An article in U.S. News and World Report, 5 Retirement Planning Mistakes and How to Fix Them, by Maryalene LaPonsie, notes that “No one’s perfect. If you’ve messed up your retirement planning, here’s how to get back on track.”
The average 65-year-old man retiring this year can expect to have another 17 years of living in front of him, according to the National Institute on Aging. For a woman, that number jumps to 20 years.
That’s a lot of time to travel the world, enjoy hobbies and make memories with family and friends. On the other hand, it can also be a lot of time to stress about rising expenses and dwindling assets.
Fortunately, if you plan correctly, you can minimize the chances of ending up with too many years left and too little money in the bank. However, if you think you’ve made mistakes (or are making mistakes) when it comes to retirement planning, rest assured there is always time to make a correction.
Here are five common retirement planning mistakes and how to do damage control for each one.
Retirement Planning Mistake 1: Focusing solely on your rate of return.
The Solution: Create a diversified portfolio.Retirement Planning Mistake 2: Forgetting about taxes.
The Solution: Have a tax plan for investments and assets.Retirement Planning Mistake 3: Thinking the start of retirement marks the end of planning.
The Solution: Review finances and goals every year.Retirement Planning Mistake 4 : Saving too little.
The Solution: Start now and automatically increase contributions with every raise and bonus.Retirement Planning Mistake 5: Saving too late.
The Solution: Stay in the workforce or look for guaranteed income streams.
For more information on each mistake and the proposed solution noted above, check out the complete source article: Continue Reading
