Retirement planning experts with decades of experience bring valuable perspective to the income challenge. Bart Mackler, a financial advisor with 25+ years in the industry, recently earned his Chartered Retirement Planning Counselor℠ (CRPC®) designation in March 2025. Throughout his career, he has worked on approaches to retirement income that try to balance security with growth potential.
“Retirement planning isn’t just about accumulating assets,” Mackler often tells clients at Mainstay Capital Management, where he serves as Senior Wealth Advisor. “It’s about creating sustainable income streams that can weather any economic environment while minimizing tax impacts.”
Mackler’s career began at Dean Witter in the World Trade Center back in 1995. He then spent over two decades at Concorde Investment Services, experiencing multiple market cycles. Let’s explore some retirement income strategies that have emerged from his extensive background and experience.
Client-Centered Discovery Process
Many financial advisors, including Mackler, believe retirement income planning should begin long before portfolio construction or product recommendations. Financial planning experts increasingly recognize that a thorough discovery process is critical to successful outcomes.
“Most people jump straight to products and percentages,” Mackler explains. “But the most successful retirement income plans I’ve developed over 25 years begin with a deep understanding of what retirement actually means to each client.”
This approach matches research from the Stanford Center on Longevity, which found that personalized income strategies outperform one-size-fits-all approaches by up to 25% in satisfaction metrics. Their recent study showed retirees who participated in comprehensive planning sessions reported significantly higher confidence in their financial futures.
Mackler’s process involves detailed conversations about:
- Essential vs. discretionary spending needs
- Health considerations and longevity expectations
- Legacy goals and family support intentions
- Risk tolerance specifically for income (versus accumulation)
“Income risk is fundamentally different from accumulation risk,” he notes. “When you’re taking withdrawals, market downturns have a compounding negative effect that doesn’t exist during the saving phase.”
Wade Pfau’s “retirement income styles” framework supports this insight, emphasizing that approaches must be tailored to individual psychology and goals rather than just mathematical optimization.
Multi-Bucket Income Sequencing
During his time at TD Ameritrade and Raymond James, Mackler worked with what retirement specialists call a “time-segmentation” or “bucket” approach. This method has gained popularity among many financial advisors who work with retirees seeking sustainable income solutions.
The core of his income sequencing strategy involves:
- A 1-2 year cash buffer for immediate income needs
- A 3-5 year bucket of conservative fixed-income investments
- A 5-10 year growth and income allocation
- A 10+ year growth-oriented portfolio segment
“This isn’t just about dividing money into arbitrary buckets,” Mackler clarifies. “It’s about creating a psychological framework that allows retirees to remain disciplined when markets inevitably correct.”
A Morningstar 2023 study supports this approach, showing that bucket strategies helped investors maintain their plans during volatility, resulting in an average of 1.2% higher returns compared to those who abandoned strategies during market stress.
While at Great Lakes Wealth between 2018-2019, Mackler worked with concepts like “dynamic refill triggers” that adjust based on market conditions rather than calendar dates. This approach has been discussed by various retirement specialists.
“The biggest mistake I see in bucket approaches is rigid rebalancing that forces selling at inopportune times,” he explains. “Establishing trigger points rather than dates makes our approach more opportunistic.”
The Hidden Retirement Multiplier
Tax considerations form an important part of retirement planning. Many advisors, including Mackler, discuss the concept of “tax-alpha” – the significant value created through tax-efficient withdrawal sequencing and location optimization.
“Many advisors can create a decent portfolio, but tax efficiency in distribution can be worth an additional 1-1.5% annually, what we call ‘tax-alpha’,” Mackler notes, referencing studies by Vanguard that quantify the value of tax-efficient withdrawal strategies.
Advanced tax planning for retirees often coordinates several elements:
- Roth conversions during lower-income years
- Tax-loss harvesting opportunities during market corrections
- Asset location optimization across account types
- Charitable giving strategies using appreciated securities
“At Mainstay Capital Management, we model different withdrawal sequences over 5-10 year periods, showing clients the tangible tax savings from proper planning,” he explains.
His experience at MSU Federal Credit Union in partnership with LPL Financial developed his awareness of how ordinary investors often overlook tax implications until too late.His professional journey has consistently emphasized making complex tax strategies accessible to everyday investors.
“Working with credit union members taught me that tax planning needs to be explained in concrete dollars saved, not abstract concepts,” he reflects.
Integrated Insurance as Income Protection
Insurance products can play a role in retirement income planning. Mackler, who earned his Life & Health Insurance License in November 2023, is among the advisors who view these products not as investments but as risk transfer mechanisms.
“Insurance products are tools, not universal solutions,” he emphasizes. “Used selectively, certain annuity types can create income floors that allow more aggressive positioning with remaining assets.”
Economist David Blanchett’s research confirms this approach, finding that partial annuitization strategies created more sustainable retirement outcomes than either all-annuity or all-investment approaches.
Insurance solutions for retirement might include:
- Longevity protection through qualified longevity annuity contracts (QLACs)
- Guaranteed living benefits for specific income needs
- Long-term care funding strategies that protect investment portfolios from catastrophic healthcare costs
During his tenure at TruStage from 2023 to 2025, Mackler worked with families on retirement readiness and insurance planning, gaining perspective on how these elements can work together. His innovative approach to retirement planning integrates insurance solutions as one component of a comprehensive income strategy.
The Client Education Differentiator
Client education is an important component of effective retirement planning. Since his early days at Bentley Lawrence Securities in the late 1990s, Mackler has incorporated educational elements into his work with clients.
“Financial products and strategies change constantly,” Mackler notes. “The client who understands why their income plan is structured a certain way is much more likely to stick with it when markets get turbulent.”
This focus on education manifests in:
- Quarterly income strategy reviews rather than just performance discussions
- Scenario planning sessions for potential economic changes
- Family education meetings that include adult children
- Clear explanations that avoid industry jargon
Research published in the Journal of Financial Planning supports this approach. Studies show that clients who receive ongoing education about their income strategies have 35% higher satisfaction rates and are substantially less likely to make impulsive changes during market volatility. Mackler’s educational philosophy emphasizes empowering clients with knowledge rather than keeping them dependent on advisor expertise.
Disciplined but Adaptive
Financial advisors who have worked through multiple market cycles gain perspective on retirement planning. Mackler’s quarter-century career has spanned the dot-com bubble while at Concorde Investment Services, the 2008 financial crisis, and the pandemic market disruption while at TD Ameritrade. This type of experience can help shape a balanced approach to retirement income planning.
“The fundamental principles of sustainable retirement income haven’t changed,” he concludes. “But the tools, tax environment, and economic realities require constant vigilance and willingness to refine approaches.”
Mackler currently works at Mainstay Capital Management, a firm that has been recognized among Barron’s “Top 100 Independent Financial Advisors” for over 16 years. Like many experienced advisors, he continues to adapt retirement income strategies to changing conditions while maintaining a client-centered approach. His insights on retirement planning reflect both timeless principles and modern adaptations.
Retirement income planning isn’t just about mathematics; it’s about creating financial security that enables living life on your terms, regardless of what markets or the economy might do next.
