Stock Market

When Markets Fluctuate, So Can Your Retirement Confidence

The stock market can feel like a roller coaster—especially when you’re retired or just about to retire.

After decades of saving and investing, your nest egg is finally meant to support your lifestyle… but what happens when the market drops?

At Stone Retirement, we help you build a retirement plan that’s steady—even when the market isn’t. Because your peace of mind shouldn’t rise and fall with the Dow.

📊 The Real Risks of Market Volatility in Retirement

1. Sequence of Returns Risk

This is one of the most overlooked dangers in retirement planning.

If you start withdrawing money from your investments during a market downturn—especially in your early retirement years—it can create a permanent dent in your portfolio.
Even if the market recovers, your account may not.

💡 A 20% drop early in retirement can affect your income for decades.

A quick example:

You have $1,000 invested in a stock.

The stock drops in value 10%. The value is now $900 (1,000 x .10) =100

The stock rises 10%. The value is now $990. (900 x .10) = 90

So no, you are not back to where you started. You are down $10.

2. Heightened Emotional Stress

Retirees tend to be more conservative—and for good reason. Watching your portfolio dip after you’ve stopped working can be terrifying.
The fear may drive you to sell low, lock in losses, or avoid growth opportunities out of panic.

At Stone Retirement, we design your plan to absorb volatility—not amplify it.

3. Overexposure or Underexposure

Some retirees remain too heavily invested in stocks, chasing returns and ignoring risk. Others pull out of the market entirely and miss growth.

The key? Balance.
Your portfolio should grow enough to outpace inflation, yet protect enough to weather downturns.

4. Income Disruption

Many retirees draw income from investments. But when stocks fall, selling shares for income during a loss compounds the damage.

Without a strategy for when and how to draw income, you may be forced to sell at the worst time.

5. Psychological Anchoring

You may base your plan on the “peak value” of your portfolio—before a market correction. But retirement isn’t about chasing numbers. It’s about sustainable income, smart withdrawal timing, and long-term resilience.

Our Strategy: Market-Aware Retirement Planning

At Stone Retirement, we help you design a plan that prepares for the market’s ups and downs—with confidence, not guesswork.

Here’s how we do it:

✅ Bucket strategies that divide your money into short-term, medium-term, and long-term buckets
✅ Income floor planning so essential expenses are covered, no matter what the market does
✅ Asset location strategies to minimize taxes and volatility
✅ Withdrawal coordination to reduce sequence of returns risk
✅ Ongoing rebalancing to keep your plan aligned with changing markets and goals

❤️ You Deserve a Retirement Plan That Doesn’t Flinch

You’ve already taken the risk during your working years. Retirement should be about living confidently, not reacting anxiously to every market headline.

With our help, you can shift from:

❌ Guessing to knowing
❌ Reacting to planning
❌ Stressing to living

🔷 Let's Build a Smoother Path Forward

We offer complete retirement plans—including full estate plans—at 30% less than traditional firms.

🔹 Schedule Your Free Retirement Strategy Call »