Easy Steps to Plan for Retirement Success

10.13.23: Audio automatically transcribed by Sonix

10.13.23: this mp3 audio file was automatically transcribed by Sonix with the best speech-to-text algorithms. This transcript may contain errors.

Producer:
Any examples used are for illustrative purposes only, and do not take into account your particular investment objectives, financial situation or needs and may not be suitable for all investors. It is not intended to predict the performance of any specific investment, and is not a solicitation or recommendation of any investment strategy.

Producer:
Welcome to The Buckeye Advisor with your host, Woody Bowling. Woody is a fiduciary, licensed financial advisor and Medicare expert who always places your needs first. Woody works hard each day to educate Americans like you on how to reach the financial freedom they've worked so hard for, and he can help you, too. So now let's start the show. Here's Woody Bowling.

Woody Bowling:
Good morning and welcome to this week's exciting, educational, informative and all the other things I can think of. Episode and show of The Buckeye Advisor. I am The Buckeye Advisor, also known as Woody Bowling. At least that was my given name at birth. I am happy to be here with you. I'm hopeful that you're listening. On the radio program 94.5 FM in Dayton, you can go to 945 dayton.com and listen to our show live Saturdays and Sundays between 9 a.m. and 10 a.m. this episode in particular is airing on Saturday, October 14th and Sunday, October 15th. Unbelievable. Is the middle of October already 2023 and I'm excited to be here. If you can't tell already, we just have another show brimming with information, brimming with wisdom. And speaking of wisdom, I couldn't go any further without bringing a wise producer and co-host who is always along for this enjoyable ride. For the last 16 months or so, Mister Matt McClure coming to us from the vibrant city of Atlanta, Georgia. Welcome, Matt. How was your week?

Producer:
It has been great, Woody. Yeah, let me tell you a busy, busy week. But you know what? I would rather be busy than bored. So there you go. I hope you've had a good one too.

Woody Bowling:
Yeah. Me too. I am very, very happy. It's been a busy week. Got back from vacation about a month ago, and since then it seems like it's been nonstop. A little sinus infection didn't slow me down too much, but I've got some great news for our listeners. I know we've talked off and on a couple of times about me getting into some office space. It's been a long time coming. I'm super excited to announce to our listeners that the office space is now almost basically ready for me to go my office. The final stages of it are getting finished this week. The sign is up and we are located at ten Royal Drive in Springboro, Ohio. 45066 that literally is on route 73 across from the police station in Springboro, right next to the United Dairy Farmers there as well. So if you come in for a meeting and you really like ice cream like most of us do, we'll have to make a sundae or milkshake happen since there's no charge for the consultation or meeting. So I'm super excited to sign. Looks awesome. I am with Patton Insurance Company and Troy Patton is the long time friend of mine. For over 20 years.

Woody Bowling:
He's been in the insurance industry for 15, 20 years, and his focus is on home and auto insurance. And I love that. And we think we will compliment each other well in the business that we provide for our clients. So looking forward to that. At ten Royal Drive, look for the sign The Buckeye Advisor. It's even got the phone number on it. So Matt, we've got a big show. It's been a wacky week in the stock market again as it seems like every week. The last month especially has been great news, followed by poor news. We've got the fighting in Israel that's happening now with Hamas attacking Israel and then Israel now retaliating. Many people believe we're on the brink of World War three. I'm not so sure that's going to happen, at least not right now. I think cooler heads will ultimately prevail, but it's been affecting the stock market. And if you're concerned about your your savings in the stock market, your retirement plans, that's a great reason to talk to me about how we can help you manage some of that risk. And, Matt, what else is on the plate this week on the show? Yeah, we.

Producer:
Got a lot here, Woody. And congratulations on The Office, by the way. That is a great, great thing that that is moving forward. Excited for you there. We yeah we got a lot you know we've got a new survey here to go through about how Americans are feeling about the economy. You mentioned right there. You know a lot of uncertainty, a lot of, you know, doubts about the future, the immediate future, the the, you know, far reaching years down the line as well. And so we'll go through that and, and maybe, you know, spell out some things where people do have some concerns and how to alleviate some of those concerns. Also, we'll do a problem solver segment here. And it's a it's an extra large helping of problem solver this week because we've got three different real life examples of how people like you, our listeners built their retirement wealth. Also Medicare, the annual enrollment period. I know, Woody, that is a is a big part of your business. It's you talked about it being busy since you got back from vacation about a month ago. Boy, I'll tell you, it's probably going to get even busier here over this next week or so as the. Ep time period ramps up, huh?

