But if their account balance dropped to $630,000, the same $30,000 in income now requires almost a 5 percent withdrawal rate, which means their nest egg won’t last as long. Consider withdrawing 4 percent of the new account balance this year. “Your withdrawals should be 4 percent, and that is designed to have a high probably of making your money last over a 20 to 30 year retirement,” says Rande Spiegelman, senior vice president of the Schwab Center for Financial Research.