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Financial Planning for Minnesota Government Employees

You've spent your career serving your community - in a city hall, county agency, or state office across Anoka County, Hennepin County, Ramsey County, or somewhere else in Minnesota. Along the way you've built something real: a PERA pension, a 457(b) deferred compensation plan, and retirement benefits that most people never have access to.

The challenge is knowing how it all fits together. How does your PERA benefit interact with Social Security? How much should you be putting into your 457? When can you actually retire?

At Mullins Financial, we help Minnesota government employees throughout the Twin Cities metro and beyond organize the moving pieces of retirement so you can make decisions with clarity and confidence.

How Your PERA, 457(b), and Social Security Fit Together

For many Minnesota government employees, retirement income comes from several places: a PERA pension, 457(b) deferred compensation, Social Security, personal savings, and sometimes other benefits. Each piece matters, but the real planning happens when they are coordinated.

Your pension election can affect survivor income. Your 457(b) can help bridge the years before Social Security or Medicare. Your Social Security timing can affect lifetime income. And your withdrawal strategy can impact taxes throughout retirement.

That is why we help you bring everything into one clear picture before important retirement decisions become permanent.

How We Help Minnesota Government Employees

We help you bring your retirement picture together in one place.

Through the CLARITY Retirement Method™, we look at:

Clarify Your Vision, Goals, and Priorities

Clarify Your Vision, Goals, and Priorities

C

 Clarify Your Vision, Goals, and Priorities

Define what retirement looks like beyond just “hitting a number”

Legacy, Estate, and Beneficiary Planning

Legacy, Estate, and Beneficiary Planning

L

 Legacy, Estate, and Beneficiary Planning

Make sure beneficiaries and estate plans align with your wishes

Aggregate Everything In One Place

Aggregate Everything In One Place

A

Aggregate Everything In One Place

Bring together your pension, 457, and all accounts in one place

Risk Management & Protection

Risk Management & Protection

R

Risk Management & Protection

Protect what you’ve built and account for the unexpected

Income Strategy & Investment Alignment

Income Strategy & Investment Alignment

I

Income Strategy & Investment Alignment

Turn your pension and savings into a reliable income plan

Tax-Smart Strategies

Tax-Smart Strategies

T

Tax-Smart Strategies

Proactively lower lifetime taxes so you keep more of what you’ve earned.

Year-Round Reviews, Adjustments, and Accountability

Year-Round Reviews, Adjustments, and Accountability

Y

Year-Round Reviews, Adjustments, and Accountability


Stay on track with proactive check‑ins and deadline alerts so your plan always matches your life.

Minnesota Retirement Decisions We Help Coordinate

Retirement planning for Minnesota government employees is about more than choosing investments. We help clients coordinate decisions such as:

  • PERA retirement options
  • PERA survivor benefit elections
  • Minnesota Deferred Compensation Plan (457)
  • Roth vs. pre-tax contributions
  • Social Security timing
  • Retirement income planning
  • Minnesota tax strategies
  • Beneficiary and estate planning

Each of these decisions affects the others. That's why we use the CLARITY Retirement Method™ to help bring everything together into one coordinated retirement strategy.

Common Questions We Hear from Government Employees

  • Your pension may be a strong foundation, but whether it is enough depends on your income needs, retirement age, survivor election, healthcare costs, taxes, Social Security, and savings.

  • That depends on your work history, benefit eligibility, and claiming age. We help you understand how your pension and Social Security may fit together in your retirement income plan.

  • For many government employees, a 457(b) can be an important supplement to a pension. The right contribution amount depends on your retirement timeline, cash flow, tax situation, and other savings.

  • Ideally, start at least five to ten years before retirement. That gives you time to coordinate pension timing, Social Security, taxes, healthcare, investments, and income planning before key decisions become permanent.

  • Helpful items include your pension estimate, 457(b) statement, Social Security estimate, recent tax return, investment statements, insurance information, and any estate documents or beneficiary information.

Take the Next Step

You have worked hard for your retirement benefits. Now it is time to make sure those benefits work together.

Mullins Financial helps Minnesota government employees and retirees coordinate pensions, 457(b) plans, Social Security, taxes, investments, and retirement income through the CLARITY Retirement Method™.

Schedule a Call

Other Resources to consider

CLARITY Retirement MethodTM

Learn how the CLARITY Retirement Method™ helps Minnesota public servants organize their pension, benefits, taxes, and retirement income plan.

Learn More

FAQ

Get answers to common questions about PERA, deferred comp, Social Security, taxes, and retirement planning for Minnesota public employees.

View FAQs

Blog

Read articles for Minnesota government employees, first responders, educators, and public servants preparing for retirement.

Read the Blog

MN PERA Survivor Options

Choosing a PERA survivor option can affect your monthly income, your spouse’s protection, and what happens after one spouse passes away. Learn how the 25%, 50%, 75%, 100%, and bounce-back options work.

View PERA Survivor Options

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