6 Retirement Issues You and Your Spouse Must Discuss
1. Will you move, downsize, or stay where you are? Although most retirees age in place, there is a growing trend of leaving colder, higher-cost states for warmer, lower-cost ones. According to the Bankrate.com Cost of Living Calculator,¹ the cost of living in Tampa, Florida, is almost 50 percent less than in Brooklyn, New York.
2. When will each of you retire? When spouses don’t retire at the same time, the situation can change the entire dynamics of the household, from who pays for what to who does which chores.
3. When will you collect Social Security? If you wait from age 62 to age 70 to claim benefits, your monthly payment could be up to a third greater, according to the Social Security Administration.²
4. Are you financially prepared for unexpected health issues? Nearly half of retirees leave the workforce earlier than planned, often due to health problems or the need to care for a family member, according to a 2016 survey.³
5. What will you do with your business? It’s essential to have discussions about a hard or soft “exit strategy” from the business, including what the spouse will do with the business should the owner die early or become disabled.
6. What will give meaning to your life? Work can provide a powerful purpose, so retirees often find a void when they leave the workforce. Spouses must discuss what they want from their next life stage and how they want their money to help them accomplish that.
Couples should assess and reevaluate their retirement plans every few years, much as they would their financial portfolio, experts say, in order to account for changes in circumstance and preference.
RSL Media for Mutual of Omaha
Sources:
Mari Adam, CFP, president of Adam Financial Associates in Boca Raton, Florida
Dorian Mintzer, Ph.D., retirement coach and coauthor of The Couple’s Retirement Puzzle
Mark Kinney, CFP, Toole, Kinney & Company, Lee, Massachusetts
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1. http://www.bankrate.com/calculators/savings/moving-cost-of-living-calculator.aspx
2. http://blog.ssa.gov/the-best-age-for-you-to-retire/
3. 2016 Retirement Confidence Survey by Employee Benefit Research Institute
https://www.ebri.org/pdf/briefspdf/EBRI_IB_422.Mar16.RCS.pdf
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