Most people do not know how to go about updating their financial plan. Here are a few steps you can take to help ensure a successful financial plan update.

Gather comprehensive and accurate account information.

Year-end statements contain detailed information that can promote the accuracy of your plan. Statements that include account holdings, account values, and contribution data can help you ensure the integrity of the asset allocation and the projected calculations in your analysis.

• Provide detailed outside account statements from the current month or previous quarter.
• Visit ssa.gov to access your most recent Social Security earnings statement.
• Obtain an in-force illustration for each of your life insurance policies.

Assess your goals and objectives.

Reviewing the goals included in your financial plan can help you keep your financial behaviors on track. Your Stifel Financial Advisor can help you adjust your existing goals, decisions, and behaviors to better align with any new goals that you would like to include in your plan moving forward.

• Review and prioritize your goals so we can help you implement financial strategies that maximize your available resources.
• Provide details for any future income streams you will have available to go toward your goals.
• If you are fortunate enough to have a pension available at retirement, consider market risk, inflation risk, and personal attributes, such as self-control and longevity, before selecting a payout option.
  
  

Consider significant life events.

Life-changing events can considerably impact your financial plan. By reviewing your plan on an annual basis, you can assess how events such as a birth, death, marriage, or new job may impact your goals and results.

• Build an asset allocation based on your time horizon, goals, and risk tolerance.
• Periodically rebalance your portfolio to maintain your desired asset allocation.
• Disclose life events or concerns to help us incorporate strategies designed to avoid potential pitfalls.
  
  

Meet with your Stifel Financial Advisor.

Once you have taken the previous steps, you will be ready to work with your Stifel Financial Advisor and other professionals to update your financial plan. This update will include the most recent capital markets, tax, and inflationary assumptions, ensuring that your plan remains as accurate as possible.

• Work with a tax professional to minimize your income tax liability.
• Assess whether you could still benefit from contributions to a health savings account (HSA) or individual retirement account (IRA) for the current tax year.

Planning is an ongoing process. Your plan’s probability of success will fluctuate over time. Being proactive and regularly updating your financial plan will keep you and your Stifel Financial Advisor at the forefront of your finances as you pursue your goals.