Woody Bowling:
I think so, and that's enjoyable for me. I'm like you, Matt. I'd rather be busy than twiddling my thumbs. I don't. Not much of a thumb twiddler, but very excited to help people with Medicare and understanding it. We're going to cover a lot of it later in the show today, and it always makes me think. When you said the survey we were talking about, I always think of Family Feud surveys, says, and I think that's actually filmed in Atlanta. Wouldn't you know it, but think we've got some good stuff. Let's get started with the financial wisdom. What do you think the quote of the week.

Producer:
And now wholesome financial wisdom. It's time for the quote of the week.

Producer:
And this week, our words of wisdom come from the one and only Eleanor Roosevelt. Yeah, the former first lady of the United States, of course, the wife of Franklin Delano Roosevelt and Eleanor Roosevelt, said this, quote, it takes as much energy to wish as it does to plan. Boy, that is very, very true. And I feel like, you know, if you're going to spend the energy, you might as well come up with a plan instead of just sitting and kind of daydreaming and wishing and hoping and all of that. Because wishing and hoping and all and everything is great to have wishes and dreams. But those do not equal a plan.

Woody Bowling:
Yeah, 100% true. And it goes back. There's an old saying, a scientific thing, I believe, about inertia. And a body at rest tends to remain at rest unless it's acted upon by an outside force. And, you know, that force might be this show. You know, you've been cruising along and your planning, you've got your investments here, you got them there, and you're just saying, hey, your broker is telling you this is the way you need to do it. Maybe this show will be an impetus for you to consider talking to me about. Maybe it maybe we should rebalance some things. Maybe we should look at some different things in the old paradigm. We're going to talk about a couple of paradigms here in a little bit of how investments and withdrawing from those investments apply in real life, but we can tell you that the old way is not always necessarily the best way. And as a hybrid fiduciary advisor, what I enjoy the most is what I believe I bring two people to the table is a knowledge of insurance, whether it be health insurance, life insurance and in in Medicare. And then bring all that in, along with the understanding and the ability to help people establish a living trust. That is another thing that we can help people save money on and help them set up a living trust that will help them avoid probate, especially if you're a state is under a million, even under 500,000, you need to have a trust.

Woody Bowling:
A will is okay, but it's not the preferred method. You want to avoid probate, which can cost an estate thousands and thousands of extra dollars. Not to mention it's public and it's also time consuming six months to 18 months on average. So Eleanor Roosevelt knew what she's talking about. You know, we want people to just not always be comfortable with the way they're doing it. Sometimes a second opinion and an understanding of some ways you can see things differently. Protecting a part of your retirement savings, especially through some of these lean times that we've had in the market in the last two years, because we all know these times are going to happen, and it's about the plan. And are you ready for that? And that's what I'm hoping to do. I hope people do that. You know, call me. My number is (937) 974-6201. Or you can go to the website TheBuckeyeAdvisor.com. And that's advisor with an r.com. And hit the request contact form. Fill it in. Shoot me an email. It'll come to me automatically and I'll reach right back out to you very quickly. No cost, no charge to have that conversation.

Producer:
Yeah. And it's just a conversation. There is all that it is. And then, you know, you'll do the deep dive into people's particular financial situation and, you know, really go and come up with a plan for them. And if it makes sense to work together, you'll do it. And we'll have, of course, more on that as we go through the show as well today. Well, you know, got to get out my, my Steve Harvey suit. You know, he he always looks so sharp on that show. You know I need like a very good, a good three piece suit like that. But Steve Harvey always I think probably the best host of Family Feud survey says that's what we're going to talk about right now. Not Family Feud, but a survey of a lot of advisors. This is actually a 2023 financial advisor survey conducted by Insured Retirement Institute, or IRI. American's financial concerns really increasing in recent years, and people do have a lot of concerns these days. Woody kind of run us through the numbers here and and share that with us, if you will.

Woody Bowling:
Yeah, 79% of their clients are worried about inflation. Hey, look, I'm an advisor and I'm worried about inflation because I'm also a consumer as well. 70% of our clients are worried about a recession, 65% are worried about losing a lot of money in the stock market. Well, if that's the case, you know, part of what I bring to the table in our retirement planning strategies is we want to take some of the risks, some of the money off the table and say, we're going to protect the principal on that portion. We can also create a living benefit, meaning a guaranteed lifetime income that will you can't outlive. And we don't know what's going to happen with Social Security in ten years. I hope they don't wait that long to address it. I don't think they will. But you never know. With the idiots that we have running the country in the Senate, the House and everywhere else. So 57% are worried about their ability to maintain their lifestyle in retirement. And those are all four points that are very concerning for my clients and for the other financial advisors that were surveyed in this, in this survey. I mean, it's a it's a big deal. In the last three, four years since the Covid pandemic, inflation. A new administration, policies that were enacted to force us to go green more quickly, the backlog in the supply chains to China and back to our country. Now we have conflicts in what Ukraine has been going on for 18 months with Ukraine and Russia. Now we have Israel and the Palestinians. So there's a lot of things brewing out there. There's a lot of uncertainty. So now more than ever, it makes sense to consider taking a portion of your retirement savings and putting it somewhere safe that you can grow it when the market does well. But when the market goes down, you lose nothing. And plus you can get those other living benefits we've already talked about. And we'll talk about a little bit more later.

