Retirement Savings – Her Retirement

First off, I’m NOT an advisor. I’m a retirement researcher, writer and educator. I have a few Do’s and Don’ts to consider as you begin planning your retirement and finding the right person/people to help you go from Savings (401k, etc.) to Security (creating an income for life from your 401k).

DON’T listen to a neighbor, a friend or even that friendly financial/investment advisor who’s probably not well versed in retirement planning and is biased toward investments. The insurance advisor is biased toward insurance. And the big companies in both camps spend a lot of money to spread their version of the truth. Looks for a “retirement advisor” who’s license in both investments and insurance and therefore, doesn’t have the bias of one vs. the other. They should be dedicated and taking the time to educate you about this retirement planning process and all the strategies they are recommending vs. just saying “it’s a good idea because I said so.” All professional service providers make money….they must be paid like everyone else. Just make sure they are 100% transparent in their fees.
DO listen to retirement researchers, academics and economists who focus on retirement planning and there are plenty.
DO base you decisions on research…always ask Why? and ask for the data to support an advisor’s/friend’s recommendation.
The right answer can only be found by answering a number of questions about you and your goals, along with analyzing what you’ve got, what you’ll have, and what you’ll need. And then finding the best combination of strategies to make your money lasts throughout retirement.
You’ll need to have an open mind as it relates to retirement/distribution strategies because they are completely different than the accumulation phase of life.
The traditional 60/40 portfolio is dead. As you approach and enter retirement, you’ll need a portfolio strategy that reduces your risk, while also being positioned to take advantage of growth. You MUST mitigate volatility in retirement. There are a number of ways to do this. With the current low bond returns, you should seek alternatives. For some that may include Fixed Indexed Annuities. For others, it may be structured investments. Stocks will always be a part of your portfolio, albeit a smaller part.
DON’T work with an advisor who knows nothing about tax planning for retirement…and most CPAs don’t know how to do pro-active retirement planning. A true retirement advisor knows how to integrate tax efficient withdrawal strategies into your income distribution plan so that you keep as much of your hard earned money as possible. This may be one of the most important strategies. Side note: ask them about Roth Conversions…2020 may be a perfect storm for Roths for many people.
DO make sure your portfolio is stress tested and proven to last in ALL market environments.
DON’T let anyone guess as to when you should take Social Security. This accounts for 33% of your income in retirement (in most cases) and must be incorporated into your overall income planning. The answer as to when depends on a lot of factors. Also, Social Security must be included in your tax picture as well. Since 85% of your benefit could be taxable without the right planning.
DO find out if they are aware of MAGI and Medicare (and the impact on how much you’ll pay for Medicare). Make sure they have resources to help you navigate the Medicare maze.
DO find out if they help you find ways to fund a Long Term Care policy, if needed?
DO consider a reverse mortgage as an emergency income buffer…this is a perfect example of when having an open mind is important. Find out what the retirement academics say about reverse mortgages. And, no, they can’t take your house away if you follow some basic rules, like paying your taxes. And no, the bank doesn’t own your home. Take the time to find the facts vs. listening to hearsay.
DO find out if the advisor you’re considering working with has a team of providers to help you with other ancillary needs.

I do believe it’s impossible for the layperson (and most of the 300,000 financial advisors in this country), to do ALL of the proper retirement planning that must be done to improve and secure your retirement outcome.

Fortunately or unfortunately, advisors, like many other for-profit companies have to make money. But, with the right advisor you won’t question their fees…their value will be evident in everything they do for you. DO make sure they are committed to spending whatever time you need to be 100% confident in your plan and are acting in your best interests. And there’s nothing wrong with checking their references.

Finally, most of us have good intuition when choosing our professionals. Get to know him/her. Ask about his/her family. Ask about their perspectives on finances and life. Ask why they do what they do. Find out a lot about this person personally, and then dig into their “retirement planning” experience.

It’s easy for an advisor to give you credentials and pretty reports and look good on the surface. But dig a little deeper and you might be able to discover if he or she is the real deal.

Click here to chat with a RetireMentor to help you connect with a retirement planner or other retirement professional (legal, healthcare, etc.):

Crucial Conversations You Need to Have Before Retirement

December 11, 2018

by Lynn Toomey Relocating During Retirement Retirement Education Retirement Income Retirement Income Planning Retirement Savings Uncategorized

Being appropriately prepared for retirement involves far more than simply stashing away money in a 401(k), annuity, or some other savings instrument and walking off into the sunset.

