Many of us can’t wait until the day comes to retire. That day seems so far off until those around us give up the daily grind for retirement. You’ve probably seen or heard the excitement—a sign on your neighbor’s lawn reads “Honk, Mary has retired!” or your friend calls and says, “Guess what? I’ve decided to retire next month!” Of course, you are happy to hear of other's retirement joy, but in the back of your mind, you wonder— “When is it my time?”
When is it your time to retire? There is a lot that factors into this question. Some of it is monetary and some, quite frankly, is whether you will be bored to tears! Your age doesn’t always dictate when your time to retire is. Sixty-seven is not a magic number (the full retirement age of those born in 1960 or later).
Here are two simple things to contemplate when thinking about when and if you should retire.
What Do You Want to Do with the Rest of Your Life?
When you no longer work for a living, you have 40+ hours more free time a week. What will you do? Consider making a list of things you always wanted to do in retirement, your “bucket list.” And then make a list of the daily or weekly activities that will keep you not only busy but happy, for example, babysitting grandchildren, hobbies, house projects, and so on.
The “rest of your life” can be a very long time considering the average life expectancy for the U.S. population in 2019 was 78.8 years, as published by the CDC. Additionally, “working Americans can now expect to spend well over 15 years in retirement, and retirements lasting 30 or even 40 years will soon be routine,” according to research conducted by the Stanford Center of Longevity and Wells Fargo.
After making your lists, it's time to determine if you will have enough money to spend your retirement doing the things you want to do.
How Much Money Do You Need to Be Happy in Retirement?
Take a long hard look at your lists and ask yourself, “do I have enough saved to retire now and be happy?” If you’re lucky, you’ve been saving for your retirement since the beginning of your working career and have established a substantial nest egg. But, if you’re like many Americans, your retirement savings may be sparse, and you will be relying on Social Security to help fund your retirement years. If you find yourself in the latter category, you should consider working for as long as possible. As it currently stands, those who work until age 70 will collect the most from Social Security.
Deciding on when the best time to retire is different for everyone. Sometimes after deciding to retire, you may find you need extra money, or you are just bored of retirement and want to go back to work. Working after retirement is an option, but you must be careful and plan accordingly, especially if you are collecting Social Security.
At IM Wealth Partners, we can help you decide when the best time is to retire and provide strategies to boost your retirement savings even late in the game. Our experienced team of professionals are ready to help you. Contact us today!