Giving Your Plan Regular Tune-Ups

Even the most thorough retirement plans need to be checked periodically and brought up to date. Here's what it involves

About 10 years ago, Robert and Carla Teitt, now ages 60 and 54, of Salt Lake City, made a retirement plan. He, a projects manager at Northrup Grumman, and she, an occupational therapist, would retire at the same time, when he was 62 or 63, after their children completed Master's degrees in their chosen fields.

The Teitts calculated that with the children's schooling and their own work-related expenses out of the way, about 50% of their pre-retirement income would pay their basic expenses. But they set a financial goal that would enable them to spend up to 65%, so they could travel, do volunteer work, and afford some extras.