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With economic headlines shifting daily, many Americans are asking the same question: how do I keep my retirement savings intact while juggling current bills?
Alan Becker, president and CEO of RSG Investments, says the markets have entered a more volatile phase after months of brushing off big events.
"To me, it's a double-edged sword, because for a while there the markets were ignoring everything and were reacting positively. And it seems as of late, the tides have switched," Becker said. "Whether it's the Supreme Court talking about our tariffs … whether it's the elections that are happening, the market is starting to react, and now it's just making it even more front top-of-the-mind awareness."
Becker says where you are in your financial journey affects how much runway you have to prepare.
"If you're prepared, like if you were five to 10 years out from retirement, you're already an empty nester, you probably have more runway and better protection,” he said. "Somebody getting ready to retire is worried more about, is the market going to rob a bunch of my growth that I've had all this time that I'm getting ready to use? … If you're a newer family, starting out like any family, kids in school trying to make ends meet, you probably haven't had the time to put a bunch away.”
One of his most important pieces of advice: don’t rush to withdraw from retirement accounts. "It's trying to figure out, what's the most important bills? What can I get away with? Not get further behind? But I think the biggest fear factor of folks that I want to get across is, do not go to your 401(k) unless it's a last resort," Becker said.
Instead, he recommends exploring alternatives.
"Do I have any life insurance that has some cash value that I could do a temporary loan against? Do I have some equity in my home? And maybe I can do a HELOC real quick and get a bridge there? Could I use some credit cards at 0% interest to bridge a loan? There are ways and resources," he said.
Becker frames these steps as “crisis planning.” "Regardless of whether you can control it, you have certain variables that you could set yourself up again,” he said.
His biggest advice: know where your assets are, use them wisely, and avoid choices that could derail retirement.
For Becker, it’s all about clear vision. "There's so many different moving parts out there. There's so many different ways to look at this. Don't get tunnel vision," he said.
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