What you're describing are "big things" like keeping an asset allocation somewhat on track; what the OP is concerned about is replacing his functionality in terms of dealing with very specific and maybe time-sensitive tasks like enrolling or making changes to employer-provided retiree healthcare, etc. Or dealing with those million airline miles that might or might not be transferrable, and then making sure they don't expire. So, doing all the little things that a Boglehead just takes for granted but lots of other people don't (and maybe miss out on some benefits because they don't... but they might or might not care.) The OP is looking to replace himself with someone who cares just as much about financial details - which might or might not be significant.
Thanks for the posts. These kinda sum up what I’m seeking to procure (in my absence), and I acknowledge I may be woefully underinformed (e.g. re: cost).We have many posts on the forum about replacing one spouse's financial expertise when they die, at the lowest possible cost.
People just aren't replaced very easily. Perhaps the other spouse cooks all the meals, and they are the one who dies. Then presumably the financial DIY spouse will have to either spend a lot more money eating out or learn to cook. Eating out all year long could easily cost $3,000.
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Even those of us who do well managing our own portfolios and budgets may become incapacitated some day and need a professional fiduciary to help us.
My trust attorney gave me several names of fiduciaries to interview, and I have selected a professional fiduciary to name in my trust, both for myself if incapacitated, and for my heir who needs help managing their money who will be receiving their inheritance in trust. Both of my heirs and my sibling, a retired attorney, attended a meeting to interview the fiduciary. I like workng collaboratively on issues of great importance, and these are the people who will end up working with the fiduciary in my absence or inability.
I'm not sure what services the OP would expect for $3,000 annually. The professional fiduciary I will be selecting charges anywhere from 1% to 1.5%, depending on the amount of the assets, but they do not handle the investing. These services are expensive, no doubt, but are not optional in my case.
We don't often discuss the possible eventual incapacity of ourselves as DIY investors/portfolio managers. It's important to plan for. OP (and all of us, really) needs to have a plan in case he suffers from dementia while his wife is still alive, and then not only will she be caring for him (whether personally or supervising caregivers or an institution), but someone will need to handle bill paying and investing. A good trust will include these provisions.
The “annuity” is one of these. I am supposed to receive a pension that would cover ~1/3 of my income. And for whatever reason, i’m called an annuitant and not a pensioner. Descriptor aside, when I pass, my wife becomes an annuitant in her own right, which entitles her to access to the current workplace plans (with workplace paying for part of the premium). So someone to remind her of her privileges would be helpful, especially as we recently had a helluva time securing Medigap coverage for my in-laws.
All of our financial decisions are made jointly. My wife is actually quite good with money (on both the earning and saving aspects), and if anything, I think she's a lot more frugal than I. However, optimization is a rather important part of the equation as well (and the raison d'être behind this forum), and as alluded to in the posts above, this is where I worry, as she is quite averse toward many of the optimizations with which most here have no problem. The main example of these optimizations include doing backdoor Roth and signing up for HDHP + HSA coverage. To her, the former is too complicated to execute and then the extra reporting requirement is the unpleasant icing on top. Ditto for the HDHP (which actually has a rather low deductible of only ~$3k); which while it saves us quite a bit of money from just the perspective of premiums paid, she has no time for the added vexations.
Looking at the bigger picture, and not to toot my own horn, one thing my wife really finds appealing about me is the ability to advocate on our own behalf. We bought our current house at a time when about 2/3 of similar were sold for at least $25k above asking; I read the signals from the seller and extracted enough concessions (~$30k) to cover the repairs, while other houses needing repairs were still bid above asking. Our realtor certainly wouldn’t have advised her to make such an offer, but as someone with a crude understanding of game theory, I made what I felt was an informed choice. There are similar successful self-advocacies when it came to getting our HDHP insurer to cough up money it should pay. I begrudgingly accept that my wife would be on the receiving end of less favorable transactions such as housing purchases were I not around, and in the grand scheme of things, even $30k out of $1.5M net worth is small fry as I wouldn't expect her needing to move that often.
Then again, at current saving rate and assuming actual return of 4%, we'd have ~$2.75 M in investable money in 10 years. Were I to croak then, I'd think with her frugality and the $1.5 M life insurance I have until age 60, most optimization might not even matter. At which point, I can certainly make peace with the fact that she forgot to do the extra catch-up contributions. It's just that for larger things such as access to cheaper healthcare for life, etc., I’d want to ensure she gets everything she deserves and that she's not missing out. I have began compiling such a list, but when the time comes, out of all the benefits, that health insurance is one thing I'd really want her to access.
Statistics: Posted by InvisibleAerobar — Wed Sep 10, 2025 11:47 am — Replies 39 — Views 3528