Millions of baby boomers are headed into retirement and unfortunately, some may discover that they are not as prepared as they thought they were. Thinking about retirement is a great opportunity to evaluate mistakes you have made up to this point or to avoid them in practice altogether.
The first and most common mistake with regard to retirement planning is failing to get an early jump on planning. The earlier you start saving for retirement, the easier it is to accumulate the necessary resources. Young individuals who are settling into a career, purchasing their first home, and getting married will frequently defer retirement planning, which could cost them in the long run. The next major mistake in retirement planning is underestimating your retirement needs.
Most people don’t realize how much money they will actually need to acquire in order to retire comfortably. A person will usually need to replace close to 90% of his or her income before retirement to maintain a standard of living and as longevity numbers are increasing, this becomes even higher. Furthermore, many people overestimate their ability to continue working past a certain age. People with desk jobs are most likely to assume they can continue working, but this is often not the case. Reasons outside of their control such as poor mental or physical health, losing their job or having to care for an ailing spouse or a loved one are just a couple of the reasons why you may need to stop working sooner than you anticipated.
Want more information about retirement and estate planning? Make a call to a Massachusetts estate planning lawyer today.