financial facelift

Jodi's tentative retirement spending goal is $90,000 a year after tax.

As she approaches a major turning point in her life, Jodi faces an enviable problem.

“I have saved for over 30 years – all my life in fact – for my retirement,” she writes in an e-mail. In January, at the age of 74, she’ll be “officially retired,” she adds. “I do not have a husband. I do not have a defined-benefit pension. Up until this point, I have been living on a modest income. Now I start spending.”

How much should she draw from her savings each year?

Thanks to rising real estate and stock prices, Jodi has a $2-million house in the Toronto area and a stock portfolio valued at $2.4-million invested in a single mutual fund . She also has some registered investments invested entirely in stock

See Full Page