How Can I Start Planning for Retirement in 2026?

How Can I Start Planning for Retirement in 2026?

January is when people start gym memberships and then cancel them.

But retirement isn’t a subscription you can cancel or pause. 

Because you will get there eventually, whether you plan for it or not.

One of the biggest mistakes is waiting to plan for retirement until it’s too late. 

By then, the small gaps that were ignored snowball into costly mistakes. 

But a better approach is to start the year by asking one simple question:

Step1: What does my retirement look like?

Do you picture yourself traveling around the world with family more or do you prefer a slower paced retirement with more purpose? 

Do you want to stay in your home, downsize, or split time between places? 

What do I want my retirement to mean? 

When you can describe the lifestyle, you can build a retirement plan that supports it.

Suggestion: Write out your vision of retirement in braindump style and let your pen go. Be brutally honest about yourself. Is there something you’ve always wanted to do but were always scared of? Write it down.  

Step 2: Estimate Your Retirement Expenses

Once you have a vision, the next step is practical: create a simple estimate of your retirement expenses. It does not have to be perfect. It just needs to show you what will work and where the gaps are.

Start with the biggest categories:

• Housing: property taxes, insurance, utilities, maintenance, condo fees

• Healthcare: prescriptions, dental, vision, private services, travel medical coverage

• Travel: big trips, weekend getaways, visiting family

• Leisure and lifestyle: hobbies, golf, dining, memberships, gifts, entertainment

  
  

Many retirees assume expenses drop automatically after work ends because life becomes more simple but the reality is that costs often shift, especially in today's unstable world.  

You might spend less on commuting but more on travel, helping family, or health-related needs.

A simple list can show you what “life” actually costs, and that clarity is a powerful first step.

Step 3: Review Your Retirement Income Sources

Next, review your retirement income sources. This is where most people realize they have pieces of the puzzle, but they have never seen the full picture in one place.

Your inventory might include:

• CPP

• OAS

• RRSPs (and future RRIF withdrawals)

• TFSAs

• Non-registered investment accounts

• Pensions or other income sources

  
  

This exercise will help you become aware of what you have to work with and how it can align to building your retirement. 

Step 4: The Gap: Knowing Where You Are vs. Knowing How to Get There

After you list expenses and income, you might feel a bit overwhelmed. 

That’s normal.

You might know where you stand now, but you’re unsure how to connect the dots to live confidently with a plan. 

That “gap” is where many people feel stuck, and it is also where poor decisions often happen, especially during market uncertainty.

Regret rarely comes from not knowing the future. 

Clarity gives you options and once you can see the full picture, you can make adjustments early, before decisions get forced on you. 

TLDR: The New Year Retirement Planning Checklist

• Define what retirement looks like

• Estimate retirement expenses

• List every retirement income source

• Identify the gap between today and your vision

• Stress-test the plan for real-life changes

  
  

Step 5: Stress-test Your Plan

Retirement planning can be quite complicated to DIY.

But our team of experts can help you stress-test your plan, identify gaps, and make adjustments before they snowball and become costly.

If you need help connecting the dots, visit pkag.ca to learn how our team helps families plan across income, growth, health, and legacy.