subject: Stages Of Retirement Planning: Retirement Itself [print this page] Retirement planning needs to be accomplished and implemented in stages so as not to become too overwhelming or intensive for the average American worker. Since the ultimate goal of strategizing for retirement is attaining retirement security, you will be under a lot of pressure; you will probably have to fund upwards of a couple of decades of retired life, right after you lose the financial benefits of a regular paycheck and start drawing down on what should be a nest egg that is more than adequate. Proper retirement planning should start a few decades away from actual retirement, and continue up into retirement itself, which you should do all that you can to make the transition easier and more comfortable.
Transitioning into retirement will come with a lot of considerable changes. Retirees need to identify ways to generate income from their savings to meet expected expenses, all while finding other methods to grow your assets and funds to cover unexpected costs, rising living expenses, and additional healthcare needs. The extra income you get from investment growth is as important as the funds you have set aside for ordinary expenses; future costs of living are bound to be higher and a more hostile market is possible. What you need to do here is shield your assets from economic volatility and invest actively enough to earn well.
There are also other key concerns you should think about and implement in your retirement planning once you are already retired. These can help you increase the sustainable rate of withdrawal from your nest egg and strengthen your funds against possible erosion:
Social Security Benefits
As you may already know, delaying Social Security distributions up to 70 can result in larger monthly paychecks for you. This also decreases the impact of your rates of withdrawal on your overall retirement funds, helping your money last longer while accumulating a bigger account balance.
Medicare Coverage
Once you have reached the normal retirement age of 65, you will have to apply for Medicare regardless of whether you are getting your Social Security benefits or not. Choosing a good healthcare insurance policy is also important to supplement Medicare, as it does not cover all medical expenses.
Additional Investments and Income Streams
Set up how you want the retirement plan of your company to pay you, and think about how much and how often you will need to withdraw from your savings and make money from a portion of it if you are liquid. Look at additional sources of income to help you make more money if your current nest egg seems likely to run out within retirement.
Retirement planning in stages is necessary as it partitions investment management, looking for additional income sources, and ensuring you have enough money to retire on into more manageable portions. Increase your chances at retirement security by implementing these and other strategies with the aid of a reliable retirement planner.
