Retirement income – do you have enough?

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7 Places to Find Income Once You Retire

Try these sources of income in retirement to help cover expenses from health care to spoiling your grandchildren.

By Scott Hanson, CFP, for Kiplinger

July 2017

“Where are you going to find income once you retire? Even if you’ve got a trunk load of cash saved, you can’t just live off the principal. Because with interest rates stuck in low gear, just to keep up with inflation your money’s going to have to earn income.

And then there’s all those unexpected health care expenses, along with your grandchildren’s college educations.

What should you do?

retirement income
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Here are seven places to find income once you stop working, with a tip added to each to help nudge your thinking toward the future.

  1. Retirement Savings Account
  2. Social Security
  3. A Diversified Investment Portfolio
  4. Reverse Mortgage
  5. Pension
  6. Work
  7. Inheritance

Read retirement income tips and other details

 

Have you received a financial wake-up call?

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financial wake-up call
lifemeisters.com

Widows, divorcees face financial wake-up call when spouses are gone

By Erin Arvedlund, The Philadelphia Inquirer

July 21, 2017

“Widows and divorced women need to plan for retirement differently. That’s the advice from financial planners and studies by Allianz, Lincoln Financial Group, and the Center for Retirement Research at Boston College.

Women pay a higher economic price for divorce, separation, and widowhood compared with men. Older wives are doubly disadvantaged relative to their husbands because, among other factors, they’re less likely to recoup their losses from divorce by remarrying, according to a 2016 Center for Retirement Research study. Furthermore, men typically make more money than women, are more likely to have access to pensions, and are more likely to achieve financial security and live above the poverty line in later life compared with women, regardless of marital status.

About 65 percent of women save less than they need to, compared with 55 percent of men, according to the 2017 Lincoln Financial retirement survey, based on a national sampling of 2,509 full-time workers ages 21 to 70 who have been contributing to their current employers’ defined-contribution retirement plans for at least one year.

So what’s an aging American woman to do? First, seek out help, starting with a financial adviser, particularly one who is a fiduciary — the term means the adviser puts clients’ interests first, ahead of the paycheck.”

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A pediatrician’s advice for older adults

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7 Things Pediatrics Can Teach Us About Aging Well

Older adults can benefit from following the advice we give to kids

Dr. Edward Schneider, Next Avenue, July 21, 2017

pediatrician's advice
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“Aging is a process that begins on the day we are born — toddlers’ seemingly overnight transformations into teens should serve as proof enough of this. And recent research is confirming that the secret to a long and healthy life may be as simple as listening to seven pieces of advice your pediatrician dispensed decades ago:

  1. Eat your fruits and veggies (and skip supplements)
  2. Move your body
  3. Stay in school
  4. Brush your teeth
  5. Make friends
  6. Don’t smoke
  7. Get enough sleep

Pediatricians operate on the principle that it is never too early to begin healthy habits. But it is also never too late. Start taking some of these baby steps today. They can make a big difference in your health and wellness, no matter how old or young you are.”

For more details

Edward Schneider, M.D., is a professor and dean emeritus at the USC Leonard Davis School of Gerontology. He is a former deputy director of the National Institutes on Aging and completed a research fellowship in pediatrics before turning his focus to improving the health of older adults.

Beware of SSA impersonators

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SSA impersonatorsSocial Security Scam Targets Retirees

CPA Practice Advisor, July 20, 2017

“The Acting Inspector General of Social Security, Gale Stallworth Stone, is warning citizens about a new Social Security Administration (SSA) employee impersonation scheme.
SSA and its Office of the Inspector General (OIG) have recently alerted citizens about an OIG employee impersonation scheme and a scheme targeting former clients of Kentucky disability attorney Eric Conn; the agencies are now receiving reports from citizens across the country about other phone calls from an individual posing as an SSA employee.  The caller attempts to acquire personally identifiable information from victims to then edit the victims’ direct deposit, address, and telephone information with SSA.”

 

Older adults benefit from whey protein supplements according to study

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whey protein supplementsScientists develop new supplement that can repair, rejuvenate muscles in older adults

By Kara Aaserud, McMaster University, Canada

July 19, 2017

“Whey protein supplements aren’t just for gym buffs according to new research from McMaster University. When taken on a regular basis, a combination of these and other ingredients in a ready-to-drink formula have been found to greatly improve the physical strength of a growing cohort: senior citizens.

The deterioration of muscle mass and strength that is a normal part of aging –known as sarcopenia—can increase the risk for falls, metabolic disorders and the need for assisted living, say researchers….

‘The results were more impressive than we expected,’ says Kirsten Bell, a PhD student who worked on the study.

Most notable, the findings showed improvements in deteriorating muscle health and overall strength for participants both before and after the exercise regimen.

In the first six weeks, the supplement resulted in 700 grams of gains in lean body mass – the same amount of muscle these men would normally have lost in a year. And when combined with exercise twice weekly, participants noticed greater strength gains– especially when compared with their placebo taking counterparts.

‘Clearly, exercise is a key part of the greatly improved health profile of our subjects,’ says Bell, ‘but we are very excited by the enhancements the supplement alone and in combination with exercise was able to give to our participants.'”

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“Retire to something rather than from something”

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retire to something
Donna Skeels Cygan

Prepare psychologically for retirement

By Donna Skeels Cygan / Invest in Joy

July 16th, 2017

“Is Sunday evening the best part of your week? Many recent retirees tell me they savor their Sunday evenings, because they are no longer stressed about going to work on Monday morning.

Today’s article covers how to prepare psychologically for retirement. Next month’s will cover how to prepare financially for retirement.

Mitch Anthony recommends that we strive to retire to something rather than retire from something in his book The New Retirementality. This may be a play on words, but it reinforces the importance of preparing for retirement.

The days when a man retired at age 65 and died at age 67 are long gone. We now have 25- to 30-year retirements for men and women. Retirement is a major phase of our life, and it is important to plan properly. Use the following steps as a roadmap to a joyful retirement.

  • Ponder your retirement
  • Add some structure
  • Embrace change
  • Plan something special.”

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Donna Skeels Cygan, CFP, MBA, is the author of “The Joy of Financial Security.” She has been the owner and financial planner for her own firm in Albuquerque for 19 years. 

Senior park pass price to increase on August 28, 2017

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Do you enjoy visiting national parks like I do?  If you are 62 or over and don’t have a senior park pass yet, now is the time, even if you don’t know if you’ll use it any time soon.  The price is going up from $10 to $80 on August 28!  Too bad I’m not 62 yet!senior park pass

From the National Park Service Website:

Senior Pass