How to Stay Steady When the Market Isn’t

Market volatility has been making headlines again—and if you're relying on your investments for income, that can feel stressful.

Here’s why it matters: When markets drop and you’re pulling money from investment accounts (like in retirement), you may be locking in losses. That’s because you're selling while values are down, which can seriously hurt your long-term plan.

That’s where a volatility buffer comes in.

A volatility buffer is a separate pool of money you can draw from when markets are underperforming. It could be:

• Cash reserves
• Permanent life insurance cash value
• Annuities with income guarantees
• Certain structured products

Since these aren’t directly tied to the stock market, they give your investments time to recover before you need to touch them again.

The result? You reduce the risk of poor timing and help keep your overall plan on track.

“Think of a volatility buffer like a backup generator for your retirement income. When the market goes dark, you’ve still got power.”

If you’d like to explore how a volatility buffer might fit into your plan, let’s talk. I’m here to help.

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