Producer:
Yeah. Absolutely. Right. I mean, people really do want to get to the guarantees in life and get to the guarantees in their retirement plan. That was actually kind of the big takeaway from a separate survey that people wanted downside protection. So protection against losses, loss of their principal and guaranteed retirement income. And you know, Woody, when we think about income in retirement, you know, a lot of people, if they've been sort of mulling over how to get how to generate income in retirement, a lot of them might be familiar with the 4% rule, right? I mean, that's something that's been around for decades now. Talk about the 4% rule, if you will, and what that means and how it's possible to do better than the 4% rule, because these days, you know, I mean, we've seen revisions of that. I think it was at Wall Street Journal article not all that long ago that said, you know, cut that down to, you know, even 3% or something, something like that, where you know, the money can because of inflation, you know, the dollar doesn't go as far. You might need to take less each year to make it actually last a longer period of time. So it's, you know, not a good situation.

Woody Bowling:
While the 4% rule has been around for a long time. And it just basically said, if you retire with $300,000, let's say for a round number, that you don't withdraw more than 4% of that on an annual basis, so 4% of 300,000, I believe, if my math is correct, is around 12,000 bucks. That's $1,000 a month roughly, right. So the concerns are if, let's say, the stock market and you retire. This year, and the stock market goes down 20% as it did last year. Or it goes down 15%. Guess what? Your 4% that you're withdrawing is going to eat away a bigger piece. Or now you have to readjust to that new balance. Now you're already giving yourself you're not giving yourself a raise in retirement. Now you're giving yourself a decrease in your monthly spending. Your monthly income is just decreased. So I also have a couple of articles that I will be happy to share with people if they request them. Articles earlier this year in The New York Times talking about how annuities have gained popularity because they provide things that just an investment account don't provide, and that's namely security and guarantees and safety and also income that's guaranteed for life, period. Because all I deal with on the insurance side, which is the safe money part of my business, is highly rated insurance companies. A fixed indexed annuity can offer all those guarantees, bonuses on the deposit that comes in. And guess what? You can possibly do better. You can possibly generate as much from an annuity on a guaranteed lifetime basis, with only a portion of that retirement savings going into that annuity.

Woody Bowling:
And that is the super cool part about this, is that part of your income becomes guaranteed. And like you said earlier, Matt, people, as we get older and we start looking at retirement and they're coming down that retirement runway, they want some security. They want peace of mind. That's how people sleep. Well, they're not sleeping well right now with the ups and downs in the market. Unless you have just a ginormous sum and you're insulated from the day to day things in the market. But most people, all that are, let's say, have a million or less or 500,000 or less. I work with people, all those places at in between, and everybody gets the same level of commitment of service from me. So the 4% rule, that's the risky part about it. There's no guarantees into it. It's strictly driven on this theory of whatever your investment account balance is, you just make adjustments and you try to stick with that. Well, if it goes down 20%, guess how much you need of an increase in the market. You need an increase of 25% in the market in your account, while at the same time you've been pulling money out of it every month. That makes it very difficult to ever catch back up. Right? So that's the the risky part. So a fixed indexed annuity, a deferred one, you can start the income now I took a lady a couple months ago.

Woody Bowling:
She had a variable annuity, was paying almost 5% a year in annual fees. We reduced her annual fee to 1%. We took her income up 15% per month, which was a very nice kick for her. And she was in her 70s. You don't have to be in your 70s to do an annuity. You could do one in your 50s, you could do one in your 60s, and you could just let it roll because they're going to give you some guarantees. On the income crediting side of the account. You can defer the income for two years, five years, ten years. And guess what? Your annuity is growing, its principal protected. And we have virgins that have no annual fee. And then we have virgins that have a 1% annual fee, depending on what your appetite is and how much growth you're comfortable with. But we're looking at safe, long term growth, protection of principal and some guaranteed lifetime income. Those are the most appealing things. And your money's not locked in forever with an annuity because it's today's annuities are not what they were 15, 20, 25 years ago. So that's why they were one of the fastest growing financial vehicles on the planet. And I'm super happy that I'm able to help people. You know, with those there's penalty free withdrawals each year, 10%, usually all kinds of good stuff. So it's just finding the right situation for my client, their unique situation, because everybody is different. And that's what makes the whole part of my job fun.

