Retirement Education Hour

Market volatility is inevitable, but how should you respond when the market takes a downturn, especially as retirement approaches? On this episode of the Retirement Education Hour, financial instructors Kirk Cassidy and Michael Masserant explore what market history can teach us about volatility, downturns, and recoveries. They explain how market declines affect retirees differently than those stil...

Retirement decisions are interconnected, and making them one at a time can lead to unintended consequences. When to claim Social Security, whether and when to convert funds to a Roth IRA, which accounts to withdraw from, and how to manage required minimum distributions (RMDs) can all affect your lifetime tax bill, Medicare premiums, and retirement income. In this episode, Kirk and Michael explain...

When should you retire? And how do you know you have enough to do it? In this episode, Kirk Cassidy and Michael Masserant break down the math behind determining when you can afford to retire and have the lifestyle you want. They challenge conventional retirement rules like the 4% rule and explain why retirement planning shouldn't rely on one-size-fits-all assumptions. You'll learn how to t...

Should you take the pension or the lump sum? Kirk and Michael explain why this decision cannot be reduced to a simple rule of thumb. The right answer comes down to the math, including taxes, timing, income needs, investment risk, and how long the money may need to last. They walk through the key factors to consider and explain why a pension election that makes sense for one person may not make sen...

What questions do people ask most often about retirement? In this episode of Retirement Education Hour, Kirk Cassidy and Michael Masserant tackle questions they regularly hear from listeners and students, including when you can afford to retire, how much you can afford to spend, and how your investments fit into the bigger picture of your retirement plan. The conversation focuses on a common theme...

Is your retirement plan designed for the next 30 years, or is it based on assumptions that may already be outdated? In this episode of the Retirement Education Hour, Kirk Cassidy and Michael Masserant explore one of the most overlooked aspects of retirement planning: adapting your strategy as life changes. They discuss how tax law changes, Social Security decisions, healthcare costs, market volati...

Retirement is one of the most heavily marketed industries in America. Dinner seminars, television shows, books, podcasts, free retirement plans, and social media all compete for your attention. The real challenge isn't avoiding the marketing, it's learning how to evaluate what's behind it. In this episode, Kirk Cassidy and Michael Masserant discuss why retirement savers are such a heav...

Save 10%, withdraw 4%, replace 80% of your income. Retirement advice is full of rules of thumb, but are they right for you? In this episode, Kirk and Michael examine several of the most common retirement guidelines and discuss where they may be helpful, where they may fall short, and why retirement decisions are rarely one-size-fits-all. Retirement Education Foundation is a Fiscally Sponsored Prog...

Retirement risks are not always what people expect. This episode explores why some of the biggest retirement challenges stem less from markets and more from planning, spending behavior, and financial decision-making. Kirk and Michael discuss retirement income, underspending, fear-driven choices, and why understanding how money should function in retirement can help retirees make more informed deci...

Many investors think retirement success is mainly about average return. In retirement, the timing of returns can matter just as much. In this episode, Kirk and Michael break down how losses early in retirement can have a greater impact than losses later on, why withdrawals can magnify that problem, and how income planning and asset allocation can work together to help manage this risk. Retirement...

Most investors think asset allocation means choosing a percentage of stocks and bonds based on retirement dates. In retirement, the timing of your money matters far more. This episode explains how sequence of returns risk, income timing, and portfolio structure influence retirement outcomes. Retirement Education Foundation is a Fiscally Sponsored Program of United Charitable, a registered 501(c)(3...

Roth conversions are widely discussed but often misunderstood. In this episode, we begin by defining how Roth accounts and conversions work, then examine why conversions have gained attention in recent years. We explore how required minimum distributions, survivor tax changes, and Medicare premiums influence the long-term impact of a conversion. This conversation is designed to help listeners unde...

Many people delay retirement not because they lack money, but because what they call a plan does not give them confidence to stop working. In this episode, Kirk and Paul explain why you do not need to know everything to retire, while also identifying the key questions a real retirement plan must answer. By understanding the difference between having information and having a plan, listeners can beg...

