Your Oregon PERS Benefits: Financial Planning for Public Employees & Retirees

Are you among the 400,000 Oregon public employees and retirees who are members of the Oregon Public Employees Retirement System? Get the resources you need and expert insights from financial professionals who specialize in helping Oregon PERS members make the most of their benefits.

Whether you’re a new public employee in Oregon, nearing retirement, or enjoying your golden years, it’s important to make smart money moves with your Oregon Public Employees Retirement System (PERS) benefits. For example:

✅ Do you know the right moves to make to get the greatest value from the Oregon PERS benefits available to you?

✅If you’re thinking about leaving pubic employment for a corporate position or planning to retire in a few years, are you taking the right steps today to ensure you will receive all of the compensation and benefits that you’ve earned?

Get the Most Value from Your Oregon PERS Benefits

Throughout the year, Oregon PERS provides its members with updates about their benefits, including health insurance, pension, and defined contribution retirement plans. While Oregon PERS offers many useful resources and access to knowledgeable staff who can assist with questions, you’ll also find financial professionals not affiliated with Oregon PERS who specialize in helping Oregon PERS members make the most of their benefits.

As an Oregon PERS member, you may have questions about your benefits better suited for a financial professional who can offer unbiased advice and guidance.

For example, sensitive topics like discussing the steps you should take before quitting your job as a public employee to work elsewhere or deciding when you should plan to retire are all conversations that may be more comfortable with a trusted financial advisor.

💡 In the Q&A below, you’ll gain insights from financial advisors who work with Oregon PERS members to help them make smart decisions to get the most value from their benefits, reduce their money stress, and prepare for a comfortable retirement.

🙋‍♀️ Do you have questions not yet answered? Use the form below to submit questions anonymously and watch this article for updates with answers to your questions. You can also reach out to the financial advisors below to set up an introductory call or contact them with your questions by email.

💸 Smart Money Insights for Oregon PERS Members

This page is organized into sections to help you quickly find the information you need and get answers to your questions:

1. Q&A: Financial Planning Tips for Oregon PERS Members
2. Get Answers to Your Questions About Your Oregon PERS Benefits
3. Quick Facts & Resources for Oregon PERS Members
4. Browse Related Articles

Q&A: Financial Planning Tips for Oregon PERS Members

Answers to Member Questions with Brenna Baucum, CFP®, CTS™

Brenna Baucum is a financial advisor based in Salem, Oregon, who specializes in offering financial planning services to Oregon PERS members. Brenna helps her clients get the most value from their Oregon PERS benefits so they can enjoy life and feel confident about their financial future.

Q: For Oregon PERS members approaching retirement age, how do you recommend they prepare to make the transition from living off their salary to relying upon other sources of income?

Brenna: For Oregon Public Employees approaching retirement age, a strategic and informed approach is crucial to ensure a smooth transition from living off a salary to relying on retirement income. The first step is to request a formal benefit estimate from PERS once you hit retirement eligibility. It’s the first time PERS is forced to dust off your file and ensure salary reporting, years of service, and other key elements are accurate. Check out our detailed guide on How to Read Your Oregon PERS Benefit Estimate to help make sense of what you see.

Carefully comparing the various pension options available is also vital to making the best decision for your unique situation. This includes understanding the implications of each option, such as Single Life, Joint and Survivor, and Lump Sum Settlement options. Our comprehensive blog post, Deciding Which Oregon PERS Pension Benefit is Right for You, provides valuable insights to help in this decision-making process.

Determining the most appropriate pension strategy is informed by a comprehensive financial plan. I work with clients to co-create a plan that integrates what they have with what they want to achieve and chart a path to get there. Income planning to replace the paycheck, proactive tax planning to ensure tax flexibility, and enough cushion to shift as life inevitably does. By simulating various retirement scenarios, I help clients visualize their financial future and make informed decisions to secure a comfortable, stable, and joyful retirement.

Transitioning from the accumulation phase to the decumulation or distribution phase can be an emotional experience, often bringing anxieties about outliving savings and adjusting to a new financial mindset. Understanding and addressing these emotional aspects is just as important as the financial planning itself. I discussed these topics in detail on a podcast, The Three Anxieties and Four Opportunities in Retirement, where I explore common concerns and strategies to embrace the opportunities that retirement brings. This holistic approach ensures that clients are financially prepared and emotionally confident as they enter this new chapter of their lives.