Producer:
Yeah. And that's why we also say, you know, reach out to Woody Boling for your own customized retirement plan. You can get started on that by giving a call to . You can also go to the website at TheBuckeyeAdvisor.com, The Buckeye Advisor. All one word and advisor has an or at the end by the way.com. And it's you know there's no obligation no cost with that. And people might be wondering Woody you know what's it like. I give The Buckeye Advisor a call or I go to the website, request that consultation. What's it like? I've never met with a financial advisor before. Maybe, or I've met with somebody, didn't really like the experience. So I've got that bad taste in my mouth. How's this going to be any different?

Woody Bowling:
Yeah. You know, it's hard to speak to previous experiences. I'd like to tell people that the person they hear on the radio that likes to have fun, that enjoys life, that enjoys helping people no matter how little or how much money you have. We're going to come up with some ideas for you. The overall idea of what I do is to really have an understanding, and how I can be most effective is when I am able to ask questions that will help me gather enough information to make informed research decisions, and come back with a set of suggestions and ideas on how we can help your particular situation. So as a listener, you deserve that personalized service. You deserve a situation, a solution that's unique to you. Smart risk on the investment advisory side, where we tactically manage client money, we do that through Brookstone Capital Management, based out of Chicago and unbelievably fantastic investment firm that I love working with. They're who my license is underneath. So we mix a smart risk and smart safe. It's all based on the information that I can gather from you when we sit down. I am the same person. You're going to have my cell phone number. You can reach out to me whenever you need to. If you need to meet in the evening to talk, or if you need to meet on a Saturday to review your situation because you're still working and you don't get home until 6:00. Well, we can meet at 6:00 or we can meet on Saturday. We could watch the Ohio State Buckeyes play together if you want for a while while we talk. So, you know, if you're a Michigan fan, we may have to charge a consultation fee. Matt, if you'll approve that. If not, I may have to take that back.

Producer:
Yeah. No it's got it's got to be free. Got to be free for everybody even even if they like a different sports team. But yeah. No, it's it's something where, you know, I think the people who might be intimidated by it just don't necessarily they don't know The Buckeye Advisor. And I can attest to the fact to folks that what you hear on the radio is what you're going to get when you meet with Woody Boling in person. And, you know, there are several questions that you'll, you know, work together to answer. And things like, what is a successful retirement look to you, look like to you? What are your goals? Who are you going to be or what are you going to be doing? Rather, who are you going to be with during your retirement years? Right. You know, how do you plan to fund your retirement? How do you plan to create income each month? As we've talked about, there are several questions. And it's not like, you know, there's anything to be intimidated about because it is a lot and it is your future. We're talking about. But Woody is going to be on the same side of the table as you working for your interests. And that's what being a fiduciary is all about.

Woody Bowling:
Yeah for sure. I mean, you know, the 100%, you know, my a lot of the investment management strategies that are available to my clients, I have my own money in those strategies. A lot. I own a fixed indexed annuity. I offer those to my clients and they work in a lot of situations. I help people with Medicare, and I've been doing it for 14 years, over 14 years now. So we're going to talk about Medicare a little bit later. But all those are great points and you've got nothing to lose. But you have a lot to gain potentially if everything comes together. And we agree that it's the right fit to work together and most of the time it does. But if you want honesty, not every time I meet with somebody do we work together. If your expectation is 50% higher and I'm not comfortable with it, I'm not going to offer to work with you. And then on the other hand, I've had, you know, a handful of people over the years say, I don't think we're a good fit. Then maybe they stayed with their current advisor, or maybe they kept doing it on their own.

Woody Bowling:
I know I've met with people off and on over the years that do their own investments. That's a great idea. Until something happens to you. This week I lost a classmate who was about two years younger than me from high school. He passed away suddenly of heart failure. I actually had been in conversations with him about some family money that he had inherited, and also his mother's situation, who was having some who still is having some memory issues and things. So just spoke to him about a week ago and he passed away yesterday. So we don't know what life's going to hold us. But if you're investing and doing it all yourself, that's great. But ask yourself this if you pass tomorrow, will your spouse be able to do everything? Will they be able to, through the emotions of the ups and downs of the market, continue to do it that way? Or would they be better served by having a financial quarterback like me, a fiduciary, to help look after their best interest?

Producer:
Stick around. We've got our problem solver segment coming up in the next segment. We'll also talk about Medicare, the EAP annual enrollment period is upon us, and we'll have details about that as well. And the dad joke of the week. It's my favorite part of the show, I know, and I hope it's yours too. Stick around. We got much more The Buckeye Advisor still to come.

Producer:
You're listening to The Buckeye Advisor to schedule your free, no obligation consultation with Woody, visit TheBuckeyeAdvisor.com.

