Throughout most of our adult lives we are told to plan and save for retirement. Once you retire, you can leave all that behind, right? Not exactly. The fact is, retirement planning doesn’t stop when you retire; you have to stay engaged in the process. You need to monitor your investments, control spending, manage withdrawals, and navigate Medicare all while potentially dealing with declining health and decreased mobility.

Managing your Investments

You stop saving for retirement when you retire and start making withdrawals to cover your living expenses. Your investments are on autopilot to a large degree. That said, there are times when it might make sense to deploy some course corrections. 

Retirement Planning Doesn’t Stop when you Retire

It’s important to control spending and limit investment withdrawals in retirement. Having a household budget can help. It’s best to get in the habit of living within a budget before you retire.

EGGSTACK RETIREMENT PLANNER

The biggest fear among retirees is outliving their retirement savings. That’s why you need to have a plan. Seek the advice of a financial advisor or avail yourself to sophisticated financial modeling software. Financial modeling software performs year-by-year simulation to deliver results tailored to your unique situation. To learn more, check out this article entitled Best Retirement Planning Software. Retirement planning informs you how much you need to save, when you can retire, and how much you can safely withdraw each year.

Age in Place

A popular concept today is aging in place. It means after you retire to remain in your home for as long as possible. As discussed in The Best Places to Retire, the right environment can help you achieve that goal. 

Owning a two-story home in retirement is not a good idea. If it’s exercise you need, join a gym or buy a piece of exercise equipment. Hopefully the time will never come when your stair-climbing days are over. However, the odds are pretty good that at some point you may not be able to climb stairs, at least temporarily. It might be the result of a surgery, illness, injury, or medication. You could also develop arthritis as you age. Climbing stairs with arthritis is not a pleasant experience.

Medicare

As discussed in Medicare Explained, the government seems to go out of its way to make Medicare as complicated as possible. Our powers of reasoning tend to decline as we age. It’s a good idea to spend some time researching the subject before it becomes a pressing matter.

Closing Thoughts

Retirement is the capstone of a life well-lived. It’s a time to rest and relax, to spend time with family and pursue interests you never had time for when you were working. It’s a time to enjoy the pitter-patter of little feet, only this time as a grandparent instead of a parent. Most people say it’s better that way.

Spend some time in the years leading up to retirement to do the planning necessary to ensure that your retirement will be as carefree and enjoyable as possible.

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