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Quick Summary

A 53-year-old with $2.45 million saved may be financially secure, but the shift from saving to spending makes tax and timing decisions far more important than raw returns.

Test your retirement and tax strategy with a financial advisor through SmartAsset’s free matching tool to help clarify how contributions, Roth conversions, and withdrawals fit together over the next decade.

Build flexible income outside retirement accounts through like Arrived is one way to supplement taxable savings and diversify cash flow without managing property.

A 53-year-old planning to retire soon recently asked a question many high-balance savers eventually confront: when do you stop saving and start positioning?

With $2.45 million in net worth, including $1.5 million in pretax retirement accounts and more than $900,000 in taxable brokerage and cash, this Reddit user appears financially secure. Their portfolio is large enough to support roughly $100,000 in annual spending.

Yet the instinct to keep contributing is hard to shake, which is why many people at this stage begin pressure-testing their plans with a financial advisor using SmartAsset’s free matching tool.

The tension is common at this stage. After decades of building wealth, shifting from saving to spending feels risky. The question now is how to manage taxes, access, and long-term flexibility over the next 30 to 40 years.

For people retiring in their early-to-mid 50s, small planning mistakes can cost six figures over time. Contribution decisions, Roth conversions, withdrawal sequencing, and Medicare surcharges all interact in ways that are difficult to model alone.

That is why many retirees begin by pressure-testing their plans before leaving the workforce using a free matching tool through SmartAsset to connect with financial advisors who specialize in retirement income planning.

Seeing multiple perspectives side by side often clarifies trade-offs that are easy to miss when you are planning in isolation.

By answering a short set of questions about assets, income, and goals, SmartAsset users can see how different professionals approach taxes, Roth conversions, and early-retirement drawdown strategies.

At the same time, inflation and fiscal uncertainty become structural risks over multi-decade retirements. Periods like 2022 and 2023 showed how quickly purchasing power can erode. Over 30 or 40 years, similar episodes are likely to recur.

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In those cases, Preserve Gold helps investors acquire IRS-approved gold and silver for retirement accounts or direct ownership. They specialize in rollovers, insured delivery, and long-term holding.

For investors who view gold as insurance rather than a growth engine, this can play a role in broader portfolio construction.

Once you stop working, you can no longer contribute to retirement accounts. Earned income is required to fund an IRA or 401(k). That makes the final working year especially important.

For 2026, workers can contribute up to $24,500 to a 401(k), with an additional $7,500 catch-up contribution for those over 50.

If this person is still earning a strong salary, maxing out contributions before retiring can generate immediate tax savings. Every pretax dollar reduces current taxable income. For high earners, that can mean thousands of dollars saved in the final working year.

In many cases, the last year of contributions is about locking in one final tax advantage.

With more than $900,000 in taxable brokerage and cash, this retiree already has enough to bridge the gap to age 59½ without touching pretax accounts. That flexibility is valuable.

Money in a brokerage account can be accessed at any time without penalties. It can fund unexpected medical expenses, family needs, or lifestyle changes. It also reduces dependence on rigid withdrawal rules.

Redirecting savings toward taxable accounts during the final working months can strengthen that flexibility.

For many early retirees, liquidity is what makes the difference between feeling secure and feeling constrained.

With that in mind, market drawdowns, inflation spikes, and changing correlations can strain portfolios over time. That is why some retirees look for supplemental income sources that behave differently.

One option some consider is hands-off real estate exposure through platforms like Arrived.

Arrived allows investors to buy fractional shares of rental homes starting with as little as $100, while the platform handles leasing, maintenance, and operations.

Backed by Amazon founder Jeff Bezos, Arrived has paid out more than $19 million in dividends to users.

For early retirees, this type of investment can function as a diversification. It can provide potential income without the responsibilities of being a landlord.

For this Reddit user, the answer is nuanced. If they are still earning income this year, maxing out the 401(k) likely makes sense for the tax deduction, and once retirement begins, contributions stop automatically.

Saving is largely done. Now the work is positioning and getting it right is about structuring what you already have. For high-balance early retirees, the goal is to make the next four decades financially durable.

Image: Shutterstock

This article I’m 53 With $2.45M Saved — Is It Time To Stop Contributing To Retirement? originally appeared on Benzinga.com

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