The financial planning process commonly follows six steps: understanding goals and the household's situation, gathering information, analyzing options, presenting recommendations, implementing agreed-upon actions, and monitoring the plan over time. For Lehigh Valley pre-retirees, each step may involve trade-offs, and the order and depth depend on individual circumstances.
What does the financial planning process include?
A financial planning process is not a one-time form or a prediction about the future. It is a structured way to identify the decisions in front of a household, understand how those decisions relate to one another, and establish a routine for reviewing them over time.
For someone approaching retirement in Allentown, Bethlehem, Easton, or elsewhere in the Lehigh Valley, the process may bring together workplace benefits, retirement accounts, expected income needs, tax considerations, insurance, and estate documents. The mix depends on the household. A medical professional may need to coordinate a demanding career, complex compensation, and retirement timing. A faculty member or administrator may be reviewing 403(b) plan benefits. Another household may be preparing for retirement after a career change or the loss of a spouse.
At Wealthcare of the Lehigh Valley, Financial Planning is one of several service areas that may be considered alongside asset management, income planning, tax planning, risk management, and estate and legacy planning. Planning does not replace legal or tax advice. When those issues arise, they may require coordination with the appropriate professional.
The six steps below describe the process in general terms. They are educational and are not a recommendation for any particular household.
Step 1: Understand your goals and situation
The first step is a conversation about what matters to the household and where it stands today. That may include a target retirement date, a possible move, family support, charitable goals, a concentrated stock position, or how to prepare for a change in income.
What this may look like for a pre-retiree: a couple in their late fifties might describe when they would like to stop working, what they expect to spend, and which decisions feel most urgent, such as when to leave a hospital or university position.
Trade-off: a household may have several worthwhile goals but limited resources or time, so some goals may need to be ranked, delayed, or adjusted.
Step 2: Gather and review your information
With goals in view, the next step is to collect the information that gives context to every later decision. This may include income sources, savings and investment accounts, retirement plans, insurance coverage, debts, recurring expenses, beneficiary designations, and estate documents.
The goal is not simply to create a list of accounts. It is to see how the parts of a household's financial life fit together. For example, a 403(b), a pension election, employer benefits, and a taxable account can each have a different role in a retirement plan.
What this may look like for a pre-retiree: a faculty member may review plan statements, a benefits summary, and a Social Security earnings record, while a physician may add partnership or deferred compensation documents.
Trade-off: gathering documents takes time, and a plan built on incomplete or outdated information may lead to conclusions that need to be revisited later.
Step 3: Analyze your situation and develop options
Approaching retirement often changes the questions a household asks. Instead of focusing only on saving, it may need to consider how different income sources, withdrawals, benefit elections, taxes, and insurance coverage fit together.
This stage may include reviewing estimated spending, available sources of retirement income, account ownership, tax characteristics, and the level of investment risk a household is comfortable taking. The purpose is to identify considerations and alternatives, not to assume one answer fits every household. See who we help to learn more about the life stages and professional circumstances the firm serves.
What this may look like for a pre-retiree: the analysis might compare a few retirement dates, or look at how Social Security timing and account withdrawals could interact with taxes and Medicare-related costs.
Trade-off: every analysis relies on assumptions about spending, taxes, markets, and lifespan, and actual experience could differ from any of them.
Step 4: Present and discuss recommendations
Once options have been analyzed, they are shared and discussed. This step is a two-way conversation. The household can ask questions, raise concerns, and weigh how each alternative fits its priorities before deciding what to do.
What this may look like for a pre-retiree: a discussion might cover which actions could be taken now, which could wait until a retirement date is confirmed, and which questions may need input from a tax or legal professional.
Trade-off: a choice that addresses one goal, such as lowering taxes in a given year, could limit flexibility or work against another goal, so the discussion weighs costs as well as benefits.
Step 5: Implement the agreed-upon steps
After the household decides how to proceed, implementation turns the plan into a working process. Depending on the household, that can include updating account organization, coordinating beneficiary information, reviewing insurance needs, adjusting investment management, or scheduling conversations with tax and legal professionals.
What this may look like for a pre-retiree: implementation might begin with administrative items such as beneficiary updates, then move to decisions that need more analysis, such as how to organize retirement income.
Trade-off: implementation takes time and coordination, and some actions may be difficult or costly to reverse once completed. Our fee schedule explains how Wealthcare of the Lehigh Valley presents its advisory fees.
Step 6: Monitor and revisit the plan
A financial plan needs periodic attention because households, markets, employment, tax rules, and personal priorities can all change. A review can be especially useful after a retirement date changes, an employer benefit changes, a family event occurs, or a major financial decision is under consideration.
What this may look like for a pre-retiree: a review might revisit spending, update account information, and check whether earlier assumptions still reflect the household's situation as retirement gets closer.
Trade-off: revisiting a plan does not promise a particular result, and more frequent reviews take more of the household's time without necessarily changing the conclusions.
What to bring to a first planning meeting
A first conversation can be productive even if some items are missing. The following list may help a household prepare:
- Recent statements for retirement accounts, such as 401(k), 403(b), and IRA accounts, and any pension information
- Statements for taxable investment and bank accounts
- A summary of employer benefits, including any deferred compensation or stock-related compensation
- Your most recent tax return
- Your Social Security statement from ssa.gov, if available
- Insurance policy information, including life, disability, health, and long-term care coverage
- Estate documents and beneficiary designations, such as a will, powers of attorney, and account beneficiaries
- A list of debts and recurring expenses
- A list of questions, concerns, and priorities
How the process connects to financial planning services
A planning process can help keep separate decisions from being made in isolation. Asset management may address how investments are managed in relation to the overall plan. Income planning can explore retirement income questions. Tax planning, risk management, and estate and legacy planning may each raise related considerations that deserve to be coordinated with the appropriate specialists.
Wealthcare of the Lehigh Valley is a fee-only fiduciary firm. The firm's process is designed to help households organize the financial questions in front of them and make informed decisions based on their circumstances.
A factual next step for Lehigh Valley households
If you are approaching retirement and want to understand what information and decisions may belong in your plan, a first conversation can help clarify the process and the service areas that may be relevant. You can schedule a consultation with Wealthcare of the Lehigh Valley to discuss your household's current situation.
Last updated October 22, 2026.
Frequently Asked Questions
How long does the financial planning process take?
There is no fixed timeline. The length depends on how complex the household's finances are, how quickly information can be gathered, how many decisions are on the table, and whether other professionals such as a tax preparer or attorney need to be involved. The first five steps often unfold over several meetings, while monitoring and revisiting the plan continues for as long as the household wants to keep it current.
How often should a financial plan be reviewed?
Many households review a plan at least once a year. A review may also make sense after a change in retirement date, an employer benefit change, a health event, the loss of a spouse, or a major financial decision. Tax rules, plan provisions, and personal priorities can change, so a plan may need adjusting between scheduled reviews.
What should I bring to a first financial planning meeting?
Helpful items may include recent account statements, a summary of workplace benefits, your most recent tax return, insurance policy information, estate documents and beneficiary designations, a list of debts, and a list of questions or priorities. A first meeting can still be useful if some items are missing, since gathering information is part of the process.
This article is for general educational purposes and is not individualized tax, legal, or investment advice.
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