CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER® certification
Accredited Investment Fiduciary
BIOGRAPHY
As CEO and President, Joe Anderson, CFP®, AIF®, has created a unique, ambitious business model utilizing advanced service, training, sales, and marketing strategies to grow Pure Financial Advisors into the trustworthy, client-focused company it is today.
Pure Financial, a Registered Investment Advisor (RIA), was ranked among Inc. Magazine’s 5,000 Fastest-Growing Private Companies in America (2024-2025), ranked one of Barron’s Top 100 RIA Firms (2023-2025), and was recognized as one of Forbes’ Top RIA Firms (2024-2025). Pure was also named to the San Diego Business Journal’s Best Places to Work (2023-2025) and Glassdoor’s Top 50 Best Places to Work (2022).
Joe was ranked #6 out of 250 in AdvisorHub’s Advisors to Watch RIAs (2025) and named to the 2023 Forbes Best-In-State Wealth Advisors list, ranking #9 out of 117 advisors on the list for Southern California (High Net Worth). In 2013, Joe earned San Diego Metro’s 40 Under 40 Award, representing some of the best and brightest minds of San Diego County.
From 2008 to 2024, Joe co-hosted a consistently top-rated weekend financial talk radio program in San Diego called Your Money, Your Wealth®. Evolving from the radio show’s success, in June 2014, Joe launched the first Your Money, Your Wealth® television broadcast in San Diego and on the popular YMYW YouTube channel, now with over 30,000 subscribers. The Your Money, Your Wealth® podcast followed in 2016 and regularly places in Apple Podcasts’ Top 100 Investing Podcasts. The YMYW podcast was also ranked as the Best Retirement Podcast With Humor (2020-2024).
Prior to joining Pure, Joe worked for several years with one of the nation’s largest financial planning firms, where he was a financial advisor before becoming a district manager and then Vice President.
Beyond working with Pure Financial, Joe also participates in philanthropic activities. He’s also a member of the National Association of Personal Financial Advisors.
Joe received a Bachelor of Science degree in Finance from the University of Florida. He is a frequent speaker for a wide range of professional groups in San Diego County and enjoys playing golf and cheering for his alma mater, the Florida Gators.
If you have any questions about the awards mentioned, please visit our awards page.
Joseph's Latest Contributions
Joe Anderson, CFP® and Big Al Clopine, CPA spitball for three people planning for early retirement and wondering, can I really pull this off? How much risk can you take, and how much do you really need to? That’s today on Your Money, Your Wealth® podcast 588. Dr. Kickass Seabass and his wife are both 41 and they got a late start on savings. Can they still hit FIRE – that is, financial independence, retire early – by 55? Get your salt shakers ready. Aang and Katara have military pensions and a big thrift savings plan. Should they invest it aggressively or play it safe over the next decade? Finally, Steph has a mandatory retirement at 56 but wants out even sooner, at age 50… if his wife Ayesha doesn’t kill him first for quitting seven years before her.
Can you retire early at 55 (FIRE) if you have a high income but relatively modest savings?
Financial independence, retire early (FIRE) at 55 is possible with a high income and disciplined saving, but it depends on your target number, not just your salary. A common approach is to estimate annual retirement spending, adjust for inflation, and divide by a sustainable withdrawal rate to find the nest egg needed to bridge the years before Social Security.
Frequently Asked Questions
Q: How do I calculate the savings I need to retire early?
A: A common method is to estimate your annual retirement spending, adjust it upward for inflation over the years until you retire, then divide that figure by a sustainable withdrawal rate to get your target nest egg. For example, dividing inflated annual spending by a rate near 4% gives a rough savings goal. Retiring earlier raises that number, because the portfolio has to cover more years before Social Security and pensions begin.
Q: Does a pension count as part of my bond allocation?
A: Many planners treat guaranteed income like a pension as the fixed-income or “safe money” part of your overall financial picture. Because the pension reliably covers fixed expenses, you may be able to hold a higher percentage of stocks in your investment accounts than you otherwise would.
Q: How aggressive should my investments be 10 years before retirement?
A: There is no single standard allocation; it depends on how much you need from the portfolio for income. If your essential expenses are covered by pensions or other guaranteed income, you may be able to take on more risk. A common guideline is to hold several years of needed withdrawals in safer assets so you are not forced to sell stocks in a downturn.
Q: What is a safe withdrawal rate for someone retiring at 55?
A: A withdrawal rate that works at 65 may be too high at 55 because the money has to last longer. Rates above 5% can be aggressive for an early retiree, while a rate closer to 3.5% to 4% is often considered more sustainable, depending on your investments, spending, and market conditions.
Q: Should I move money to safe investments right before retirement?
