How to Create a Retirement Strategy
August 26, 2021
Have you thought about your Retirement Strategy yet? No matter where you are in your career trajectory, having a thorough personal retirement plan in place at all times is more important than you may realize. Without a detailed retirement strategy, you may find yourself struggling to catch up later on and could even risk having to delay your retirement. If you want to make sure you have a rock-solid strategy in place, follow these steps to create your personal plan today.
Decide When and How You Want To Retire
The first step in figuring out your retirement strategy is deciding exactly when and how you want to retire. There are many factors that go into deciding when you should retire from your job, but some top aspects to take into consideration include the age at which you’ll want to stop working, the type of lifestyle you hope to have during retirement and the location you want to spend your retirement in. Having a sense of these core factors can help you calculate expenses and start making more concrete plans.
Begin Calculating Monthly Retirement Expenses and Start Saving
One of the most important pieces of any retirement strategy is calculating how much you’ll spend during retirement, which may be more than you think. Since you won’t be working, you’ll need to have enough saved up to cover your regular expenses, as well as enough left over as a cash cushion to cover emergency situations. The best way to plan for retirement expenses is to start saving for your estimated:
- Monthly rent, mortgage, homeowners’ insurance, homeowner association and property tax costs
- Recurring expenses, such as grocery bills, gas bills, car maintenance costs, insurance costs and more
- Entertainment expenses, such as flight and hotel costs for planned travel during retirement
Make a Few Alternative Plans To Have More Options
Lastly, it’s important for your strategy to contain not just plan A, but plans B and C as well. Having backup plans in case something significant changes along your journey to retirement can provide you with stability and peace of mind. You may want to:
- Expand your retirement savings accounts into 401(k) plans, traditional or Roth IRA plans and other popular options
- Diversify your investments and consider moving to safer long-term investments over time such as an annuity
- Draft backup retirement plans in case you’re not able to save as much money as initially planned
- Identify expenses you could potentially eliminate in order to save up more for retirement
Whatever point you may be at in your career, having a detailed Retirement Strategy is of the utmost importance. Nailing down your strategy as early as possible can help you save more money, create backup options for yourself and help you reach your retirement goals on time. You can follow this step-by-step guide to start creating your personal strategy for retirement today.
About 1891 Financial Life
At1891 Financial Life, we pride ourselves on giving back to the communities that we serve by providing quality and comprehensive insurance solutions. We are a not-for-profit life insurance Society, which means the sales from these financial service products help fund member benefits along with social, educational, and volunteer programs designed to respond to community needs.
Our portfolio is extensive, ranging from various life insurance policies to our new MYGA to support your financial needs no matter what stage of life you’re in. For more information, contact us at (855) 804-7424.