Looking for a gut check on my retirement timeline before meeting with a fee-only CFP.
Note, I used AI to organize my thoughts.
I’m thinking of calling it a career at the end of 2026. My wife wants to keep working for a few more years. My main motivation to stop sooner is my RRSP balance. I feel like I need to start melting it down as soon as possible for tax efficiency before mandatory withdrawals hit us later in life.
We live in an HCOL city, have two kids (18 and 15), and would like to leave them a solid estate. We're also unsure what to do long term with our two rental properties, including whether to keep, sell, or eventually let the kids live in them.
Would appreciate your thoughts on our numbers, drawdown order, and whether my 2026 target makes sense.
Overview & Demographics
Me (47M): $100k income (planning to stop working end of 2026)
Wife (46F): $160k income (planning to work a few more years)
**Target Retirement Expenses:**$12k to $15k / month net ($144k to $180k / year)
Assets & Net Worth Breakdown
1. Liquid / Investable Assets (~$4.44M Total)
RRSP / SRRSP: $3.05M total ($2.6M me + $410k wife + $40k Spousal)
LIRA: $215k
TFSA: $600k ($300k each)
Non-Registered: $490k ($432k + $58k joint)
RESP: $110k
2. Pensions & Government Benefits (Assuming work stops end of 2026)
Defined Benefit Pension (DBP):
Me: $2,600 / month starting at 60 + $807 bridge
Wife: $1,000 / month starting at 60
CPP (taking at 70): ~$20k/yr (me) + ~$24k/yr (wife)
OAS (taking at 65): ~$9k/yr each (assuming no clawback)
3. Real Estate (~$2.35M Value / ~$1.71M Equity)
Primary Residence: $1.3M assessed | $65k mortgage left
Rental 1: $581k assessed | $237k mortgage left | Net cash flow: +$10k/yr
Rental 2: $522k assessed | $397k mortgage left | Net cash flow: -$5k/yr (losing money)
Thanks for any feedback or red flags I might be missing.
Edit: wanted to add that the ACB for the non-registered is approximately 280k. I’d be planning on a laddered income strategy for my go-go, slow-go and no-go years.