When laying the foundation for one’s golden years, they should also discuss their retirement with a number of key people in their life – such as a spouse or domestic partner, children, employer, and maybe even employees if they’re a small business owner.

Almost all of these people will either be impacted by your retirement or will personally have an impact upon it, making such conversations incredibly important.

“Retiring is a major milestone in a person’s life, and it creates a ripple effect that impacts everyone close to the retiree,” says Marc Diana, CEO of MoneyTips. “Making sure your network is prepared for your retirement is vital to ensuring as smooth a transition as possible.”

Here are some of the key people to engage in discussion, both when you’re planning a retirement strategy and as your departure from the workforce gets closer to being a reality.

Your Spouse or Partner

It is often assumed by couples that they have a shared vision for retirement, or that the vision (even when it is shared) is realistic, says Delynn Dolan Alexander, a financial advisor with Northwestern Mutual.

To check whether you’re actually on the same page about your future plans, discuss what it is that you would like to do once you are no longer working, and whether there’s an expense associated with fulfilling those plans. If there is, how are you planning to pay for it?

Determining where it is you want to live, both the location the type of residence, is also important ground to cover, as is deciding whether you want to continue working in any capacity during retirement, and what your financial priorities will be.

“In other words, are you spending all of your savings, or leaving a legacy for the kids or charity?” explained Dolan Alexander.

Coming to an agreement regarding long-term housing plans is particularly important, stresses Jennifer Beeston, vice-president of mortgage lending at Guaranteed Rate Mortgage. Next to medical care costs, housing is the most expensive and couples vary wildly on what they envision for their housing upon retirement.

“Some people want to stay in their current home while others want to downsize or move to be closer to their children,” said Beeston. “You want to have a game plan regarding housing before you retire as each scenario requires a different set of monthly costs to consider.”

Your Children

Like a spouse, your kids will also likely be impacted by the changing finances associated with your departure from the workforce.

Have a frank discussion with children about your plans, especially if your retirement fund is not as established as you would like it to be, suggests Mark Charnet, founder and CEO of New Jersey-based American Prosperity Group.

In that conversation you may find yourself pointing out to your children that you will now be on a fixed or reduced income and that although you’d like to be as generous as you may have been in the past, it will no longer be possible. Charnet even suggests telling your children that they should no longer ask you for money.

Another important topic to cover with children prior to retirement is your housing plans.

“Many people are surprised at the vehemence with which children are attached to an old childhood home, or conversely many retirees hold on to homes even though children have set up independent lives and households elsewhere,” says Diana.

Familiarizing your children with your medical directives and providing them with the contact information for your financial advisor, estate planning attorney and CPA, is also advised.

This process can be simplified by establishing an online vault for all of your important documents and giving your children access, says Brian Saranovitz, co-founder of Your Retirement Advisor.

“While not everyone will be comfortable sharing their financial details with children, it’s good to give them some insight into your financial preparations for retirement and any financial directives in your will,” adds Saranovitz. “Sharing your plan will not only help them upon your death, but also during your retirement if you need assistance. It can also teach them some valuable lessons about preparing well for retirement.”

Your Employer

There’s no getting around it – employers have a profound impact upon retirement. During working years, an employer plays a key role in the growth of your nest egg. And as retirement nears, it’s time to find out if there are any company policies that may impact pensions or other retirement income.

“It’s important to seek help from your employer on transitioning out of the workplace and making sure you understand your options with your company 401(k) or pensions, profit sharing, and healthcare options,” said Saranovitz. “If your employer doesn’t offer these services, a financial or retirement planner can help you, especially with the options for rolling over your 401(k).”

Additionally, it’s a good idea to give your employer ample notice of your planned departure date. “A rule of thumb is that for however many years of experience an employee has, that’s how many months it takes to replace him or her, so the more warning you can give your employer the smoother the transition will go,” suggests Diana.

Financial Planner or Advisor

Retirement can seem like a dark cloud hanging over many people’s heads. Not because we don’t want to retire, but rather because of the money questions surrounding that all-important distant horizon.

Fears about retirement preparations need to be faced head on, and a financial planner can help, says Dawn-Marie Joseph, founder of Michigan-based Estate Planning & Preservation.

“Most people dream about not going to work every day and having freedom from their alarm clock. But when you think of retirement and the amount of money you have or have not saved, it can be overwhelming,” says Joseph. “There’s no time like the present to think about and act on the savings you will need for retirement.”