Q: What are some of the unique financial planning challenges you commonly see among your clients who are Oregon PERS members and how do you help them overcome these obstacles?

Brenna: One common financial planning challenge unique to Oregon Public Employees is understanding the intricacies and maximizing the benefits of the Oregon Public Employees Retirement System (PERS). PERS members are either Tier 1, Tier 2, or OPSRP; each membership level comes with its own set of rules and benefits. Each one has a pension benefit and an Individual Account Program (IAP) they contribute during their working years. While employed, members receive an annual statement from their IAP account, but can be difficult to infer relevant and helpful planning details. If you’ve had that issue in reviewing your annual statement, check out our blog, How to Read Your Oregon PERS Statement – A Step-by-Step Guide.

In addition, Oregon PERS members also have the option to participate in the Oregon Savings Growth Plan (OSGP) 457(b) plan for more tax-deferred savings. Many clients struggle to see how these elements interact with each other and the best strategies to maximize their retirement benefits. I work closely with my clients to educate them on their specific PERS tier, analyze their IAP and OSGP options, and develop a comprehensive retirement strategy tailored to their unique circumstances. This involves detailed projections, tax planning, and personalized investment advice to ensure they can achieve a comfortable and secure retirement.

Get to Know Brenna Baucum, Financial Advisor for Oregon PERS Members:

View Brenna’s profile page on Wealthtender or visit her website to learn more.

Q: What questions do you recommend Oregon PERS members ask financial advisors they’re considering hiring to help them decide if they’re a good fit?

Brenna: When considering hiring a financial advisor, Oregon Public Employees should vet potential advisors for three key aspects: education, fee structure, and service model.

Education: Look for advisors with experience navigating the Oregon PERS system and consider working with a Certified Financial Planner™ (CFP®). A CFP® designation indicates a high level of expertise and adherence to a rigorous code of ethics, which everyone wants when working with someone handling financials. 

Fee Structure: Understand the different fee structures: fee-based, commission-based, and fee-only. Fee-based advisors may charge a combination of fees and commissions, commission-based advisors earn through the products they sell, and fee-only advisors charge solely for their services without earning commissions from product sales. Fee-only advisors generally present the least potential for conflicts of interest, as their compensation is tied directly to the advisory services they provide, ensuring their advice is unbiased and in your best interest.

Service Model: Assess the advisor’s service model to determine if it aligns with your needs. Advisors may offer services on an hourly basis, project-based engagements, or ongoing wealth management. Hourly and project-based services are suitable for specific advice or financial planning needs, while wealth management provides ongoing, holistic financial oversight.

Lastly, it is important to assess the qualitative skills of a potential advisor. Regardless of titles or the fee structure you decide is best for you, choosing a financial advisor may come down to finding one who believes in libertarian paternalism: they sincerely believe it is both possible and legitimate to positively impact your actions while respecting your freedom of choice. This includes your choice of whether to become their client and the countless choices you would face should you work together. (The concept of libertarian paternalism comes from behavioral economist Richard Thaler and legal scholar Cass Sunstein, authors of an excellent book called Nudge: Improving Decisions about Health, Wealth, and Happiness.)

You can pick up other tips on finding the right advisor for you by exploring our blog, How Do You Find a Financial Advisor.

Q: How do the services you offer Oregon Public Employees distinguish your firm from other advisory firms?

Brenna: When you show up to the Collective Wealth Planning site, you’ll see my services are uniquely tailored to meet the specific needs of Oregon Public Employees. With over a decade of experience advising Oregon PERS members, I have developed a deep understanding of the language and myriad of acronyms that can often be confusing. I offer expert guidance on service purchases, including waiting time, which can have a big impact on pension benefits. My thorough understanding of the various pension options available at each membership tier ensures that clients receive personalized, accurate advice. Additionally, I emphasize proactive tax planning within the various retirement accounts to ensure tax flexibility while working, and into retirement. This includes strategies to optimize withdrawals, manage tax liabilities, and balance tax-deferred growth with taxable investing.

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