His comments drew from another X post made by an investment advisor, who shared the story of a client who lived in constant fear of spending her wealth.
“Client walks in….. 68 years old. $2.8M net worth. The house is paid off. Worth $950K. She’s living on $38K a year from Social Security. Tell me how that makes sense. She brings coupons to restaurants. Buys the cheapest everything,” retirement planner Kurt Supe shared on X.
The client insisted to Supe that she was saving her wealth for emergencies, which he flagged as a problem, noting that emergencies cannot cost $2.8 million.
The adviser noted that she had not visited her grandkids in Phoenix for two years because she was wary of spending money. She told Supe her parents had taught her never to touch the principal, but he noted that they likely retired with a pension and passed away at the age of 74. Her situation was not the same.
“We finally got her to take distributions last year. $120K annually from her portfolio. Still only a 4.3% withdrawal rate. Now she’s flying to Phoenix quarterly. Took her grandkids to Disney. And stopped agonising over every $12 purchase,” Supe added.
He concluded his post, noting that “She spent 3 years being miserable with $2.8M in the bank. You don’t get a prize for dying with the most money.”