Begin by creating a draft retirement budget for yourself and then meet with a financial planner to help map out a solid game plan that includes helping your money last for as long as you think you will need it. Bring your spouse or partner to that meeting with your financial planner, and work as a team to put together a realistic, long-term financial strategy.

“The last thing you want to do is outlive your savings,” says Joseph. “Retirement savings can be accomplished. It is all about planning to get it done.”

To find out if you’re having the right conversations to plan for retirement, or how to have those conversations please email us at lynnt@herretirement.com or call 508.798.5115.

It’s Never Too Late to Get in the Game: 8 Strategies to Help You Catch Up on Your Retirement Savings

November 3, 2017

by Lynn Toomey Retirement Savings

So here’s where experts say you should be in your savings goal by age.

Retirement Savings Chart

If this chart has you fidgeting and biting your fingernails, we get it. MANY people are behind in their savings goals (the average American between the ages of 55 and 64 has about $104,000 in retirement savings)[i]. Life has a way of happening… college tuition, vacations and weddings to be paid for. And emergencies happen too. Divorce, job loss and health issues can also greatly impact your savings rate.

But there is good news and no reason to throw in the towel just yet. No, living with one of your kids is not a viable option, just in case that’s what you were thinking.

Let’s assume you’re in your 40s or 50s…you still have a few decades to save and grow your assets. The main ingredient to your new savings plan (starting today) is discipline. It happens to be one of my favorite words because it applies to so many aspects of life. Discipline can help you accomplish any goal. But discipline also requires some sacrifices too. In this case, you’ll need to budget, save and track your efforts aggressively. Below are several steps you can take to get back in the game today. And remember, you won’t need to access all your retirement savings on the day you decide to retire.

It’s also important to assess your career path. If you will need to work longer into typical retirement years, it’s a good idea to have a career that you enjoy and can do well regardless of your age. Many people choose to work part time in retirement as well…and not always for the income, but rather to help stave off the aging process, keep their minds and body sharp, and to stay active and involved in their community.

Note that you don’t have to figure this all out on your own Financial and retirement planning is complicated and typically requires someone who has the training to do what’s best for you. A qualified retirement planner can not only help get you on track, but can also keep you on track. And good advice doesn’t have to cost an arm and a leg. It’s one of the best investments you can make in your future.

Eight Strategies to Help You Catch Up on Your Retirement Savings

1. Commit to a Budget – The first thing you’ll need to do is assess where your money is going each month. It’s impossible to save without doing this analysis first. Start by reviewing your checking accounts and credit card statements and make a list all your income and expenses (we’re about to roll out a software to help all of our clients track their income, expenses and budgets or there’s several available online for a fee as well that can track your expenses real time.

Figure out if there’s areas where you can cut back on spending, that won’t make you feel like you’re missing out on life! Perhaps cutting back on your Comcast subscription (we recently decided to cut the cord on cable and are going with an antenna for local channels, Netflix and Roku) , your cell phone services (we recently switched to Sprint to save a lot), insurance coverages (we switched medical plans and are reducing the cost of home and car insurances), entertainment (eating out less and enjoying home cooked meals around our own table), clothing purchases (shopping at consignment stores is like a treasure hunt…so fun), or a myriad of other areas (I just canceled my bank savings account because 1. there was no money in it and 2. they were charging me $10/month to keep it open and 3. I’m saving elsewhere).

Challenge (and reward) yourself to cut back on unnecessary expenses and put that money toward savings. You’ll soon see how good it feels to “clean out your spending habits” and start fresh with a new plan. You’ll also be pleasantly surprised to see how quickly these seemingly small steps add up in your mind and in your bank account!

Here’s a couple of articles to check out for additional ideas:

USA Today: Way to Cut Spending in Retirement

Investopedia: Top 6 Expenses that are Cutting into your Retirement

2. Max Out Your Retirement Plan Contributions & Make Sure Your 401k is Ok – Use your savings from above and do your best to max out your contributions to a 401(k), 403(b), IRA or similar qualified retirement plan. Because these earnings compound on a tax-deferred basis, they add up over time. Find out if your employer offers matching contributions—it’s free money not to be left on the table. The IRS also allows people over the age of 50 to make annual catch-up contributions in qualified plans.

In addition, most people simply guess when they are choosing the allocations in their retirement savings plan. It’s one of the questions we most often hear people say…”How do I choose the investments for my 401k?” Let’s face it, most of us aren’t financially savvy enough to make the best choices. I should know, I used to make a best guess with my 401k options. Then I realized it was smarter and would yield more money in my 401k if I had an advisor take a look and let me know the best allocation for me. At Her Retirement we offer a “Is My 401k Ok?” assessment.

