The Math Changes the Day You Stop Working
Most people we sit down with have done the saving part right. Maxed accounts, steady contributions, maybe a pension or two. What catches them off guard is everything that happens the day they stop getting a paycheck.
The saving part has rules. Contribution limits, employer matches, automatic deductions.
The retirement planning part is less structured, and that is where most people are underprepared.
The moment income stops, everything shifts:
- Spending decisions that felt routine become permanent.
- Withdrawals from accounts you spent years filling now carry tax consequences.
- Healthcare costs that were mostly covered by an employer become your responsibility entirely.
At Maris, we work with individuals, couples, and business owners in Everett, Mukilteo, Marysville, and Snohomish County who want to get that transition right, whether retirement is ten years out or already underway.
Where Most Retirement Plans Fall Short
Most retirement conversations start with account balances. The ones worth having go further.
What will you actually spend each year?
How long does the money need to last?
What happens to Medicare premiums if your withdrawals push you into a higher bracket?
What does your Social Security timing mean for a spouse who outlives you?
None of these have a direct universal answer. The right answer depends on your income, your accounts, and what retirement actually needs to look like for you. We help you work through them.
- Retirement income forecasting and cash flow planning
- Social Security timing analysis
- Roth conversion planning
- Healthcare cost projection
- Investment review and allocation strategy
- Required minimum distribution planning
- Employer benefit and HSA review
- Retirement account planning for business owners, including SEP-IRA, SIMPLE IRA, and Solo 401(k)
- Beneficiary review and estate coordination
Whatever does not fit that list, we can talk through. Most situations are more manageable than they feel once the full picture is on the table.
The Tax Side Is Where Years of Work Get Left Behind
Knowing how to reduce taxes in retirement is not a filing-season question. It is a years-long decision.
Different accounts are taxed differently when you draw from them. Withdrawals can trigger Medicare surcharges, push more of your Social Security income into taxable territory, or move you into a bracket you did not plan for.
Roth conversions done at the right time can significantly reduce your lifetime tax burden. Done at the wrong time, they create problems that take years to unwind. That is the core of retirement tax planning, and it requires the same attention you gave to the saving side.
Why a CPA Firm Is Not the Same as a Financial Advisor
A financial advisor looks at what you have and how to grow it. That matters. What it does not cover is the tax picture, the Social Security strategy, the RMD timing, or what your withdrawals will actually cost you after taxes.
Working with a CPA firm means those two sides of the conversation happen together. The investment picture and the tax picture are built as one plan. That coordination is where most people leave real money behind, and it is the specific reason CPA retirement planning produces different outcomes than investment advice alone.
A Different Set of Decisions for Business Owners
Retirement planning for small business owners involves decisions that standard calculators are not built to handle. The right account structure. The timing of contributions relative to business income. The strategy for stepping back, and what that transition means for your tax picture in the years surrounding it.
These decisions have consequences that follow you into retirement. They are worth getting right before they become urgent.
Most People Know They Should Do This
The plan keeps getting pushed back. There is always something more pressing. What most people find, once they actually sit down and work through it, is that having a clear picture changes things. Not just financially. In how they feel about what comes next.
Reach out to Maris CPA and we will help you build a retirement plan that reflects your actual situation, your targets, and what getting this right looks like from here.