A couple may establish a plan for their retirement dates, but an event or situation arises that calls for a change from a synchronized retirement to a staggered retirement, or vice versa.

Say that a couple, Lisa and Eddie, planned to retire together in three years. However, Lisa’s mother suffers a stroke and needs help to live on her own. Lisa wants to leave her job to care for her mother, and the couple meets with their advisor to see how this arrangement would affect their retirement plans. Together, they determine that if Lisa retires now and Eddie works for five years, the couple will still meet their retirement savings objective.

Another couple, Calvin and Shanaya, originally planned to retire at different times. Shanaya is five years older and the idea was that each spouse would retire at age 65. When Shanaya is a year away from retirement, Calvin receives a considerable inheritance, which allows Calvin to retire when he reaches age 60—at the same time as Shanaya.