How Much Do We Need to Be Saving For Retirement At Different Life Stages?
Sometimes you may be wondering what you need, but other times you might be wondering if your kids know what they need to invest / save in order to keep on track in order to retire in relative comfort. The going rate now when starting out in the workforce is a 15% pre-tax contribution. That can go up later in life if one hadn’t already started.
This article in the Penny Hoarder is a really helpful way to get the conversation started in your own household or with kids. As we have posted before, we are notoriously late starters as a country the further we get away from our depression era survivorship generations. Despite many of our gripes, we are afforded so many more options that compete for our incomes than ever before, we have a higher quality of life on average, but as we look at a 30+ year retirement, we may be woefully under prepared.
Know the facts, understand your own desires, and start creating the plans to get you there. There are lots of great financial advisors and finance professionals who can help you chart the course to a successful retirement.
Divorce and How to Retool Your Retirement Plan
While not something that ANYONE would wish on someone else, divorce is still a fact in this society. Our advisors at Tribute Financial often joke that the best thing you can do to protect your future is to stay married. And while of course this is in jest, the fact is that it is true. Divorce is a trauma that isn’t limited to the psychological realm. It can tear apart families and break down a couple’s retirement dreams.
This article in US News calls out some ways that people should consider retooling their retirement strategies in light of a divorce. Things like income level, communal assets and more all have to be taken into consideration, particularly if looking at divorce that happens when people are 50+ years of age.
Ensure you have a proper Qualified Domestic Relations Order.Understand your spousal benefits for Social Security.Create an inventory of investments and assets.Update your retirement plan.Start contributing to your own savings.Adjust your lifestyle as needed.
Read more by clicking the link below where Maryalene LaPonsie explains how to address each of the topics in the list. The information on spousal social security is particularly interesting when considering a future where a fixed social security income may be the only income source.
Intergenerational Program in IL, Seniors and Pre-schoolers
This article in the Patch from Illinois highlights a program that will bring children (preschool age) into a senior living facility. The seniors in the Oak Park Arms community have been preparing materials like knitting toys and making crayon boxes etc. One of the surest ways to stay young is to interact with other people. People are not “patterned” per se. So in order to interact with them, you need to adapt to what they are doing, how they function, etc.
Additionally, by being involved in the preparation of the programs and facility, they have the opportunity to contribute to a legacy of intergenerational development. But most importantly, the interaction between young and old will inspire new ideas and new respect as kids become comfortable interacting with seniors and seniors can pass on wisdom while benefiting from “play” with kids.
Want to Learn A New Skill? Here’s Some Advice
This blog post on Zapier, a tech automation provider from 2017 called out some interesting facts and advice about learning. For example, there’s apparently not much evidence to support that a mode of learning would have a significant impact on how I learned…so that is somewhat unnerving in that I always envisioned myself as a more tactile learner (preference to be in person / experiential) and its also liberating meaning that I could really procure any mode of learning if I had an interest in the material…
We could all use new skills in our repertoire. Many employers, organizations, schools and civic programs offer free access to multiple learning programs (online, in person, etc.). Basically if you have an interest, there’s really no excuse not to pursue it. They have a nice 10 point list on things to consider when you want to learn a whole new set of skills.
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