For a mere $250 (well worth the investment), we’ll do the following with you:

Review of your current 401k plan
Determine if you’re putting enough away
Review your plan’s investment options
Review your current investment allocations
Re-allocate those as necessary
As you approach retirement, determine the optimal withdrawal strategy in a tax efficient manner

3. You Can Be “Too” Conservative – Don’t let the anxiety of being behind on your savings stifle your opportunity for growth. Investments that don’t outpace inflation could put you further behind. Stocks are a great way to fight inflation, while also boosting your returns. Ideally, your portfolio should generate enough growth to fuel your income needs over time while minimizing risk. And as you get closer to retirement you’ll want to change your portfolio allocations to a balanced portfolio of stocks and safe money options.

4. Ditch the Debt – As soon as you’re able (and the closer you get to retirement), the more important it is to get rid of high interest rate debt such as credit cards. As for mortgage debt, there are mixed opinions on keeping a mortgage into retirement. But it is typically wise to downsize your home to lower your mortgage payments and other housing related costs. Many retirees are happy to have their house paid off as they enter retirement, which is one less large expense. In addition, retirees can use the equity in their house as an emergency fund or to fund long term care insurance.

5.Take a Hard Look at Big Expenditures – If you’re behind on your savings goals, you should carefully consider large purchases such as a new car or an expensive vacation…expenses that won’t increase the value of your home or other assets. This comes back to our point of discipline…sometimes it’s better to prioritize short terms desires with long term needs. It’s very difficult to borrow money to fund retirement.

6. Delay Giving Your Boss the Boot – If you’re “significantly” behind in your retirement savings needs (and don’t have other sources of potential retirement income: other assets, inheritances, etc.), you will likely need to delay your retirement or at the very least work part time to lessen the draw on your portfolio. But heck, working in retirement can actually keep you feeling younger!

7. Re-Evaluate Your Ability to Give – Many of us are in what’s called the “sandwich generation”…retirees who find themselves caring for both adult children and aging parents (I should know as we are smack dab in the middle of the sandwich generation…4 parents and 6 kids! Blessed, but hopefully not too burdensome). Children and aging parents can siphon off an already strained nest egg. Experts caution against sharing too much money with adult kids.

It’s wonderful to have a giving heart, but sometimes doing so while putting your own future comfort at risk is not the best idea.

8. Plan for the Unplanned – Our last point is to make sure that you plan for the unplanned. As we all know unexpected things happen in everyone’s life. Prepare yourself for a Plan B for a job loss, a health condition or other life events.

Like any race, once you fall behind it’s not easy to catch up, but with discipline and some calculated sacrifices, you can get on track, reduce your anxiety and have a more comfortable retirement. Now is the time to get your plan started. Remember: Fortune favors the smart, the bold and the prepared. And if it all else fails, you can move back home with your kids!!

Mom and Dad moving back home cartoon

Her Retirement’s mission is to help make preparing for retirement easier (and more affordable) and living in retirement more prosperous. We offer a complimentary Retirement Income Projection to help you gauge where you’re at in your retirement readiness. It’s a great reality check and a good place to start your plan. Let us help you get prepared.

Other resources to help you get prepared:

Request our Retirement Readiness Kit

Request a complimentary Are You Ready? Assessment (ideal for people who are 10 years out from retirement)

Note: if you have adult children who are in their 20s and just starting out, stick the chart on page one of this article to their forehead! Fortunately for them, they have the power of compounding interest and time to build a significant nest egg. If they start at 25 and max out their contributions (10% of annual salary in a 401k), they can reach their 1x salary savings goal by 35. Doing this will also give them the discipline to keep saving throughout their life.

[i] Investopedia, The Average Retirement Savings by Age, December, 2016

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Why Simply Saving for Retirement Isn’t Enough? Part 2

September 6, 2017

by Lynn Toomey Health Insurance Income Planning Long term care Retirement Advisor Retirement Income Retirement Income Planning Retirement Savings Uncategorized

As I mentioned in part 1 of this multi-part blog post, simply saving for retirement isn’t enough. There’s a myriad of things that can go wrong in retirement. And you MUST be prepared. Preparedness is the key to many of life’s challenges. Unfortunately, many simply “put off” planning for another day. Days turn into weeks, weeks into months and months into years and before you know it, BOOM, retirement is right around the corner. And you’re not ready. This bring me to our first and most important retirement threat:

Neglecting to prepare, either on your own or with a retirement specialist, a comprehensive plan that addresses all the potential threats and risks we all could face in retirement, as well as your income needs and income projection. Will you have enough to last throughout retirement and how will you fund the emergencies of retirement? Her Retirement offers a full “Are You Ready” assessment to determine any gaps in your plan, or to create a plan for you.

