AVOID THESE RETIREMENT MISTAKES
Envision your retirement.
What would you like to be doing?
Now think about your finances. How much money do you need to have to make your retirement dreams come true? Starting your retirement savings is an essential first step. However, there are more many more steps to be taken, and you don’t want to take a wrong one.
Avoid these mistakes as you plan for your retirement:
Don’t neglect to plan. An easy way to start to plan is to participate in your employer’s retirement offering. If your employer doesn’t have one, take the initiative to start on your own. Not planning for your retirement doesn’t take away the reality of retirement, and it will be much better if you have planned ahead. Planning will ensure you have the money you need to do the things you want.
Don’t leave free money untouched. Does your employer have a retirement savings matching program? Make sure you maximize it. Contribute as much money to your 401(k) as your employer will match, to make sure you get the total amount they’re offering.
Don’t rely too much on Social Security. The average retirement benefit for 2016 is just over $15,000 annually. Can you survive on that much money? If not, you need to start investing to provide the money you’ll need during your retirement.
Don’t retire while in debt. If you can pay off your debts before you retire, you should. If you can’t pay them off in a reasonable amount of time, you should consider filing bankruptcy.
Don’t underestimate your healthcare expenses. Healthcare costs are always increasing. Your likelihood of needing healthcare also increases as you age. Save more than you think you’ll need. One tip is to save as much as you spend each time you go to the doctor before you retire into a Health Savings Account (HSA). That will give you a large sum of healthcare dollars already set aside.
You can avoid these common retirement mistakes and create the retirement you’ve been dreaming of. The sooner you start your retirement planning, the better it will be.