Retirement no longer comes on a fixed schedule. It's not necessarily 65 and goodbye. Some quit earlier, some go on for years, perhaps in a second—or third—career.

The first question: what do you need to spend? Follow your expenses for four to six months, with absolute essentials in one column and discretionary spending in another. Add a bump, as much as 5 percent, for inflation. Second: what income can you expect? Add up expected Social Security benefits, pension, annuities, distributions from retirement accounts and income from investments. Are the columns in balance?

Remember that much of this income is taxed. Now you have to pay the taxes that were deferred on your IRA and 401(k) accounts. Annuities are partially taxed, partially tax-free. And if your taxable income is high enough, you'll owe tax on 85 percent of your Social Security benefits.

For nearly 30 years, Mike Nickerson has owned and managed a small, full-service accounting practice in the Midcoast. He holds a bachelor's degree in accounting from University of Southern Main and a master's degree in financial planning from Bentley University.

He is a past board member and president of the Maine Society of Certified Public Accountants and currently serves on the Maine Board of Accountancy.

An aged rock musician, Nickerson now finds musical enjoyment playing upright and electric bass in a variety of bands spanning folk to jazz music genres. He and his wife have three grown children, and they enjoy their free time hiking, kayaking, golfing, bicycling and motorcycling.

http://www.nickersonpa.com/