Here’s 5 other threats to consider. We’ll cover several more in part 3 of this blog series.

Death of a spouse (without life insurance). While it’s true many pre-retirees are over-insured, the opposite is true as well. Life insurance is certainly critical while you still have a mortgage or other debt obligations, as well as young children to support. But we also feel that you do need life insurance as you are nearing retirement. The threat is that you or your spouse could die without insurance and you would need to take from your retirement savings to cover your living expenses. More than 2 in 5 Americans say they would feel a financial impact within six months of the death of a primary wage-earner, according to a 2015 report from the industry group LIMRA and the nonprofit group Life Happens. In addition, 30% of Americans think they don’t have enough life insurance, the report said. Term life insurance policies can be aligned with your retirement age so that it can cover you and your spouse during those important wage earning years and replace the earnings in the event of a pre-mature death of either partner. Her Retirement offers a full life insurance assessment to determine if you’re under-insured or over-insured, and then we can help match you with the right insurance based on your circumstances.
A healthcare crisis. Unfortunately, medical debt is a leading cause of bankruptcy for many. For those that can afford to cover illness or medical emergencies with their savings, it can prevent you or your spouse from working in the final stretch before retirement. In addition, covering these expenses significantly impacts your retirement nest egg. There’s several types of insurance to consider including disability insurance and long-term care insurance. Her Retirement offers a long term care/medical insurance assessment, as well as some unique ways to fund these expenses outside of insurance.
Scams and more scams. Retirees are a big target for scammers. We’ve all heard the nightmare stories. These scammers take advantage of people’s fears. A perfect example are life insurance policies marketed at 702 retirement accounts. Scammers will sometimes use early retirement seminars as a forum to sell these policies. Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA), the industry oversight organization, advises buyer beware for any scheme or program, like these that promises unrealistic returns of 12% or more, as well as anything promising that you can retire early and/or make more money in retirement than you did in your working years. Here’s a link to the more scams and how to protect yourself and your loved ones
The kid(s) that come back. Some call these boomerang children. Just when you think you have an empty nest, some one of them or worse yet, all of them return! I just experienced this myself with the return home of my 24 year old son. While a part of me was excited to have him in the house again, the other part of me was calculating the cost to have him back home. Many pre-retirees continue to support children who are considered adults. According to the March 2015 study by Hearts & Wallets, an investment and retirement research firm, those 65 years or older with financially independent children are more than twice as likely to be retired than people of the same age group who financially support their adult children. That’s because those who are still supporting their kids are often putting off retirement to do so,said Hearts & Wallets co-founder Chris Brown. Ideally, we want to help our children become independent from the get go so they can avoid ending up on your doorstep, but we know this isn’t always the case, especially in these times. My son attended one of the best colleges in the world and he’s in my spare bedroom as I write this. The best way to protect your retirement savings from the kids that come back is to help them get financially independent as quickly as possible and ask for them to pay their fare share of the household expenses. Read these tips for surviving your child’s return home (I think I need to read this a couple times!)
Giving grandma a hand out and a hand up. The statistics are pretty convincing that baby boomers are caring for their aging parents and giving up some of their retirement savings in the process. My mother used to say, “I never want to be a burden to my children.” And so far she hasn’t been a burden at all. But, she was properly prepared and to her credit worked as a teacher for 35 years and has a good pension and a good medical plan. Some 11% of adult children under 65 provide financial assistance to their parents, according to the National Institute on Aging’s 2015 Health and Retirement Study. Further, 25% of adult children under age 65 help parents with things like chores and personal care, often at the expense of having their own paying job. In fact, people age 50 and older who care for parents lose an average of $303,880 in pay, Social Security and pension benefits, according to a 2011 MetLife report! Here’s some resources for caring for your elderly parents

While it’s unrealistic to avoid these and many other retirement threats, it’s best to consider what you may face just before retirement and in retirement and make sure you have a Plan A…and a Plan B. This plan, as we discussed above, needs to include not just you, but your spouse and your entire family.

To chat about your plan with an affiliated advisor, please request any one of our assessments here.

