• Retirement is an opportunity to enjoy the rewards of your hard work.Dougal Waters/Digital Vision/Getty Images
  
  Retirement is an exciting achievement. The road to retirement is long and tiring, and at the end of it, you reward yourself with opportunities to sit back, relax and reap the benefits of your hard work. Make sure you plan your retirement well, especially your personal finances, before you skip down road to retirement.
  
  

Planning your Financial Needs

• Begin by listing all your expected expenses and potential sources of income to meet these expenses. Income can come from sources such as Social Security, pensions and investments. Contributing to programs such as employer-sponsored retirement plans and IRAs are excellent safeguards for retirement. These accounts carry tax benefits, and the longer you invest in these programs, the greater they compound and grow. Be sure to obtain estimates of your expected retirement benefits from retirement savings plans and IRAs. Also, check whether you are eligible to claim retirement benefits for civil service from other sources including the Department of Veteran Affairs, and federal or local government or institutions.
  
  

Portfolio Management

• One of the most momentous steps for retirement planning is investing your finances in a sound portfolio and managing that portfolio well. Efficiently allocate your money to assets such as cash, bonds and stocks. Diversity is key for risk management. Make periodic adjustments to accommodate movements and fluctuations in the market. Revise your investment strategy when retirement nears. At that point, it's a better idea to take some money out of the volatile stock market, as the priority is now stability in savings rather than growth.
  
  

Asset Distribution

• The possibility of outliving your money is one of the greatest risks you will face as a retiree, according to the Society of Actuaries. Because of this risk, it is essential to have a well-crafted asset distribution plan to be in order when you are planning to retire. Determine the annual withdrawal rate that you will be making once you turn 70. Make these withdrawals from retirement accounts that are tax-deferred such as IRAs. You alleviate your tax burden by preventing your required minimum distribution from falling into a high, tax bracket. Retirement planning also requires planning out future asset distribution. Draft a will and estate distribution to make things easier for your heirs and reduce their tax burden.