Use the Funded Status Metric & A ‘Surplus Bucket’ to Increase Spending in Retirement
This article appears as part of Casey Weade's Weekend Reading for Retirees series. Every Friday, Casey highlights four hand-picked articles on trending retirement topics and delivers them straight to your email inbox. Get on the list here.
Weekend Reading
The fear of outliving your nest egg looms large. But what if being too conservative actually holds you back from fully enjoying the lifestyle you worked so hard to build?
READ THE ARTICLEWhat to Know: Retirement researchers David Blanchett and Michael Finke have studied why retirees often underspend, and how annuities can encourage better spending habits by converting wealth into reliable income. But the author of this piece, Ken Steiner, offers a compelling alternative: using a “funded status” metric and a new concept called a “surplus bucket.” This bucket captures excess funds when your financial health is strong and sets them aside for joyful, guilt-free spending.
Why This Matters: Fear of spending can lead to a life less lived. A surplus bucket reframes excess assets as encouragement to live fully. It’s an approach that still respects risk by keeping your essential expenses secured with guaranteed income (like Social Security or pensions), but is a system that says “Yes, you can.”
Key Takeaway: Your retirement should be a time of flourishing, not just surviving. The surplus bucket method could be a way to ensure your money serves your life—not the other way around.