As a federal employee, it’s likely you have a wide array of financial benefits for retirement: a pension, low-cost investments in your Thrift Savings Plan, the Federal Employee Retirement System annuity, insurance options, Social Security, and, for long-time employees, possibly even the Civil Service Retirement System. But navigating how to make the most of these assets can be complicated.
Mercer Advisors helps federal employees by outlining your full range of government benefits—when to take them, how much to expect, your options associated with them—and by providing a personalized financial plan that’s designed to give you clarity about your progress toward achieving your financial goals.
It’s never too soon to begin the planning process with an advisor experienced in serving federal employees.
Providing the Clarity You Need to Make Financial Decisions
As a federal government employee, you may be navigating significant financial decisions amid uncertain conditions – and you may be left with more questions than answers.
At Mercer Advisors, we help you envision a clear path to Economic Freedom™ by providing a financial plan designed to deliver consistency and confidence regardless of external conditions like market volatility, job loss, or legislative changes.
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How do we do it?
Specialist Expertise
Our team has four decades of experience, including the ability to advise on Thrift Savings Plans and help you understand your government benefits options, both before and after retirement from the public sector.
Comprehensive Management
We offer a unified in-house team of advisors, planners, investors, accountants, and estate strategists to deliver a holistic plan designed to withstand uncertain conditions.
Nationwide Service
With offices across the country, we can partner with you wherever life takes you. There’s always someone to turn to with your most pressing financial questions.
Are You Maximizing Your Federal Employee Retirement Benefits?
For illustrative purposes, may not be applicable to all Federal employees.
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- Yes, we can do scenario planning to determine what your financial path may look like using several different variables, including retirement age(s) for you and your spouse, your current savings and investments, expected time horizon, Social Security/pension payouts, market conditions, and more.
- We can also help you determine how your government benefits may be affected by transitioning to the private sector, should you opt to stay in the workforce but outside of the federal government.
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When federal government employees retire, they generally must make a series of decisions regarding ongoing benefits:
- When and how should I take my pension option?
- What should I consider regarding the surviving spouse benefit?
- Should I continue with government-provided health, life, and/or long-term care insurance?
- How does Medicare work with the federal employee healthcare program?
- Should I keep my retirement savings in my TSP, or should I roll them over to an IRA?
We can help you work through the implications of these important decisions, including filling in gaps that the National Institute for Transition Planning doesn’t specifically cover.
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- One of the most important decisions you’ll need to make is how to receive your first pension payout. The federal government has offered spousal benefits in exchange for a reduction in pension pay, such as a 5% pension reduction for a 25% survivor benefit pension, or a 10% pension reduction in exchange for a 50% survivor benefit pension.
- We can help you determine if the present pay reduction is a reasonable concession for your spouse’s future financial security, taking into account you and your spouse’s current savings and investments, expected time horizons, and estate planning goals.
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- Federal employees may not know that those retiring before age 62 may be eligible for a benefit called the FERS Annuity Supplement which can function as a stopgap until one reaches the age to claim Social Security. Most people will find it valuable to model this out.
- Otherwise, your decision tree is likely very much the same as any other retiree. The Social Security Administration has a range of calculators to help you estimate your benefits.
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