#DadLaidoffChecklist
Healthcare Considerations
- Get healthcare sorted out – the company is bridging healthcare until 65, so after that, consider enrolling in Medicare. Explore options for supplemental health insurance on healthcare.gov if needed.
Financial Planning
- Pension and 401k rollover – Plan on rolling over these assets into IRA accounts. Consider setting up a monthly or quarterly distribution from the accounts for cash-flow needs.
As your dad prepares for retirement and potentially contracting work, here are a few additional tips and advice to ensure a smooth transition:
Review Social Security Benefits
- Research and determine the best time to start Social Security benefits. Consider factors like age and financial needs before making a decision.
Evaluate Additional Income Sources
- Explore opportunities for part-time work or consulting in your dad’s field. This can help supplement retirement income and keep him engaged in his profession.
Update Legal Documents
- Review and update wills, trusts, and power of attorney documents. Ensure that all legal affairs are in order for peace of mind during retirement.
By taking these steps and considering various aspects of retirement planning, you can help your dad navigate this transition with confidence. Remember, planning ahead and seeking advice from financial professionals can make a significant difference in ensuring a secure and comfortable retirement.
Best of luck to your dad on this new chapter!
What’s the pension? Whether it can be rolled into an IRA and if you’d even want to depend on how it works.
This is less of a layoff question and more of a retirement one. What he needs to do is figure out what his assets look like and decide if he actually can retire. What will his social security look like, medicare, retirement accounts, etc. Understand that retirement is not an age, it’s a financial state.
Sounds like his life is in order and the plan makes sense.
Beef up HSA if available.
Max out 401k for the year before exit.
Ensure he has access to all financial accounts before exit. Download paystubs too.
Find the brokerage with the best deposit bonus and use them for the 401k rollover. You can the accounts consolidate later.
Clear out any benefit accounts from work (points on portals, Amex points, etc).
Less of a retirement thing but .. Was he laid off due to age? Age discrimination is a big thing
Tell him to enjoy! My dad retired from a big oil company at age 59 in 2014 after 41 years of service. They don’t make pensions/ retirements like that anymore. His pension was way more than my salary as an engineer for a while there (I think I have him beat now).
Ah. Another story of someone getting laid off suspiciously right before collecting retirement.
>Get healthcare sorted out – company is bridging healthcare until 65, so after that, I’m guessing medicare is the option? Maybe get some kind of supplemental health insurance on [healthcare.gov](http://healthcare.gov/) after the fact?
Medicare + Medicare parts C and/or D. No need to screw around with obamacare.
>Pension rollover and 401k rollover into IRA’s – the current plan is to roll over these assets into the IRA’s and live off the taxable income until RMD’s are required. His IRA’s and taxable accounts are over at etrade – I’d imagine setting up a monthly distribution or quarterly distribution from his accounts for cash-flow needs would be the best option for now.
Consider whether to roll over or not. There may be good reasons to keep the pension as is (weigh lump sum vs. mostly-guaranteed monthly). And 401k can be left or not…probably doesn’t really matter much other than what investment options are offered. 401ks are (slightly) better protected, but the difference is pretty minor in practice.
>Any other tips/advice?
Sounds like he’s pretty well set financially based on what you’ve said so far (and maybe should have considered retiring earlier!). The big question is: **what is he retiring to?** What is his plan in retirement?