As a fiduciary financial advisor in Mount Holly, Holland Capital helps people in plant and trades jobs plan for an early retirement, from health coverage before Medicare to when to start Social Security. We work with clients in Mount Holly by video and phone, and meet in person by appointment at the Regus center on Perimeter Parkway in Charlotte.
Your body may be ready to stop before 65. The plan has to be ready too.
Mount Holly has long been a manufacturing town, with a large truck plant and other production jobs. After decades of shifts on your feet, stopping at 60 or 62 can look better than waiting until 65 or later.
Retiring early is possible for some households. It usually means covering several years before Medicare and full Social Security, using savings that have to last longer.
The question is not only whether you can stop, but how the early years get paid for.
The Years Before Medicare
Medicare starts at 65. If you stop working before then, you need other health coverage.
Options may include a retiree plan from your employer, COBRA for a limited time or a plan from the marketplace. Marketplace costs depend partly on your income, so the way you draw from savings can change what you pay.
We put a real estimate for health coverage into the plan for each year before 65.
Getting to Your Savings Early
Before 59½, withdrawals from a 401(k) or IRA are generally taxed and also penalized 10%, with exceptions.
One exception matters most here. If you leave your employer in or after the year you turn 55, you can take money from that employer’s 401(k) without the penalty, if the plan allows withdrawals after you leave. The rule does not carry over if you roll that money into an IRA first, so the order of moves matters.
Our early retirement guide covers the other ways to reach savings before 59½.
RETIREMENT ENGINEERING™
The Order Matters
Five retirement decisions and why timing matters.
When to Start Social Security
You can claim Social Security at 62, but the check is permanently smaller than it would be at full retirement age. Waiting past full retirement age raises it further.
Retiring early does not mean you have to claim early. Savings can cover the first years so the larger check starts later.
We invest your savings according to a written investment policy statement. Because the early years draw the most from savings, it sets aside enough in steadier investments to cover them, so a market drop does not force you to sell stocks at a loss. Our guide on sequence of returns risk explains why the first years matter.
For an early retiree, our investment management starts with the income those years require.
How We Work with Clients in Mount Holly
Holland Capital Management is an independent registered investment adviser and a fiduciary. M. Chad Holland, CFA, CFP® works directly with clients and is responsible for the planning and advice.
Come with your latest 401(k) statement, any pension or retiree health information from your employer, your Social Security estimate and the age you would like to stop.
We test the age you want to stop, then compare it with a later retirement date so you can see the tradeoff.
The first conversation is free. If there is work worth doing after that, we will define the scope and cost before you decide whether to move forward.
Holland Capital is based in Charlotte. If you are looking for a fiduciary financial advisor in Mount Holly, we meet by appointment at the Regus center in the Linville Building, 10130 Perimeter Parkway in Charlotte, about 17 minutes from Mount Holly, and handle shorter check-ins by video or phone. Holland Capital does not maintain a branch office in Mount Holly.
We work with clients throughout North Carolina. You can see the other North Carolina communities we serve here.
Our what we do page explains how a planning engagement works.
RETIREMENT ENGINEERING™
The Order Matters
Five retirement decisions and why timing matters.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can a Fiduciary Financial Advisor Plan an Early Retirement?
Holland Capital acts as a fiduciary when providing financial planning and investment advice. That includes the years before Medicare and Social Security, and a test of whether your savings can carry them.
Leaving your 401(k) in the plan can be the better choice before 59½, even though we would be paid more if it moved to an IRA we manage. We tell you which choice we recommend and why.
Can I Retire at 55 and Use My 401(k)?
Possibly. Leave the job during or after the calendar year of your 55th birthday, and that plan’s withdrawals skip the 10% penalty. Income tax still applies.
It does not apply to IRAs. Money from earlier jobs is covered only if it was rolled into the current plan, and not every plan accepts that.
Where Would We Meet from Mount Holly?
We meet by appointment at the Regus center in the Linville Building, 10130 Perimeter Parkway in Charlotte, about 17 minutes from Mount Holly.
Follow-up reviews are done by phone or video.
Photo: RoxylovesHistory / Wikimedia Commons / CC BY-SA 3.0, cropped.
