5 Surprise Retirement Expenses
The article highlights:
Withdrawing an extra $10,000 from your retirement savings to cover a new roof might not seem like much in the grand scheme of things, but it can interfere with your plans for other expenses if you haven’t anticipated it.
When every dollar counts, your retirement spending plan needs to anticipate obstacles as much as possible. To that end, here are five common, yet unexpected, setbacks that can upend your retirement plan.
Hidden housing costs
Nearly 80 percent of people ages 65 and older own their own homes, but once the mortgage is paid off, people often forget about housing costs in their long-term budgets. Research from the Society of Actuaries found that unanticipated home repairs are retirees’ single most common financial surprise.
Uncovered health care
Healthcare costs can add up in retirement, but many people don’t fully understand just how much it could cost. Many people believe Medicare covers more than it actually does.
Long-term care
The US Department of Health and Human Services estimates close to 70 percent of today’s 65-year-olds will need some type of long-term care for an average of about three years.
The national average cost for a private room in a nursing facility in 2021 was over $100,000.
A family emergency
It’s natural as a parent to want to step in if one of your children needs financial help, but the older you are the more difficult it can be to recover from such an unanticipated expenditure. Half of all parents financially helping an adult child say it’s putting their retirement savings at risk.
Losing a spouse
It’s difficult to imagine how to emotionally prepare for the loss of a spouse but failing to prepare financially can leave you in a precarious financial position. There are tools to consider to help address this risk through planning in advance, including life insurance, pension survivorship options, and Social Security.
