Spotlight State of Retirement Income Switching Gears For new retirees, crafting a flexible withdrawal strategy can help provide a fruitful retirement. RETIREMENT Amy C. Arnott, Christine Benz, and John Rekenthaler The headline numbers from the Morningstar State of Retirement Income 2023 study were positive.1 We estimate that new retirees can afford to withdraw as much as 4% as an initial rate from their investment portfolio, assuming a 90% probability of still having funds remaining after 30 years. This safe withdrawal rate is more generous than the numbers we cited in the previous two years of the study. As yields on bonds and cash have increased, the prospects for portfolio returns-and in turn the amounts that new retirees can safely withdraw from those portfolios-have continued to edge up since we last covered the topic in 2022. But it's not all sunshine and roses for retirement income. Recent retirees haven't had an easy 1 The full paper is available at https://www.morningstar.com/lp/the-state-of-retirement-income. morningstar.com/products/magazine 27https://www.morningstar.com/lp/the-state-of-retirement-income https://www.morningstar.com/lp/the-state-of-retirement-income https://www.morningstar.com/lp/the-state-of-retirement-income http://www.morningstar.com/products/magazine