Diversified investors may be frustrated by the underperformance of their international equity returns relative to their domestic equity returns over the last seven years.

Planning for retirement and charting your course through retirement can be very complex. A financial advisor can help you through the planning process, so that your golden years are truly golden.

A key tenet of successful investing is to remain invested and diversified so that your portfolio may benefit from the unpredictable nature of the market. However, how are these returns impacted by an investor's need for income?

The impact for retirees and their heirs

The current investment environment makes retirement nest eggs less effective than many retirees had hoped. Understanding potential retirement income shortfalls is a critical first step. The hard part–developing a plan to avoid that shortfall–comes next.