A: Holding some safe assets near retirement can help protect against having to sell stocks after a market drop, which is known as sequence-of-returns risk. How much to shift depends on how much income you need from the portfolio versus what guaranteed sources like pensions and Social Security already cover.
11 rapid-fire spitballs today from Joe and Big Al on Your Money, Your Wealth® podcast number 587, on everything from Roth conversions and RMDs to whether a guy named Wayne can finally treat himself to a $75K Audi. Aaron in Syracuse just hit a million bucks in his 401(k) and realizes he needs a spitball on keeping his RMDs low. Do new Roth conversions restart the 5-year clock? 72-year-old Mike in Texas wants to know. Marion inherited a not-yet-five-year-old Roth, and an IRMAA problem along with it. Lu and Stephen each argue that the fellas’ conversion and retirement spitball math might be misleading. Teachers Tony and his wife have pensions that cover everything, so should they even keep saving? John and Peggy need a retirement spitball, Rajesh wonders if he should pay off his mortgage or convert to Roth, and Mike in San Marcos asks about funding a Roth with pension money.
Should You Do Roth Conversions Before RMDs Start?
If your tax bracket after required minimum distributions begin is likely to be higher than it is now, converting pre-tax savings to a Roth in advance may reduce the size of future RMDs and the taxes on them. Whether it makes sense also depends on your time horizon, your pre-tax balance, and other factors like your current income and available cash to pay the conversion tax. Converting during lower-income years before age 73 is often when the opportunity is largest.
Frequently Asked Questions
Q: Do new Roth conversions restart the 5-year rule if I’ve had a Roth for years?
A: For someone who is over 59½ and has held any Roth IRA for at least five years, withdrawals are already qualified, and a new conversion does not restart that clock for them. Separately, each conversion does carry its own five-year clock that applies mainly to avoiding the early-withdrawal penalty for those under 59½.
Q: Can you fund a Roth IRA with pension income?
A: A Roth IRA contribution requires earned income such as wages or self-employment income, and pension income does not count as earned income. If you have enough earned income to cover the contribution, the IRS does not track which specific dollars you deposit. For 2026, the contribution limit is $7,500, or $8,600 if you are 50 or older.
Q: Are the earnings on an inherited Roth IRA taxable?
A: If the original owner held the Roth IRA for at least five years, withdrawals including earnings are tax-free to the beneficiary. If it was held less than five years, the earnings can become taxable until that five-year period is met, and withdrawals follow the order of contributions first, then converted amounts, then earnings.
“Walter and Skyler” in Iowa ask if they’re on track to retire early, or if they’re just “cooking up overconfidence?” And how aggressively should they convert their retirement savings to tax-free Roth money before the pension and Social Security kick in? California Dreamin’ has it down to one decision: convert to the top of the 22 percent tax bracket, or push into the 24? “Mike and Carol” in Florida ask, when you’re weighing a conversion, should you be looking at your tax bracket, or your actual effective tax rate? Finally, is it worth the cost for “Westley and Buttercup” to use the brand new option to turn a big employer contribution into Roth money?
When Should You Do Roth Conversions?
Roth conversions may be appropriate in the low-income window after you retire, but before Social Security benefits, pensions, or required minimum distributions begin, when your taxable income falls into a lower tax bracket. For example, if you will be in the 32% tax bracket or higher later in retirement, converting to the top of the 22% or 24% bracket before fixed income begins can prevent much larger RMD-driven tax bills later.
Frequently Asked Questions
Q: When is the best time to do Roth conversions?
A: The window between retirement and the start of Social Security and required minimum distributions, because your taxable income is at its lowest. Converting then locks in lower tax rates before RMDs push your income into higher brackets at 73 or 75.
Q: Should I convert to the top of the 22% or 24% tax bracket?
A: Many retirees convert to the top of the 22% bracket and opportunistically reach into the 24% bracket during market downturns. A down market lets you convert more shares at a lower value, and the recovery happens tax-free inside the Roth.
Q: What’s the difference between my marginal tax bracket and my effective tax rate for conversions?
A: Roth conversions are taxed at your marginal rate, the rate on your last dollar of income. Your effective rate is your average across all income. The key question is what bracket your future RMDs will land in, since deferring now can mean a much higher marginal rate later.
Q: Should I move my pre-tax 401(k) contributions to Roth?
A: It depends on your current bracket and how much you’ve already saved tax-deferred. If you have little Roth and expect large future RMDs, shifting contributions to Roth or using a mega backdoor Roth builds tax-free balances. Some prefer the upfront deduction and convert later.
Q: Can I move bonus or RSU money directly into a 401(k) or mega backdoor Roth?
A: Not directly. You increase your paycheck contributions so more salary flows into the plan, then cover your living expenses by drawing from the cash you set aside from bonuses or vested RSUs. It routes that money into tax-advantaged accounts indirectly.
