Maybe you were thinking about retirement, maybe you made the decision, maybe through unforeseen circumstances retirement was forced upon you. In any case many Americans have to face retirement earlier then they had planned. Here are some steps you can take to help with your financials.
Cut Your Spending
As soon as you can cut your spending on everything and anything. Start now and cut as deep as you can, remember you can always add services and nice to haves back once you’ve figured you steady state income stream.
- Can you trade or sell your car for a lower cost more economical model?
- Cancel any monthly subscription services like Netflix, Cable TV, Magazines, etc?
- Can you lower your cell phone costs and or data plan?
Do everything you can to lower your monthly out of pocket costs.
Lower Medical, Dental and Other Health Care Costs
What can you do to find the lowest medical cost between now and when you turn 65 where Medicare kicks in?
- Visit healthcare.gov for medical plans that may be more affordable.
- If you are employed or were recently employed you could check out keeping your current Medical plan. This is known as COBRA. Check with your employer.
- If you are over 65, enroll in Medicare.
Do You Have a Retirement Savings Account (RSA) 401k
If you are financially strapped, you can tap into this for funds until social security and/or your pension kicks in, but you should do this as a last resort. For me I’ve been fortunate to save my 401k and plan on deferring my pension until I’m 62 years old, when I get a slight bump in pension plan. I’m also hoping to leverage my pension and 401k until I’m 70 or older before I start taking social security. Remember you social security benefit continues to grow every year until age 70.
