retirement.
*Funds available to spend = income (however you chose to define it)+Assets(however you choose to define it)
Regarding Income: It is not what you get that counts. It is what you get to keep, after taxes.
Regarding Spending: In retirement, it varies from person to person, and varies throughout retirement. I favor the retirement “smile” where spending in retirement may be higher in the “go-go” years immediately after work ends, less once a person has exhausted their bucket list, the “slow-go” years, and more in the “no-go” years due to increased medical and custodial care spending.
But, different strokes for different folks.
So much depends on health (of the retiree and the spouse, and other family members), whether income sources are indexed for changes in price (no, not inflation) such as Social Security, longevity, etc.
Primary concern is tax management!
Thanks Dick! The question was thought-provoking enough to get several differing views. For myself, it came down to a Chicken and Egg analogy. One without thought to the other seems like an endless battle in futility. I set a budget for spending and then allocate the income to meet it. I then determine if I won or lost each year by the change in my Net Worth. The game is then about the adjustments made to prolong the effort until it is no longer needed or no longer matters.
But would you agree you need sufficient income first to be able to allocate toward your budget?
After retirement which is easier to adjust if necessary, spending or income?