2013
Whenever I hear the words health care or retirement my ears perk up. So it was recently when I overheard two women talking about retirement. They were going back and forth about their plans and hope to retire. They mentioned Social Security and trying to figure out when to retire, when they could retire and if they could afford to retire.
One of the women mentioned some articles she was reading and a retirement planning test she had found in a magazine. The other women was interested in the test and its results. “So when did it say you could afford to retire?” she asked
“Two years after I die.” was the reply.
Hopefully you are seeking a better plan, even one where you actually run out of money would be better. For many years I conducted retirement planning sessions and we always emphasized one point over and over … the greatest risk you face is longevity and its implication for inflation.
I can tell you from only 3.5 years being fully retired that it doesn’t take long before rising costs and unexpected expenses start creeping into your spendable income, an income that is generally not increasing. First you have ongoing expenses like property taxes, utilities and insurance that you know will go up each year. Then there are those insidious expenses you don’t plan for like the need for a new car, a major appliance or home repair. When that money is spent it may come from savings and once it’s gone, it won’t be replaced leaving the retiree with declining assets.
Our friend above may have a retirement plan that negates all these issues, but if you have a more user friendly plan for your retirement, now is the time to work on it.
QUINNSCOMMENTARY 