Is There Even Such A Time?

By Boomeryearbook.com

It’s the big question- how long will you continue working for? You want to make sure that you have enough money saved to live on comfortably for the rest of your life, but can you really plan for that? What about emergencies or surprise bills or unexpected disasters? The job market isn’t thriving and having to find a job later on will be a difficult, if not impossible task. So, what are you to do? With a future so uncertain it’s hard to make these decisions, but the process is easier if you keep a few things in mind.

How large is your retirement fund?
If you’ve had to dip into your retirement fund and you haven’t refunded yourself, then you may want to consider working for an extra five years to bring your savings back up to what it was. If you think you can survive on it in its present state, then you won’t have to. But before you come to that decision be sure to factor in things like inflation; disaster preparedness, changes in your insurance rates and any dependants you could possibly have.

What are your assets?
If you do not own your home or your car or will not own either of them in your lifetime, then you need to have a retirement fund that will provide shelter and transportation for you. Therefore, you need to look at your lease to examine if the rent will increase over time and how much it will increase by. If you find out that you will not be able to afford such an increase, begin looking for homes with fixed rent. Also, you may want to figure out your future method of transport if you have to give up your car. Consider trading it in for a more affordable model if you’re unable to maintain the payments. This will benefit you in other areas like your gas budget or insurance payments.

What are your expenses?
Sit down with your bills and receipts for the year. Take out the highest bills for a period and calculate the amount of money you would have to pay for the year if that was your average. In other words, if your highest ever bill for electricity was $550.00 over a month, then multiply that figure by 12 ( to get the yearly amount). The total figure ($6600) is the amount that you must budget for. Do this for all your bills then add them up and those will be your expenses for the year. You should count in possible future expenses as well such as medical bills etc

If after you’ve done all this and you realize that your retirement fund as it now stands cannot cover your daily life then you have three options:

1. You can up your performance at work, raking in bonuses that will help to buttress your retirement fund and/or your pension
2. You can investigate cost-cutting measures such as solar energy, planting produce in your backyard, conserving electricity and water, renting that beach house out when your family isn’t occupying it etc.
3. You can create a niche in your field so that you can work as a consultant after you retire. You’ll set your own hours and be your own boss and the extra income will help to set off any wanting areas.

All in all, you retire when you can afford to, and affording to doesn’t only mean money-wise, but health-wise as well. Be frugal with your money now. If you make the sacrifice now, you’ll thank yourself later.
Are you a retired Baby Boomer? Are you a Boomer planning to retire soon? Tell us about how you made or are making that decision at BoomerYearbook.com.