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10 Smart Retirement Tips for Late Bloomers

Are you a late bloomer and you are thinking on possible strategies that will help you live a life of abundance in retirement? Then below are ten smart retirement tips for late bloomers. According to the Employee Benefit Research Institute (EBRI), Only 58% percent of Americans aged 55 years and above have been able to save up to $100,000 towards retirement while less than 20% have saved up to $250,000.

So if you are a late bloomer, you have nothing to worry about. There’s still time to save up good money towards your retirement as long as you start taking steps today. There’s a popular saying that “it’s not how far but how well” You might be a late bloomer but that doesn’t necessarily put you in a disadvantaged position.

In fact, it makes you want to do more and eventually, you find yourself doing better than the so-called “early starters” because you have always had that consciousness that you are a late bloomer and that would naturally push you to do more than other people. There are a lot of late bloomers who eventually became so successful that it would be difficult to wipe off their names from history. Albert Einstein is just one name on the very long list.

So if you are a late bloomer, remember, it’s not too late to start planning and saving up for when you retire. You know how important retirement savings is right? Financial advisers always encourage you to save up for retirement because after retirement, you would need at least 60% of what you are earning now to be able to cover up for your expenses after retirement. That’s a lot of money if you ask me but there’s no need to panic even if you don’t have a dime saved up. Just read this top 10 retirement tips for late bloomers and take all the steps outlined therein -:

Top 10 Smart Retirement Tips and Advice for Late Bloomers

1. Decide how much you need for retirement

Like i mentioned earlier, it is advisable to save up as much as would be enough to provide nothing less than 60% of your current monthly income after retirement. That gives you a rough of idea of how much you need to save towards retirement.

For instance, if you currently earn $1,000 monthly, you would need at least $600 monthly when you retire. So, if you intend to retire at the age of 70 and hope to live to the age of 100, you will simply multiply 30 years × 12 months × $600, which sums up to $ 216,000. This means that you would need at least $216,000 saved up for retirement. Don’t let the figures scare you, that’s why you are here to receive advice, isn’t it?

2. Cut down on expenses

Now is the time to cut down on all those needless expenses. Your financial watchword now should be ‘spend less, save more’ and you should follow this watchword as practically as possible. No unnecessary luxury purchases, expensive vacations, designer clothing. Now, you must only purchase items based on your needs-necessity and not based on your wants. If you are an impulsive buyer, now is the time to get rid of that habit. Never buy anything you do not need at this point. Substitute buying brand new cars for used cars.

3. Pay off your debts

If you still have outstanding debts, you should start paying them off now. You could share your income into three. One part goes for your expenses, the second part for savings while the last part should be dedicated to paying off your debts.

4. Relocate

If you in a metropolitan city where things are generally more expensive, then you should consider relocating to a less expensive place. The thing with living in expensive places is that you might not be able to save much because cost of living is high. Everything from rents, to costs of food items and even transportation would be more expensive than usual and you would find yourself spending more so as a late bloomer, you really have no business living in an expensive city.

5. Reverse your mortgage

Reversing your mortgage allows you to defer payments for your home until when you move out of the home, die or whenever you sell the home. This is a very good way to avoid paying mortgage bills monthly, although there are rules guiding this procedure but reversing your mortgage allows you to save more money towards your retirement monthly.

6. Recover all ‘lost‘ funds

I bet you didn’t know you had some lost funds hiding out somewhere. Well, that car parked in your garage that you no longer use is an example of lost funds. That old furniture in your garage, that house of yours where your friend stays in for free, those are some of your lost funds you must recover. You can make a lot of money from selling some of the items you no longer need and saving the money made from the sales for retirement instead.

7. Get a grip in your investments

Now is not the time to gamble. You have to be sure of what you are doing at this point. Perhaps, you have been investing in the past, and you have some investments that are slow-performing or not performing at all, you should sell them off and invest in better stocks that would yield good profit. You made need a financial expert who is trustworthy and can give you adequate financial advice on how to make better investment and also help you manage your investments.

8. Add another stream of income

If you are under a paid employment right now, you could look business ideas that you can run easily alongside your current job. There are several of such businesses that you could do that would not need too much supervision and can bring you extra income monthly. One of such businesses includes vending machine business, mail order business, consultancy services or freelance services.

9. Increase your retirement contribution

If you have not been saving enough, its time to increase your retirement savings and start saving up more money. You can double up your savings but remember, this is only possible when you cut down on your daily expenses.

10. Consider retiring in phases

Instead of retiring all at once, you should consider retiring in phases. This would make the whole journey easier and smoother for you. Retirement doesn’t have to be scary. Retirement is fun and enjoyable when you plan for it financially.