Why We Tend to Save for Vacation and Not for Retirement

Why We Tend to Save for Vacation and Not for Retirement

Americans are often supposed to be too hard-working. Half of the workers do not use all the vacation days they have. According to NerdWallet research, we prefer getaways, but before it, we should plan our long-term finances. Nowadays more than 63% of Americans want to go on vacation in the following half a year. In 2009, this figure was 33%. That year was a year of Great Recession, but it shows us anyway how far we are from this point. Skipping the relaxation seems to be boring, but some data show that your overall happiness increases afterward. Studies, conducted in the U.S., Norway, Spain, and Ireland show that it gives contentment to old people to understand their financial stability for … Read more

Retirement Savings Options for Stay at Home Parents

There are approximately 12 million stay at home parents in the U.S. , 1.9 million of which are stay at home dads. Some of those stay at home parents raise children as their jobs. Other stay at home parents have telecommuting jobs that allow them to work from home. Either way, there are a few unique financial considerations to make when your own income is absent or irregular. Retirement Savings Options Rather than avoiding retirement planning altogether or risking a lack of diversified retirement portfolios, here are a few retirement savings options for stay at home parents who want to develop their own retirement nest eggs. Spousal IRA Contributions Do you and your spouse file a joint tax return each year? … Read more

Retirement Mistakes You Should Avoid at All Costs

Understanding The Ins And Outs Of 401k Retirement Plans

Did you know that one in four workers have less than $1,000 saved for retirement? Yikes. Many people put off saving for retirement because of credit cards or student loan debt. They may also prioritize lifestyle over savings, deciding to live at one’s means instead of below. This can be one of the biggest retirement mistakes. Oftentimes people just don’t’ know where to start, even when they want to save for retirement. If your employer offers a 401k, that’s great,  you should probably take advantage of that. But, even if they don’t there are still plenty of ways to save for retirement. 5 Retirement Mistakes to Avoid A big part of saving for retirement is not making mistakes. If you’re not … Read more

Top 5 Ways to Make Retirement Less Financially Stressful

Make Retirement Less Stressful

No matter how much you save for retirement, it always seems like it doesn’t hurt to sock away a little bit more. It’s understandable given how many people are living paycheck to paycheck. The Economic Policy Institute (EPI) recently found about half of Americans have nothing saved for retirement. How to Make Retirement Less Stressful Financially The whole process of retirement planning can be stressful, but taking control of your financial future is also empowering. Taking the time to create a comprehensive plan can go a long way in easing the financial stress of retirement. Plan for Funeral Expenses Funeral costs are probably the last thing anyone wants to think about as they near retirement. But when funeral services are … Read more

What to Do When You Reach Your 50s and Have No Retirement Savings

What to Do When You Have No Retirement Savings

If you’re getting close to retirement age and you have minimal to no savings in a 401k or IRA, what should you do? Having few assets is one of the biggest retirement killers out there because Social Security payments aren’t enough for many Americans to live on – especially with average life expectancies rising each year – but if you’re in your 50s or early 60s and want to retire at some point, what can you possibly do? While it could be anxiety-inducing to come upon your retirement years with little savings to finally quit your job, remember that you’re not alone. Millions of Americans struggle with saving for retirement, so this isn’t something to be ashamed of. Instead, redirect … Read more

How to Not Waste Your Vacation Days with a Retirement Rehearsal

Retirement Rehearsal

The following is a guest post by Greg PHELPS, CFP®, CLU®, AIF®, AAMS®, a CEFEX certified fiduciary financial advisor, speaker, author, and the creator of the Wealth Summit. Greg has his own financial planning practice at Redrock Wealth Management

Retirement Rehearsal

I came across this interesting concept the other day called the “retirement rehearsal”. Apparently, something like 50 billion dollars of vacation time goes unused – or lost – each year when people retire.

The retirement rehearsal concept is to plan years in advance of retirement to actually use those dollars to “try” being retired. It’s an interesting concept so I spent a bit of time learning more.

Over 50 billion dollars worth of vacation time is lost each year when people retire. Click To Tweet

The Retirement Rehearsal

There’s an intangibility about what retirement might look like for most people. Many people think retirement is trips to Disney World with the grandkids, traveling around in an RV, and rounds of golf every day. In reality, many retirees struggle to fill the 40 hour void left by the absence of a full-time job.

The first step in rehearsing your retirement is to make sure you have a written financial plan. The retirement rehearsal is useless if you can’t go back to a written plan and make the necessary adjustments.

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