Producer:
Fixed annuities, including multiyear guaranteed rate annuities, are not designed for short term investments and may be subject to restrictions, fees and surrender charges as described in the annuity contract. Guarantees are backed by the financial strength and claims paying ability of the issuer. Welcome back to The Buckeye Advisor. I'm Matt McClure here alongside Woody Boling. He is by fame and fortune and reputation. All of the above. The Buckeye Advisor himself. You can find out more about the show, listen to past episodes, and even reach out to Woody for a free consultation by going to TheBuckeyeAdvisor.com. That's The Buckeye Advisor with an o r at the end.com. You can also call Woody at (937) 974-6201.

Producer:
The marriage counselor loves him, keeps him in business. It's the dad joke of the week.

Producer:
I look forward to it every week. I know that's true for many of our listeners as well. All right. What do you give it to us? The dad joke of the week.

Woody Bowling:
Matt, why do melons have weddings?

Producer:
I'm almost afraid to ask. Why do melons have weddings?

Woody Bowling:
Because they can't elope.

Producer:
Oh.

Woody Bowling:
Oh, see where I went there? I can't elope, can't elope? Oh my goodness, I love that. That's probably one of my top five of the, I don't know, 60 or 70 we've done so far. I like that.

Producer:
I like that one too. The the old play on words trick, eh. There you go. Oh my goodness. All right folks. Well that's another free dad joke. Just like the consultation. It's absolutely free. And you know, maybe you'll get something out of it. At least a chuckle an eye roll. But you know, it's free of charge, so you can't can't really complain. We we've got much more great stuff to talk about in this half of the show. Starting off with.

Producer:
It's time for this week's problem Solver.

Producer:
And just as much as I look forward to the dad joke each and every week, I look forward to whenever we do a problem solver segment. Hearing that intro to this segment, because it's just so dramatic and kind of over the top and love it. So here we go. What happens in our problem solver segment here? We've got some real life examples of how what he was able to help some hardworking folks just like you out there listening, have a better retirement. I'm going to present the problem. Woody is going to talk about the solution to said problem. All right, so we've got three of them this week, which is like an extra large, super sized version of the problem solver this time around. So let's get to them here. Problem number one Jim and Susan, great married couple. They've been together for a long time, 40 years. As a matter of fact, they filed jointly on their taxes as a couple. They have monthly expenses of about $7,000. That turns out to be about 84,000 a year. Right? That's their expenses. He's got Social Security income of 34,000. Hers is 18,000 a year. So and then combine they also bring in a $52,000 from Social Security. So that's the combined number 52,000. So then they have $1 million in an IRA as well. And they're drawing that down according to the 4% rule. So 40,000 per year. So their total income is 92,000. That sounds on the surface sounds great right. Got expenses totaling about $84,000 a year. Their total income 92, you say. Oh they've got a retirement income surplus there. They're doing great, but not so much because they haven't paid taxes yet. And so by the time they pay the piper they're stuck with instead of an income surplus, a retirement income gap. So what say you about Jim and Susan's situation, Woody?

Woody Bowling:
Well, I say that we have a problem solver value meal for our listeners today. With three of them, it seems like. So that made me think of that for some reason. Maybe it's because I'm also hungry.

Producer:
But you talked about milkshakes earlier too. It's like, you know, we've got it's the food edition of the show today.

Woody Bowling:
So what we did basically, you know, the good news is they have a fantastic IRA contribution, total thanks to great planning through a lot of years of hard work with their 401 K's which roll over into IRAs. Okay, so that's where a lot of people generate the majority of their retirement savings through their 401 K. So take advantage of those early and often, push back and give as much as you can comfortably without affecting your lifestyle in a negative way. So that's our words of advice. About 401 K contributions. After we've met with them, we took 40% of their assets and put it in a fixed indexed annuity. They're not. And the annuity provides a 10% bonus credited to the annuity. For now, they're going to live on the hundred grand they've got in checking and savings, plus the Social Security income. And they're going to defer the guaranteed income piece on that fixed indexed annuity. They haven't decided for sure. They're going to defer it at least two years maybe three. Well guess what they got. They have growth in that annuity. In the meanwhile some guarantees there. If the stock market the rest of their money has a decline. That's okay. It's not what we want, but it's not going to be harmful to their guaranteed income that they're going to get from the fixed indexed annuity. And that's the big thing, whether they start it in year three or year four, that guaranteed income is actually going to provide them a raise.

Woody Bowling:
So they're going to go from today's retirement income gap to a surplus in 3 or 4 years. And they're in the driver's seat. They're the ones that control. Yes. We want to start that guaranteed income now or we'd like to wait a little bit longer. So you're in the driver's seat. I'm just helping you come up with strategies that will give you some options. And these options will actually meet those retirement income needs. And that's the cool thing about this, to have a financial quarterback or teammate on your team to tell you things that your broker today or your 401 K company, or the old 401 K at an old employer, they're not going to tell you any of this. You're not going to get that. Your current broker with some of the big name wirehouse firms. They're going to tell you keep your money in the market. Well guess what. Two years later, the bond market is still getting shellacked. Long term treasuries getting shellacked. So there's different ideas, different solutions that that I have as a hybrid advisor that works in the insurance and the investment world. And we're going to blend those together to come up like we did with Jim and Susan, a plan that makes great sense. Yeah.