Why Simply Saving for Retirement Isn’t Enough? Part 1

August 12, 2017

by Lynn Toomey Income Distribution Income Planning Investment Portfolio Retirement Income Retirement Income Planning Retirement Savings

The other day I was having lunch with a friend and we were talking about retirement and the services that Her Retirement provides. She mentioned that she’s been very good about saving money in her 401(k) and said, “I’m all set for retirement.”

This comment made me realize that the average person might also believe the same thing. Many people think they’ve worked hard for 20, 30, 40 years and they’ve saved quite a little nest egg. Retirement plan done. No need to do anything further, but keep working until you feel ready to retire and give your boss or your business the boot.

Well folks, sorry to break it to you, but this is NOT a retirement plan. It’s certainly a great start and if you have more than 4x your salary saved and your 50 let’s say, you’re in pretty good shape, savings wise. However, when you move from the accumulation phase of life (pre-retirement) and into the de-accumulation phase (retirement), you need a comprehensive plan that includes sophisticated strategies to protect you from all the inherent risks you’ll face in retirement. There’s so many things that can go wrong in retirement. You MUST be prepared. And the best way to be prepared is to be pro-active…either learning about the risks and methods to minimize them, or work with a retirement specialist like Her Retirement to understand the blind spots and then put fortification around your savings so that it lasts throughout retirement.

With the right plan and strategies, you can not only mitigate risks, but you can actually make your savings last even longer in retirement (up to 10 years or more). In our full Retirement Income Projection Analysis, we show you the impact (and importance) of:

Re-allocating your portfolio (to include less risk/safe money options, improve your investment return and significantly reduce fees)
Reducing your taxes as close to 0 as possible
Maximizing your Social Security filing strategy to get the most money from this critical benefit
Determining your most tax efficient withdrawal or draw-down strategy

In our next few series of posts, we’ll dig a little deeper into what can go wrong in retirement and more reasons why simply saving for retirement is not good enough. Stay tuned.

In the meantime, we welcome you to learn more and take one of our new e-classes; try our QuickStart Income Calculator/Report, request a complimentary “Am I Ready” assessment or any of our other free or fee-based assessments.

5 Ways to Save for Retirement

January 12, 2017

by Lynn Toomey Retirement Savings

It seems like “retirement savings” is a huge stress factor in many people’s lives, in some surveys, Baby Boomers have even cited that they lose sleep over how they’ll fund their golden years. With people living longer, recovering from the biggest recession since the Great Depression and having more costs in their lives to keep up with, many Baby Boomers either don’t have enough saved or *gasp* don’t have anything saved at all for retirement! But, not to fear, even if you don’t have a single penny saved towards retirement (because you saved for your child’s college education, were hit big by the recession or simply were always trying to catch up), there are still things that you can do to create a retirement income for your golden years.

Save: This one might seem like a no brainer, but actively begin putting money aside and looking at your budget. How much can you afford a week or month to put aside? What could you absolutely live without? Even putting away $100 a month will help to begin supplementing your retirement income. Also, think about what kind of saver or spender you are. Are you the type of person who goes to the store and buys strictly what’s on the list? Or do you get reeled in at checkout by all those products to buy? Figure out where your weakness and strengths are when it comes to spending and saving and address them accordingly.
Where to put all this money you’re saving? If you’re employer doesn’t offer a retirement savings program through them (if they do, and they will match anything, put in as much as you can afford to!) set up a 401(k) and/or a Roth IRA. Although Roth IRAs aren’t tax deductible, the positive aspect of a Roth IRA is that, when you do begin to use the money, you can withdraw it tax free.
Set a goal: It is a proven fact, that when we set goals, we tend to perform better. Ask any athlete, and they’ll tell you the goal they’re working towards. Same goes for saving.
Unfortunately, the window to invest conservatively has passed for many who are trying to catch up with their retirement savings. But, that also doesn’t mean that you can just invest on a whim. Finding a balance in investing is key at this point, look into stocks and mutual funds, but make sure to research diligently.
Work on eliminating debt: This is a biggie and probably the hardest to do. Employing some of the tactics mentioned in the points above may help: putting money aside, reviewing your budget and reallocating funds, can be a good way to start.

Even though many Baby Boomers are losing sleep, realizing that they may well live into their 90s and beyond, there is still hope for saving for retirement. Following these steps, taking a good, honest look at your budget and consulting with a financial advisor can help you get on the right path towards a healthy, happy and prosperous golden years.

Her Retirement

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