Real Client Success Story: Retirement Dreams Should Not Stay Dreams

When I first met Katie, it was on a Saturday. Most banks aren’t open then, but we don’t work typical banker’s hours. In our initial phone call, I got to learn a lot more about Katie than I was expecting, and this would set the stage for the rest of my time with her.

Katie, like many people around the country, was looking forward to retirement. I asked her what that meant, and it conjured up ideas of wanting to spend more time with the grandkids. Retirement meant not being beholden to working as much, instead of working part time, doing what she found fun.  It meant that she could enjoy more of what life had to offer. Speaking with Katie, I knew that she valued family above all else, and as I learned, she was the type of person who always put them first.

But, Katie was not like my typical client. On paper, she had quite a bit going for her on the edge of retirement. Her home was paid off, and she had great credit, with a solid 401k and good income to back it all up. She was a shoe in for retirement. So why the worries? Debt.

We follow a process here at Royal United Mortgage LLC. This process helps us uncover issues our clients have and help them reach their goals. So when I got down into her needs, I asked her one simple question “Well, how did you get all of that debt?”

Her two sons meant the world to her, and Katie had helped them out when she could. All in all, she had accrued a sizable amount of debt, from both of her sons. Her monthly payments were large, over $1000 a month. She was making the payments every month for three years, but she hadn’t really gotten anywhere with it. Her situation was such that, if she retired with the debt, she’d have no assets to draw from and she would certainly not be comfortable.

What Katie didn’t know is that there were options out there for her, all she needed was to see them to understand that she was in a great place to be able to tackle this debt.

So I came up with three custom plans for her. One that would save her money per month, and one that stressed paying off the debt quicker, but the one she liked most was a plan that would allow her to be debt free in 4 years, with another $10,000 to put back into her bank account. This would allow her to build up her reserves so that when she retired in 4 years, she’d have a safety net.

There was just one hitch, Katie had worked very hard to pay off her mortgage and was unsure if creating a new mortgage to pay off her debt, would be good for her. This, however, proved to be a small bump in the road. When Katie considered her options, she realized that with consolidating debt, she could be in a much better place than she was now.

After some brief deliberation, Katie was on board, and the rest of the process was smooth sailing all the way until the closing. She’s going to enjoy her retirement in a couple of years, and I’m sure she’ll have lots of fun in her golden years!

If I had one thing to say to anyone in a place similar to Katie’s it’d be to earnestly think through all of your options, and if you’re still looking for help feel free to give me a call!