Making Your Money Last In Retirement

Quick Questions: How much can you safely withdraw each year from your retirement portfolio without the risk of running out of money before you run out of life? How much should you withdraw if you don’t want to leave too much money behind when you die?

If you’re as perplexed about answering these questions as many financial planners are, then this article will help update you on the latest research in this area of retirement planning. Saving for retirement is not easy, but using your retirement savings wisely can be just as challenging. Withdraw too much and you run the risk of running out of money. Withdraw too little and you may miss out on a more comfortable retirement lifestyle.

For more than 25 years, the most common guideline has been the “4% rule,” which suggests that a yearly withdrawal equal to 4% of the initial portfolio value, with annual increases for inflation, is sustainable over a 30-year retirement. This guideline can be helpful in projecting a savings goal and providing a realistic picture of the annual income your savings might provide. For example, a $1 million portfolio could provide $40,000 of income in the first year, with inflation-adjusted withdrawals in succeeding years.

The 4% rule has stimulated a great deal of discussion over the years, with some experts saying that 4% is too low, and others saying it’s too high. The most recent analysis comes from the man who studied it, financial professional William Bengen (widely considered in the financial planning profession as the “father of the safe withdrawal rate”), who believes the rule has been misunderstood and offers new insights based on new research.

Original Research

Bengen first published his findings in 1994, based on analyzing data for retirements beginning in 51 different years, from 1926 to 1976. He considered a hypothetical, conservative portfolio comprised of 50% large-cap stocks and 50% intermediate-term Treasury bonds held in a tax-advantaged account and rebalanced annually. A 4% inflation-adjusted withdrawal was the highest sustainable rate in the worst-case scenario — retirement in October 1968, the beginning of a bear market, and a long period of high inflation. All other retirement years had higher sustainable rates, some as high as 10% or more (1).

Of course, no one can predict the future, which is why Bengen suggested that the worst-case scenario as a sustainable rate. He later adjusted it slightly upward to 4.5%, based on a more diverse portfolio comprised of 30% large-cap stocks, 20% small-cap stocks, and 50% intermediate-term Treasuries (2).

New Research

In October 2020, Bengen published new research that attempts to project a sustainable withdrawal rate based on two key factors at the time of retirement: stock market valuation and inflation (the annual change in the Consumer Price Index). In theory, when the market is expensive, it has less potential to grow, and sustaining increased withdrawals over time may be more difficult. On the other hand, lower inflation means lower inflation-adjusted withdrawals, allowing for a higher initial rate. For example, a $40,000 first-year withdrawal becomes an $84,000 withdrawal after 20 years with a 4% annual inflation increase, but just $58,000 with a 2% annual increase.


5% rule?


For most of the last 25 years, the United States has experienced high market valuations, and inflation has been low since the Great Recession (4)(5). In a high-valuation, low-inflation scenario at the time of retirement, Bengen found that a 5% initial withdrawal rate was sustainable over 30 years (6). While not a big difference from the 4% rule, this suggests retirees could make larger initial withdrawals, particularly in a low-inflation environment.

One caveat is that current market valuation is extremely high: The S&P 500 index had a CAPE of 34.19 at the end of 2020, a level only reached (and exceeded) during the late-1990s dot-com boom and higher than any of the scenarios in Bengen’s research (7).  His range for a 5% withdrawal rate is a CAPE of 23 or higher, with inflation between 0% and 2.5% (8) (Inflation was 1.2% in November 2020 (9)). Bengen’s research suggests that if market valuation drops near the historical mean of 16.77, a withdrawal rate of 6% might be sustainable as long as inflation is 5% or lower. On the other hand, if valuation remains high and inflation surpasses 2.5%, the maximum sustainable rate might be 4.5% (10).

It’s important to keep in mind that these projections are based on historical scenarios and a hypothetical portfolio, and there is no guarantee that your portfolio will perform in a similar manner. Also remember that these calculations are based on annual inflation-adjusted withdrawals, and you might choose not to increase withdrawals in some years or use other criteria to make adjustments, such as market performance. For example, some retirees, in an effort to reduce withdrawals after a “down” year in the market, forego taking an inflation-based increase for the following year.

Although there is no assurance that working with a financial professional will improve your investment results, a professional can evaluate your objectives and available resources and help you consider appropriate long-term financial strategies, including your withdrawal strategy.


(1)(2) Forbes Advisor, October 12, 2020
(3)(4)(6)(8,)(10) Financial Advisor, October 2020
(5)(9) U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, 2020
(7), December 31, 2020



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