CRPC Study Guide 2026

Narrative therapy helps retirees reconstruct a coherent life story that incorporates retirement as a positive new chapter rather than an ending.

SECURE 2.0 reduced the RMD penalty from 50% to 25% of the shortfall, further reducible to 10% if corrected within the IRS correction window.

The bucket strategy involves dividing a retirement portfolio into different 'buckets' based on the time horizon for needing the funds (e.g., short-term, intermediate-term, and long-term). This approach helps manage sequence of returns risk by using conservative, liquid assets for near-term expenses, allowing long-term assets to remain invested for growth without being forced to sell during a downturn.

The 'buffer asset' strategy, popularized by retirement researcher Wade Pfau and others, suggests opening a HECM line of credit at or near retirement even if funds are not immediately needed. Because the unused credit grows over time, it can be drawn on during equity market downturns (allowing a portfolio to recover rather than selling at a loss), effectively acting as a dynamic longevity hedge integrated into a coordinated retirement income plan.

A QPRT transfers the remainder interest in a home to heirs at a discounted gift tax value, with the grantor retaining the right to occupy the home for a specified term.

The Pension Protection Act of 2006 (PPA) required that employer nonelective contributions (like profit sharing) follow the same faster vesting schedules previously established for matching contributions. The permissible maximum schedules are a 3-year cliff (100% vested after 3 years) or a 2 to 6-year graded schedule (20% vested after 2 years, increasing by 20% each year until 100% vested after 6 years). The 5-year cliff and 2 to 7-year graded schedules were the pre-PPA rules for nonelective contributions.