Many working professionals strive to become financially secure, retire as early as possible, and enjoy this next chapter in their life doing what they have always wanted to do. To achieve this goal, they must focus on wealth preservation instead of wealth management and accumulation.
While saving enough money for retirement is achievable, this has become more challenging due to factors out of your control, such as longer life expectancy, inflation, and rising healthcare costs. Thankfully, you can still have your desired lifestyle during retirement by generating more income during your working years. Here are some strategies you should consider to accomplish this:
1.) Work Part-Time
The idea of working again after completely leaving the workforce may seem not ideal. After all, you spent almost your entire life working hard to save enough money to enjoy your retirement, so you should be taking your much-needed rest right now. However, if you are bored to death and want to generate extra income to help pay your living expenses, working part-time may be a good idea. Doing this keeps your mind sharp, lets you make new friends, and even teaches you to hone new skills.
Your part-time job doesn’t have to be complicated or demanding. In fact, you could look for one that is related to your hobbies or interests. For instance, if you love to read, you could work at a library. You might also use the skills you honed throughout your career to do freelance work or consulting during your free time.
2.) Don’t Put All Your Eggs in One Basket
When you were younger, you were advised to have a more aggressive approach to investing and allocating your assets. However, you may need to shift to a more conservative technique once you enter retirement. Additionally, you have to consider the loss of purchasing power because it could be one of the most significant risks to your retirement plan.
Make sure you allocate your assets appropriately. To do this, it’s advisable to keep 3-6 months or even up to one year worth of living expenses in cash. The difference should be invested in a diversified retirement portfolio that is appropriate for your risk and goals.
3.) Create an Asset Withdrawal Strategy
Another important aspect of retirement planning is figuring out how you will draw down your retirement assets. One strategy to consider is the four percent rule. This is based on historical market returns for a portfolio allocated equally between bonds and stocks. It also assumes that a retirement lasts for 30 years.
This rule involves withdrawing only up to four percent of your total assets during the first year of retirement. You can then adjust this percentage based on inflation every year. However, remember that since every retiree’s situation is different, you might have to adjust the four percent depending on how long your retirement lasts. Additionally, you might be able to withdraw more than four percent of your assets every year if you delay your retirement.
Conclusion
Preparing for your retirement early gives you peace of mind knowing that you can fully enjoy the life you have always wanted in the future. However, since there are many factors that might affect your plans, you might need to look for ways to have a source of income even after you retire. Besides following these suggestions, consider working with the best financial advisor to meet your financial goals.
Let our certified financial planner in Charlotte help provide clarity to your financial future. At Calamita Wealth Management, we offer fee-only financial and retirement planning services for clients over age 50. Contact us today so we can come up with the right solution for you!
