Retiring in Paradise (Planning for Your Golden Years)

When the children are no longer screaming in your ear and your hair starts to change color, you feel it’s time to quit the boring job and retire. Whether your dream location is nearby your hometown or family, or in a small condo in beautiful Kauai, you’re going to need money to survive, but not to worry because you have a large savings set aside that you’ve been laboriously placing money into for thirty years. Now is the time to spend it.

How much is in your retirement savings account exactly? Fifty-thousand? Thirty-thousand? Even less? According to a Wells Fargo survey, the median retirement savings for people in their 50s is $29,000. Fifty-six percent of those surveyed feel very confident that they will be able to fund ten to twenty years of retirement on this money; however, when broken up over a 20-year retirement period, this seemingly large sum of money reduces to only $190 a month.

“Too many Americans have their heads in the sand in the face of obvious savings deficits. People are not even close to where they need to be in total savings.” (Laurie Nordquist, director of Wells Fargo Institutional Retirement and Trust unit)

One of the main problems is that middle-aged people are not recognizing the need to start saving now. The respondents of the Wells Fargo survey said that they expected they would need approximately $1.5 million to finance their retirement, yet they currently only have $31,000 in savings. Furthermore, two-thirds of respondents admitted that they have no retirement plan in place.

Living in a modern economy where money is tight and finding a well-paying job can be difficult, we cannot forget the future. It is so easy to get caught up in our lives now and push off saving for later. Because of this thought process the majority of seniors have less than $10,000 left in total financial assets when they die. (Boston College)

Ask yourself these questions: Have I thought about retirement? Do I have a plan in place? Am I saving now? If you answered no to any of these questions you should begin thinking about your options and your future. Planning now can save a lot of time and stress when the time finally comes for you to retire.

Most of us dream of the day when we can quit the boring job, leave the office, and finally be free. Many of us, however, do not realize the cost that it will take to make this dream a reality. According to an article in the Investment News working during retirement is becoming the new normal.

The majority of people in our country are approaching their golden years unprepared. It seems difficult when the bills come and the debt is due to set aside extra money, but it will all be worth it when you find yourself in paradise – no job, no kids, finally able to simply sit back and relax.