subject: Quick Retirement Tips For Sixty Something [print this page] If you're at the age of sixty or older, you should already have a good retirement plan in place - one that you should have established years before your estimated date of retirement. If you don't have solid investment strategies or sizeable savings yet, here are some things you can do to improve the state of your nest egg and increase your chances at living comfortably when you retire, at least until you develop a reliable financial plan for retirement:
Establish an emergency fund to get you through the tough times. This fund needs to be enough to cushion the blow of big investment losses by covering at least a couple of years of living expenses. This type of fund is especially important if the said investment losses occur due to unfavorable stock or bond market conditions, which may force you to recoup your losses by selling off your investments at cheap rates to pay for your regular expenses. In addition, the existence of this buffer fund can help decrease the stress you experience from fluctuating investment markets.
You'll also need to control how much you spend. Drastically cut down on your luxuries and impulse buys, if not eliminate them altogether. You may also have find ways to save more money on the necessities. To have enough to retire on, you'll need to spend a maximum of 4% of your retirement funds per year to ensure that your money doesn't run out.
Social Security can start distributions once your reach the age of 62, although you'll need to apply for plan benefits before you start getting them. For people with long life expectancies, postponing the collection of Social Security payouts until normal retirement age is recommended. Why? Your monthly payout amount increases per year you postpone payout collection - keep in mind that the longer you delay, the larger the payouts will be.