Producer:
Absolutely does and make great sense for them in their particular situation. And that again folks, is what it's all about, is coming up with a plan for you in your particular situation. Speaking of those situations, problem number two here has to do with Judy, who is a widow. Her husband, Jerry, sadly passed away last year, and so she began receiving his Social Security income. Pretty good chunk of change there as far as Social Security goes, 41,000 a year. But then, of course, she lost her own Social Security that she had been getting in addition to her husband. So just goes to the husband's because his was the greater of the two. Good news though, for Judy. She owns her home, but she's got $5,000 a month still in expenses. That's about $1,500 more than Social Security pays her each month. So. So what's the solution there? We're looking at another retirement income gap, Woody.

Woody Bowling:
Well, I'm thankful for Judy being a listener to the show, and that's huge. And I appreciate that. And the fact that I'm honored that I was given the opportunity to learn more about her situation. Sad that Jerry has passed away. And that's the thing that people don't always get in in retirement is how significant. You know, you've got to be ready when you go into retirement with your expenses, and you got to keep those under control. The ideal situation is have your house or condo or residence have that paid off entirely. So all you're paying is perhaps a condo fee or association fee if you have a condo or just taxes and insurance if you have a single family residence, get that mortgage paid off early. If you can make the sacrifices now to do it early, do it. It makes a lot of sense. So watch your expenses. But when you lose a spouse, you lose. Even though she jumped up to his Social Security income, which as you said, was a nice amount, the problem is she lost her home and they already had these expenses built at a level that they're used to sharing the expenses, because after so many years of marriage, people just get used to the idea, you know, we're going to be alive forever. And so many people don't think of what if and have that safety net, that safety plan in place. And that's where as an advisor, I can help you do that.

Woody Bowling:
So whether you're 50, 55, 60 or 75 and already in retirement, I can help you come up with solutions and planning and we can change strategies. But with her, you know, we're able to. We did a $600,000 fixed indexed annuity. She gets a 10% bonus on that as well. That's an extra $60,000 before taxes. She's got another $500,000 in an IRA that she doesn't touch, and she's got 15 grand sitting in her checking and savings. So now she's in an income surplus. And then at the end of each year, we're going to buy a multi year guaranteed annuity or a fixed indexed annuity to increase your income and keep those expenses well below her income level. And she's able to pay herself through these solutions. And her other advisor would never tell her about a fixed indexed annuity or a multi year guaranteed annuity. And that's where she's so happy. Like many of my clients, they've never heard of this. They never heard of these guaranteed income solutions. They've always been used to all of their money being at risk in the market in stock funds and mutual funds. That do stocks and bonds. That's all they've known. So when you learn something different, you have an opportunity to broaden your horizons. It's a different way to do things, and it's more effective for most people I talk with.

Producer:
Yeah. And you know, I mean if you don't try something new. You don't grow a lot of the time. It's what they say. The definition of insanity, doing the same thing over and over again, expecting a different result. And so if you just stay the stay the course in the markets and all of that, there's going to be eventually market upheaval, as we are seeing right now that instability in the markets. And, you know, you might not be in such a good place when it comes to your retirement income potential. Why not, you know, get to those guarantees, like we've been saying and good on Judy. She was able to do that. And one more here in our problem solver segment. This one has to do with a nice lady named Dorothy. She is a divorcee. She's in her late 60s, owns her home, but still has to pay about $5,000 in property taxes. Her monthly expenses are right around $3,000. So she is. Of these three problems, the lowest expense wise, Social Security pays her about $3,100 a month. So if your expenses are 3000, your Social Security is 3100 a month. Boy, that's cutting it close. So what's the solution there for Miss Dorothy?

Woody Bowling:
Well, you're right, cutting it close is is definitely the best way to put that. But, you know, Matt, I've kept up on this over the last couple of years, and it's all over the newspaper. It's all over in a lot of news articles today, a big concern for homeowners of all ages is now the assessed value that's going to be coming from the county auditor's office. And these increases are going to be in the 20 to 40% range. Now, that doesn't mean the property taxes are going to go up in a direct, proportionate amount, but they still can go up ten, 20, 25%. And her property taxes at five grand. That's a high amount. And there are certain counties in my area, just like in the Atlanta area that are worse to deal with that are much assessed at a much higher rate on their property taxes than the county I live in. So Warren County is much more lenient than Montgomery County. Way different in Hamilton County and Cincinnati way different. Just as bad as Montgomery County.

