A Retirement Strategy Built Around Income That Lasts
Your retirement deserves more than a generic plan handed down from a call center. I work directly with pre-retirees and retirees across Post Falls, North Idaho, and the Pacific Northwest to build a personalized retirement roadmap — one that coordinates every moving part so your income holds up as long as you do.
What Retirement Planning
Actually Covers
Most people arrive at retirement age with assets and no clear picture of how those assets become income. That gap — between what you've saved and what you can reliably spend — is exactly what retirement planning is designed to close. I help clients in the accumulation-to-transition phase work through the decisions that determine how well retirement actually functions: when to claim Social Security, whether a Roth conversion makes sense, how to structure income so it's predictable, and how to keep principal protected while still staying ahead of inflation.
Retirement planning isn't a one-time document. It's an ongoing strategy that adapts as tax law changes, markets shift, and your own priorities evolve.
Our Services
The Services That Make Up a Complete Retirement Plan
A retirement plan is only as strong as the coordination between its parts. Each service below addresses a specific dimension of retirement — and together, they form a strategy rather than a collection of products.
Retirement Income Planning
Converting savings into dependable monthly income is the central challenge of retirement. I build income strategies that layer guaranteed sources with portfolio withdrawals in a sequence designed to reduce sequence-of-returns risk and extend how long your money lasts.
Social Security Maximization
Claiming Social Security at the wrong time can cost a household tens of thousands of dollars over a retirement. I model multiple claiming scenarios — including spousal coordination — to identify the strategy that maximizes your lifetime benefit.
Roth Conversion Planning
For many pre-retirees, the years between leaving work and taking required minimum distributions are a narrow window to convert traditional IRA funds at a lower tax rate. I analyze your tax situation to determine whether a Roth conversion strategy belongs in your plan.
Long-Term Care Strategies
A single long-term care event can unravel a retirement plan that was otherwise sound. I help clients evaluate coverage options and funding strategies that address this risk without overcommitting resources.
Why I Take a Safe-Money Approach to Retirement
Growth is important, but it isn't the only objective in retirement. For clients who are at or near retirement, protecting principal and establishing dependable income often matters more than chasing returns. My planning philosophy centers on building a foundation of income you can count on — using tools like fixed indexed annuities and fixed annuities alongside traditional portfolio assets — so that market volatility doesn't threaten your ability to cover essential expenses.
This isn't a philosophy built on fear. It's built on the recognition that retirement has a different risk profile than accumulation, and your strategy should reflect that.
What Does a Retirement Planner Actually Do?
Clients often come in having worked with a broker or a large firm and feeling like they never quite understood what was being done with their money or why. As an independent CFP® with 24 years of experience, I don't operate through a call center or hand clients off to a junior associate. Every conversation, every plan, and every recommendation comes directly from me.
My role is to help you understand your retirement strategy well enough to feel confident in it — not just to hand you a document and send you home.
- You will work directly with me, Pat Kerfoot.
- I am proud to hold the CFP® designation: a recognized standard of competency in comprehensive financial planning.
- I have 24 years of industry experience across retirement, income, and wealth management.
- I am licensed in multiple states.
Retirement Planning Questions I Hear Most Often
How do I create retirement income that lasts throughout my lifetime?
The most reliable approach layers multiple income sources — Social Security, guaranteed income from annuities if appropriate, and a structured withdrawal strategy from your portfolio. The goal is to cover essential expenses with income you can count on, so your portfolio isn't forced to perform in down markets just to keep the lights on.
What does a retirement planner do that I can't do on my own?
A retirement planner coordinates the decisions that interact with each other in ways that aren't obvious: when to claim Social Security, how to sequence withdrawals across account types, whether a Roth conversion saves you money over time, and how to structure income so it doesn't run out. Getting one of these decisions wrong can cost more than years of advisory fees.
When should I start retirement planning?
The most impactful planning window is typically the five to ten years before you stop working. That's when decisions about Social Security timing, Roth conversions, and income structure can still be meaningfully optimized. If you're in that window now, it's a good time to start.
What's the difference between a retirement planner and a financial advisor?
Many financial advisors focus primarily on investment management. A retirement planner — particularly one holding the CFP® designation — takes a broader view that includes income strategy, tax planning, Social Security optimization, and risk management. The focus is on how your assets function in retirement, not just how they grow before it.
Do I need a retirement plan if I already have a 401(k) and Social Security?
Having assets and income sources isn't the same as having a plan. A retirement plan coordinates when and how you draw on each source, in what order, and at what tax cost — so your money lasts longer and your income is more predictable. Most people with a 401(k) and Social Security still benefit significantly from a structured strategy.
