Retirement Planning BACK Identifying strategies to match financial resources with retirement needs.   Ideally, retirement planning will occur gradually throughout one's working years, but we like to see clients focus on it as a separate aspect of their financial plans at age 55. Many non-financial factors will affect the retirement planning process, as retirement involves major lifestyle changes with far-reaching non-financial and financial ramifications. Preparing for retirement includes the need for serious consideration of how to respond to those changes both to increase chances for personal satisfaction and as background for financial considerations. If you have done little or no planning yet, a good way to start is to complete our general "Financial Profile" form. If you list retirement on it as a top financial planning priority, we will provide a retirement planning checklist as part of our response. Also, click on other retirement planning areas below for more information on some specific issues. Tax-advantaged retirement savings vehicles    The most common vehicle used for retirement funding is the Qualified Plan. Amounts earning in the qualified plan are not taxed until they are distributed to the beneficiaries of the plan. Qualified plans take on many forms and are available to various entities.      Robert Batty, CPA, PFS