Woody Bowling:
So the good news.

Woody Bowling:
Is she's been a good saver. She has about 800 grand saved up, and she actually still does some consulting part time work in retirement. And that brings in a little bit extra money every month. She doesn't want to really mess with her savings until a year or two as she turns 70 at that point. So at that point we're going to take 300 grand and we're going to put it in an annuity that's going to give her some guaranteed income. And that's what she's looking for. Like most of our listeners, we know that you're looking for some guarantees. Whether you're 55 or 65, you're five years away, seven years away or ten years away or. One year away from retirement or one month away, so it's never too late to check with me to get that solution that you might need. So she's going to do that with the annuity. Until then, she's going to live off some of the money she's got in $100,000 investment account. She's a great example altogether of keeping her expenses in line in check, whatever term you want to use. And also, I'm happy to help her come up with these strategies that make sense for her. It's not one size fits all. It's based upon your situation.

Woody Bowling:
Some people are further along with bigger sums. Lump sums of money. I'm talking to a guy that I probably am going to not work with him for a year, year and a half, but he's got between him and his wife a million and a half in their two 401 K plans. He's got probably two thirds of that in his. So they're a year, year and a half away from being clients. But in the meanwhile, we're doing some advisory stuff on their 401 K. Where to put it. Try to get the most bang for your buck in the meanwhile. And that's what they want. We are we're already establishing how much income they're going to want in retirement. He's a spreadsheet kind of guy, which is great. He's very detail oriented. Um. And I am detail oriented. I'm just not a big keeper of spreadsheets all the time. But God love the people that are blessed with that talent because it's just not me. But happy to help Dorothy and also happy to throw out some solutions for all the other people that are going to be reaching out next week, the weekend, whenever they want. I'm going to be here to respond. Yeah, that's.

Producer:
Right. And the reason that we share these situations and these real life examples, folks, is that maybe you can see yourself in one of them. And whether or not, though you can relate to one of these particular scenarios, what you do need is a plan that is tailored to your specific needs. So what you need to do? Pick up that phone, give Woody a call as he just said, whenever you are ready, and we hope that it is sooner than later because the best time to plan is now, right? 93797462019379746201. You can also go to the website at TheBuckeyeAdvisor.com for a free consultation. Now Woody, I'm going to go ahead and let's do this for about the last oh 8.5 minutes of the show we got here. It is a big time of the year, I know, for for you in your line of work, it is Medicare's annual enrollment period underway October 15th, running through December 7th. Very busy time of the year where people really do either their their, you know, first, now eligible for social for Social Security, for Medicare or they are you reviewing things for the following year. It does get busy, but there are a lot of decisions to be made potentially.

Woody Bowling:
There are, and I've been doing it for 14, 15 years now. And as an independent advisor, I'm licensed with multiple insurance companies that have been around for 50, 70, 80, 100 years that do Medicare plans in Ohio, Indiana and Kentucky. I'm licensed in all of those, but most everything I do is in Ohio. Look, several years ago, there was always, it seems like this time of year there would be. A lot more reason for people to change. But over the last few years, those enrolled in Medicare Advantage plans, which include part D prescription they cover, part A hospital. Part B doctor bills. So all your in a Medicare advantage plan, all your parts of Medicare A, B and D are all rolled up into one. And these insurance companies are very competitive with each other because they're when you sign up with them as a, as a client, you get your ID card from them. And once you do, they become the provider of your coverage. They handle all the billing, they negotiate with the doctors, hospitals and all that. They provide the copayments on prescriptions. I can tell you, Matt, with a sure thing in my wording 2024 plan benefits this year. Coming up, this annual enrollment period, October 15th to December 7th, there are a couple plans that are so, so different and aggressive than anything that I've seen in several years, and I think it gives people some reason to consider, does it make sense for me to change? You know, for example, all the plans pretty much for a primary care doctor visit co-payment? It's been zero for the last 3 or 4 years.

Woody Bowling:
That's great. But a specialist visit typically is $35. Well guess what? Some people see a specialist every month or a couple times a month. It just depends on their situation. There is a plan depending on the county you live in. Of course, next year there's a plan where the specialist visit is going to be zero, and that is an amazing savings for a lot of people that use their their insurance a lot. Another example, the usual maximum out of pocket per year for a Medicare advantage plan usually runs from 4200 to about 6000, depending on the insurance company. Next year, one of the insurance companies maximum out of pocket is going to be $3,000. So if a client gets hospitalized a couple of times during the year, they can meet that 4540, $205,000 max out of pocket. But how about if that max out of pocket is only 3000? Well, if you're in one of the counties that this plan is going to be in and it's been it's going to be in quite a few of the counties around where I live and where our listeners are mostly listening. That's a phenomenal opportunity. Tier one and tier two drugs will be zero copay at the pharmacy and not just in mail order.

