💬 Show NotesWade Pfau, author of The Retirement Planning Guidebook and creator of the Retirement Income Style Awareness (RISA®) assessment joins Roger for a wide-ranging conversation on the big questions of retirement income planning. Wade breaks down why the RISA is a better fit for retirement than a traditional risk tolerance questionnaire, how to think about real estate and reverse mortgages as retirement tools, and what the research actually says about annuities — including when to buy, whether to add inflation protection, and how fixed index annuities with living benefits really work. This podcast is a replay of a recent Rock Retirement Club meetup where members were able to join live and ask questions.Outline Of This Episode Of The Retirement Answer Man

Roger previews the episode and invites listeners to register for Noodle Live — a Saturday morning Zoom on March 28 at livewithroger.comCONVERSATION WITH DR. WADE PFAU

Roger introduces Wade Pfau, author of The Retirement Planning Guidebook

RISA vs. risk tolerance questionnaires

How to use The Retirement Planning Guidebook

AI in retirement research

RRC Member Question: How does real estate fit into retirement planning?

Reverse mortgages as a retirement tool — usage trends, how the HECM line of credit works, upfront cost hurdles, and why adoption remains low

RRC Member Question: What is an effective marginal tax rate (EMR) and how does it affect Roth conversion strategy?

Navigating ACA subsidy cliffs before Medicare

RRC Member Question: Fixed vs. inflation-adjusted annuities

Annuity timing

RRC Member Question: Should we explore intentionally breaking the ACA cliff every few years?

Fixed index annuities with living benefits vs. income annuities

RRC Member Question: Is there an optimal age window for buying an annuity if it's a "nice to have" rather than a must?

Interpreting retirement planning softwareSMART SPRINT