Florida DROP Decisions: Get It Right the First Time
Considering the Florida Retirement System D.R.O.P?
Before you enter the Deferred Retirement Option Program (DROP), understand this clearly:
DROP is not just a benefit—it’s a permanent financial decision.
Once elected, it impacts your pension, income timeline, tax exposure, and retirement flexibility for the rest of your life.
I help Florida public employees evaluate DROP before, during, and at exit—so costly mistakes are avoided.
What Is DROP — and Why It Matters
The Florida Retirement System DROP allows eligible Pension Plan members to “retire” for pension purposes while continuing to work for up to 60 months. During this time:
Your monthly pension benefits is locked in
Payments are deposited into a DROP account
You continue working and earning a salary
What many employees don’t realize:
Pension growth stops
Timing errors can reduce lifetime income
Poor exit planning can trigger unnecessary taxes
One election mistake is permanent
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This is not a decision to make based on hallway advice or internet forums.
Common DROP Mistakes I Help Clients Avoid
I regularly work with public employees who:
Enter DROP without understanding long-term income impact
Choose DROP dates based on emotion, not math
Ignore tax exposure at DROP exit
Fail to coordinate DROP with Social Security timing
Don’t align DROP with survivor or spouse planning
By the time problems surface, it’s often too late to fix them.
How I Help With DROP Decisions
My role is to bring clarity and structure to a complex process.
DROP Decision Analysis Includes:
Reviewing your FRS Pension benefit and service credit
Evaluating when DROP makes sense—or if it does at all
Coordinating DROP with retirement income planning
Assessing tax exposure at DROP exit
Planning for income continuity after DROP ends
No pressure. No product-first advice. Just disciplined planning.
Who This Is For
This guidance is designed specifically for:
Florida teachers
School district employees
Public sector workers in the FRS Pension Plan
Employees within 5 years of DROP or retirement
DROP participants nearing exit
If you’re early in your career, DROP planning can wait.
If you’re approaching eligibility, it cannot.
Why Work With Me?
I’m not learning DROP from a manual—I’ve lived it.
As a former public employee who worked within a Florida school district, I understand the confusion, pressure, and lack of clear guidance surrounding FRS and DROP elections. I combine that firsthand experience with more than a decade in retirement planning to help clients make informed, confident decisions.
This is specialized work. That focus matters.