Woody Bowling:
They can actually pick it up. A lot of people are not comfortable doing 90 day mail order pharmacy for their prescriptions. Hey, this one's for you. Tier one, tier twos, no co-payment, and you can pick it up at your local pharmacy. So some tremendous different benefits that are available. Coming up. I've got another insurance carrier that's going to offer $165 per month, one 6490 back into their Social Security each month as a credit to their Medicare Part B, and there's no income limitations at all on that. So people that don't use their plan much, you can get 164 90 back in your Social Security check beginning in January. That's a boost for your income, right? I mean, what can you do with that? As a retiree, with all the inflation that we've experienced over the last couple of years. So Medicare can be a complicated topic, but I try to simplify it. I've got a one page sheet that I explain how Medicare works overall, and by working with multiple carriers, I want to be able to provide the most comprehensive network of doctors and hospitals prescriptions. Extra things like over the counter benefits are available in all of them. Silver sneakers. There's so many different things, and believe me when I tell you the companies I work with, you'll know all the names because they're sending people tons of mail right now. They're running advertisements on TV already, and starting the 15th of October, I can start signing people up for their plans for next year.

Woody Bowling:
And I'm super excited about that, because Medicare Advantage plans is not all I do, but it's probably 98% of what I do, and it works so well for so many people. And when you have somebody that can help you, guide you through it, and then be a phone call away from that person to help you throughout the year, you know, that's why people work with me and I encourage people, let's talk about your Medicare. And while we're at it, we can talk about other things. You have questions about whether they be some savings and if you don't have any savings, you don't have any money. That's okay. Still, call me about Medicare. We can talk about that and work with that. Certainly not all of my clients with Medicare have money with me or have that type of planning with me. On the financial side, a lot do, but a lot don't also. So I'm here to help in all those different ways, and there's no charge for me helping with Medicare. I get paid the same no matter which Medicare company I work with. It's all the same. It's regulated by Medicare. So that would give people good reason to trust the fact that we're just going to find the best Medicare plan out there. And that's what it's all about.

Producer:
It really is. And it's, you know, can be confusing. I remember last year about this time we referred to the alphabet soup of Medicare and how it can be very, very confusing. But if one person knows the ins and outs, who I know that person would be Woody Bowling. And you can.

Woody Bowling:
Know that guy too.

Producer:
I know he's a good guy, I like him, I like him a lot. TheBuckeyeAdvisor.com is the website that's The Buckeye Advisor with an or.com. You can also call Woody at (937) 974-6201 for help sort of navigating and making sense out of all the the alphabet soup there. Well, Woody, that's going to just about do it for this time around as the clock ticks down here. But I've enjoyed it once again, sir. It's flown by and we'll do it again next time.

Woody Bowling:
Yeah, I'm surprised.

Woody Bowling:
It goes by so quickly. But then again, I'm not, because we we strive to bring a lot of information in what we consider a short amount of time, although it flies each week. And I'm so happy to have you along again, Matt. Great to be here this week. Most of all, thank you for listening on the podcast or.

Woody Bowling:
Live on the radio.

Woody Bowling:
Or a replay on my website as well. Thanks for coming. We look forward. We hope we said something today that helped you, or touched you, or motivated you to think about getting in touch with me to help find solutions that I can help you with. God bless and we want everybody to have a great week and you as well. Matt. We'll see you again next time.

Producer:
Thanks for listening to The Buckeye Advisor. You deserve to work with an experienced and licensed expert who will strategically work to protect and grow your hard earned assets. To schedule your free, no obligation consultation with Woody, visit TheBuckeyeAdvisor.com or pick up the phone and call (937) 974-6201. That's (937) 974-6201. Investment advisory services offered through Brookstone Capital Management LLC, BCM, a registered investment advisor. Bcm and The Buckeye Advisor are independent of each other. Insurance products and services are not offered through BCM, but are offered and sold through individually licensed and appointed agents. Investments involve risk and, unless otherwise stated, are not guaranteed. Past performance cannot be used as an indicator to determine future results. Are you interested in protecting your retirement savings from market volatility, rising taxes, and economic uncertainty? Then tune in to The Buckeye Advisor with Woody Boling to learn how you can protect and grow your hard earned money. The Buckeye Advisor Saturdays and Sundays at 9 a.m. right here on Newstalk 94.5 FM. Schedule your free, no obligation consultation now at TheBuckeyeAdvisor.com.

Producer:
Fixed annuities, including multiyear guaranteed rate annuities, are not designed for short term investments and may be subject to restrictions, fees and surrender charges as described in the annuity contract. Guarantees are backed by the financial strength and claims paying ability of the issuer.

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