Retirement Choices – It is Up to You

Recent generations of Americans have been raised to believe that retirement is the ideal end game for their life. You’ll work hard for 40 years or so and then when you reach that magical age of 65, you’ll enter your “golden years” and spend the rest of your life blissfully playing golf, traveling the world, visiting kids and grandkids, and just relaxing in general, without another care in the world.

But the reality is that this isn’t the perfect end game for everyone. There’s no law written on the books that Americans have to retire at age 65 — or at any age, for that matter. Even though 10,000 baby boomers are now turning 65 every day, many of them are deciding that their golden years can wait a little longer.

Reasons to Delay Retirement

For some, the reasons to delay retirement are financial. Maybe they got a late start in saving for retirement, or maybe they had to tap into their retirement savings throughout the course of their working lives due to job losses or financial emergencies. Or perhaps they are members of the “sandwich generation” and had to help support aging parents, which put a dent in their retirement savings.

For others, though, the reasons to delay retirement are more lifestyle related. Many people simply enjoy the work that they do and see no reason to stop working, even if they have enough money to retire comfortably. They enjoy the routine of going into the office and interacting with co-workers, the challenges involved in their jobs and the feeling of accomplishment that comes with a job well done.

Still others have a hard time envisioning exactly what they’re going to do in retirement. After spending their entire lives in the relatively structured world of work, the idea of getting out of bed every morning and not going to work is actually a little frightening. For these individuals, retirement represents a great unknown.

And then there are those who feel they need to keep working just another year or two (or three) in order to build up their retirement nest egg a little bit more. They might have enough money to retire comfortably, but there are so many unknowns when it comes to the financial aspects of retirement that they aren’t sure when they’ll be comfortable giving up their paycheck for good.

Everyone Is Different

The point is that everyone’s personal and financial circumstances are different and unique. There is no single answer to the question of “When should I retire?” — or even “Should I retire?” — that applies to every person in every situation. So no one should feel pressured to retire, or not to retire, at any particular age of stage of his or her life.

Have you had financial setbacks that put a dent in your nest egg, forcing you to work longer than you expected? Then go ahead and keep working, as long as your health allows it.

Do you enjoy the work you do? Then keep doing it! Are the financial and lifestyle uncertainties of retirement a little bit scary? Then stay with what’s familiar for as long as this keeps you comfortable. Do you feel like you need to build up your retirement savings a little bit more before stepping into retirement? Then work another few years if that enables you to achieve a financial comfort level.

One solution for many people in these scenarios is to ease into retirement by scaling back from full-time to part-time work. For example, ask your employer if your work hours can be shaved. If not, you could see if you can find a part-time job, even if it’s in a different line of work. Or if you are self-employed or own a small business, you could slowly start to reduce your workload over time.

Material contained in this article is provided for information purposes only and is not intended to be used in connection with the evaluation of any investments offered by David Lerner Associates, Inc. This material does not constitute an offer or recommendation to buy or sell securities and should not be considered in connection with the purchase or sale of securities. Member FINRA & SIPC