Many retirees are surprised to learn their taxes can increase after leaving the workforce. In this episode, we discuss how RMDs, Social Security taxation, and Medicare premiums affect retirement income, and why the years after retirement present important planning considerations. Educational insight to help you better understand tax exposure in retirement. - Retirement Education Foundation is a Fi...

Anxiety can quietly undermine retirement decisions. In this episode, Kirk Cassidy and Dr. Paul Metler examine how analysis paralysis and loss aversion influence spending, investing, and retirement timing, and how understanding these behaviors can support more confident financial decision-making. Retirement Education Foundation is a Fiscally Sponsored Program of United Charitable, a registered 501(...

Without a clear plan, many retirees end up passing away with about the same amount of money they had when they retired, or even more. Why? Because they have been living off pensions and Social Security, only withdrawing interest and growth as required by RMDs. In this episode, Kirk and Paul explain why that often was not the original intention. They explore how two key issues, a lack of a structur...

In this episode of the Retirement Education Hour, Kirk Cassidy and Dr. Paul Metler unpack five critical and avoidable risks that can quietly erode even the most carefully built retirement plans. These often-unaddressed risks go well beyond market performance and can affect everything from income stability to tax exposure and long-term care. Kirk and Paul walk through how an integrated strategy tha...

Only 40% of people actually choose when they retire. In this episode, Kirk Cassidy and Michael Masserant explain how layoffs and automation are driving unexpected retirements—and why that timing can be financially devastating without a plan. They unpack the concept of sensitivity risk and show how market volatility can amplify its impact. If you're still working, it's worth asking: are you...

Kirk Cassidy and Dr. Paul Metler break down the current government shutdown and why it’s more headline than threat to your retirement. They explain the real risk isn’t the shutdown itself, but how investors react to it. Learn why staying disciplined and focused on long-term planning is key to weathering short-term noise. Retirement Education Foundation is a Fiscally Sponsored Program of United Cha...

Kirk Cassidy and Michael Masserant break down what the financial service industry often gets wrong about retirement. They explore how the accumulation stage, which involves building retirement savings while working, has been overcomplicated by unnecessary products. Meanwhile, the distribution phase, which is about turning savings into income, has been dangerously oversimplified by outdated rules o...

This month, the Federal Reserve cut interest rates for the first time in 2025. Kirk Cassidy and Michael Masserant, CFP® break down what the move means for retirement planning. Later, Dr. Paul Metler joins the conversation to explore how rate changes and market headlines can shape retiree psychology and decision-making. Register for an advanced retirement education course at https://refedu.org/cour...

Kirk and Paul always say, “The plan drives everything,” but what does that really mean in practice? In this episode, they unpack the deeper truth behind that phrase, showing how it is really the math behind the plan that makes all the difference. They explain how the numbers guide every major retirement decision: where to take income from, when to convert to Roth, how to avoid tax traps, and how t...

Most retirement advice is about what not to do. This episode flips that. Kirk Cassidy and Dr. Paul Metler uncover four overlooked ways to make retirement work harder for you. From taking control of your pension decision to using pivot accounts to protect your income in down markets, you learn how retirement is not all about fear. Packed with practical strategies for anyone within 10 years of retir...

Most retirement plans focus on returns—but the real threats come from blind spots. In this episode, we break down the four major risks that can derail retirement if left unaddressed: Market risk – How early losses and withdrawals can devastate even strong portfolios. Long-term care risk – The financial and emotional impact of unexpected care needs. Spousal risk – Why taxes often go up when a spous...

In this episode of the Retirement Education Hour, Kirk and Dr. Paul dig further into the recently passed One Big Beautiful Bill, which affects retirement age individuals to a greater degree. They focus specifically to taxes and how the OBBB will impact what you have to pay to the Federal government. Register for one of our almost Master's level advanced retirement courses: https://retirementpl...