This is What a Real $750,000 Retirement Portfolio Looks Like for a Washington Police Officer2/12/2026 Note: The examples and case studies in this article are hypothetical but represent real situations I have encountered in my practice working with Washington State public employees.
I met with a prospective client recently who had a question that stopped me cold. "Is this enough?" He was 53, a police officer with 25 years of service. He'd saved diligently. Followed all the right advice. And now he was staring at his retirement accounts wondering if the numbers actually worked. The balances looked impressive on paper. But he couldn't tell if impressive on paper meant secure in retirement. I pulled up his accounts. DCP - 457(b) showed just over $450,000. A taxable brokerage account at $200,000. And a Roth IRA he'd been contributing to for years sitting at $100,000. $750,000 total. Plus his LEOFF 2 pension. The question wasn't whether the numbers looked good. It was whether they could actually support 30+ years of retirement starting at age 55. The Reality of a LEOFF 2 Retirement at 53 LEOFF 2 members can retire at age 53 with full benefits. No reduction. No penalty1. With 25 years of service and a final average salary of about $12,000 per month, his unreduced pension would be around $6,600 monthly. But then comes the decision that keeps people up at night. Single Life or Joint Survivor? Or something else? The Survivor Benefit Decision Nobody Wants to Make Single Life pays the full $6,600. 100% Survivor pays about $5,676 to him. If he dies first, his wife (same age) receives the exact same amount.2 That's a $924 per month difference. $11,088 per year. Every year. For as long as he lives. But if he takes Single Life and dies first, his wife gets nothing from the pension. This is where the $750,000 in other accounts becomes critical. We ran the numbers assuming he chose 100% survivor. The reduced pension protected his wife, but they needed the portfolio to bridge gaps and provide flexibility. How the Three Income Sources Actually Work Together Most people think of retirement income as pension plus portfolio withdrawals. But LEOFF 2 retirees and many other Washington public employees have three distinct income sources that need coordination: The LEOFF 2 Pension: Starting at 55, he'd receive about $5,676 per month with Joint Survivor. Guaranteed. Adjusted annually for cost of living up to 3%.1 Social Security: He could start as early as 62, but the longer he waits, the higher the benefit. At his full retirement age (67 for someone born after 1960), his estimated benefit is around $3,500 monthly.3 Portfolio Withdrawals: The $750,000 across three accounts provides flexibility but requires careful sequencing to manage taxes. The coordination matters because each income source has different tax treatment. His LEOFF 2 pension is fully taxable. Social Security might be partially taxable depending on other income. His Roth IRA comes out tax-free. The Real Withdrawal Strategy Here's what we built for him: Ages 55-62: Live primarily on the pension ($5,676/month) plus strategic withdrawals from the taxable account. This bridges the gap until his full Social Security retirement age. The taxable account has a mix of gains and basis, so we can manage tax impact carefully. This keeps his tax bracket manageable before Social Security starts. We are also evaluating strategic Roth conversions during this time. Ages 62-67: Continue the pension, add Social Security at the full retirement age (around $3,500/month at 67), and reduce portfolio withdrawals. Roth conversions continued to be evaluated each year during this time. Age 67+: Full Social Security benefit ($3,500/month) plus pension ($5,676) gives him $9,176 in guaranteed income. Portfolio withdrawals become supplemental for discretionary spending, large expenses, and maintaining purchasing power. The DCP ($450,000) is the workhorse. It's penalty-free after separating from service, even before age 59½.4 We can tap it strategically in those early years without IRS penalties that would hit a traditional IRA. The Roth IRA ($100,000) sits untouched as long as possible. No required minimum distributions. No taxes on withdrawal. It's the tax-free reserve for later years when other income might push him into higher brackets. Why Multiple Accounts Require a Coordinated Strategy The real complexity isn't having $750,000. It's knowing which account to pull from when. And how much. And how that affects taxes this year and ten years from now. Take a simple question: Should he withdraw $30,000 this year? From the taxable account? He'll pay capital gains on the appreciated portion. From the DCP? Fully taxable as ordinary income. But it reduces future RMDs. From the Roth? Tax-free, but he's depleting his only tax-free reserve. There's no universal "right answer." It depends on his tax bracket that year, expected income next year, Roth conversion opportunities, and long-term distribution planning. This is why having three distinct accounts with different tax treatment requires more than just a withdrawal rate. It requires a withdrawal sequence. A tax strategy. A multi-year plan that adjusts as circumstances change. What This Actually Means This client's $750,000 isn't impressive because of the number. It's impressive because of what it enables when coordinated with his pension and Social Security. The LEOFF 2 pension provides the foundation. Guaranteed income he can't outlive. Social Security adds a layer of inflation-protected income in his mid-60s. The portfolio gives him flexibility, tax planning opportunities, and protection against the unexpected. None of these pieces work in isolation. But together, they create a retirement that's both sustainable and flexible. That's what a real retirement portfolio looks like for a Washington police officer. Not just big numbers in separate accounts, but a coordinated strategy that turns savings into decades of income. Sources
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AuthorsBob Deal is a CPA with over 30 years of experience and been a financial planner for 25 years. Archives
March 2026
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