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Archives for August 2017

Popular Retirement Bucket List Ideas

If you haven’t thought about creating a bucket list, it’s something you may want to consider either before or once you’re in retirement. For many, retirement is viewed as one long holiday that offers the opportunity to pursue new passions. But for some, it can be a challenge to identify with a life outside of a career, and they are unable to establish any tangible goals, which can lead to lethargy or depression. Since retirement can last for decades, creating plans, no matter how small or ambitious, is one good way to stay engaged and optimistic about the future.

Here are a few ideas to get you started:

  • Sleep in a boat or houseboat
  • Renew your wedding vows and revisit your original honeymoon destination
  • Take lessons in cooking, painting and ballroom dancing
  • Learn a foreign language
  • See a Broadway play in New York City
  • Attend professional sporting events
  • Spend more time with grandchildren / take them to Disney World
  • Live abroad for a year
  • Adopt a pet
  • Take an overnight train trip with sleeping berths
  • Travel Route 66
  • Put decades of photos in photo albums
  • Take on gardening projects
  • Redecorate
  • Spend the day at a spa
  • Custom design and build your dream retirement cottage
  • Write a book
  • Track down long-lost relatives or trace your family genealogy
  • Plan a regular date night once a week or several times a month

Ways to Help Deal with Market Losses

It’s been a year of unconventional politics, yet the investment markets have held strong. Despite the occasional blip in reaction to a political event, investors who have stayed the course have, for the most part, recovered. However, the markets have experienced an unusually long bull run, leading some analysts to consider a correction — a 10 percent drop from recent highs — on the horizon. Retirees and those on the cusp of retirement should consider their current investment risk and have a potential fallback plan in the event that market losses impact their retirement income.

  • One common bit of advice is to make sure your basic living expenses are covered. This means ensuring you have enough Social Security and pension income to cover housing, food and other essential expenses. If you do not, you may want to consider using a portion of your retirement assets to purchase an annuity that guarantees* a minimum level of income to help cover the balance. Expenses such as entertainment, travel and gifts can always be scaled back after a market decline to adjust for any loss of discretionary income.
  • Another strategy is to keep a store of cash, not just for emergencies but also to help cover income losses due to a market correction. In this scenario, an individual can use his cash to cover living expenses to give his portfolio time to recover, rather than selling securities for a loss just to make ends meet.
  • For individuals using their investments to generate income to help fund retirement, it’s important to stay on top of your allocation mix and consider making adjustments as needed due to market conditions.
  • Finally, if a retiree’s portfolio takes a market hit, he or she may consider looking for other temporary sources of income rather than cashing out investments. Options may include taking a part-time job, renting out a vacation home or selling a spare car or other high-ticket item.

IRS Rules for Claiming Investment Loss

When an investment is sold for a loss, the difference between the price the investor originally paid and the amount he or she sold it for is referred to as a capital loss. A taxpayer may be able to deduct this amount from his or her income taxes in the year he or she sold the asset, per the following IRS rules:

  • When the amount of investment capital losses exceeds an investor’s total capital gains, he or she can usually claim the amount of the excess loss as a deduction on his or her income tax return — up to $3,000 ($1,500 if married filing separately).
  • When net capital losses exceed this limit, they may be carried forward to later years.

Capital gains and losses are classified as long- or short-term, depending on how long the investor held the asset before he or she sold it. If held more than one year, the capital gain or loss is long-term. If held one year or less, it is considered short-term.

 

The content provided here is designed to provide general information on the subjects covered. It is not, however, intended to provide specific legal or tax advice. Contact us at info@securedretirements.com or call us at (952) 460­-3260 to schedule a time to discuss your financial situation and the potential role of investments in your financial strategy.

Loss Comes in Many Forms

Loss comes in many forms: Our children grow up and move out, friends retire and move away and loved ones pass on. The longer each of us lives, the more people we may lose in our lifetime. It’s also possible that one reason the “graying divorce” rate has increased in recent years is because longer life expectancies offer the potential to build a new life after divorce.

We lose other things, like our keys and maybe our short-term memory. We may lose our good health or even our teeth. We lose a little bit of our nest egg gradually as we withdraw it as income during retirement.

However, loss is not unique to retirees. We experience losses throughout life and generally find ways to cope and move on. Growing older is no different. You’ve probably heard the adage that you can’t control all the things that happen in life — only your response to them. So instead of focusing on the things you lose as you age, perhaps respond by embracing the things you gain.

These things may include your home and your family. Wisdom and knowledge. An understanding of what’s truly important to you in life. Decades of wonderful moments and memories.

Loss is an inherent and inevitable part of life. But life is just that: living. You get another day; another opportunity to live. Dealing with loss is important, but its purpose is to help you move on and embrace what each new day can bring.

 

Create a Financial Strategy Now for Your Retirement

While adjusting to a fixed income during retirement can be stressful, you can help alleviate the stress by knowing your numbers. Many of us live with a “general idea” of our monthly income and expenses. However, a fixed income means you need a firm grasp on what’s coming in and what’s going out every month.

To find out how much you’re spending every month, start with your fixed expenses. How much is your mortgage or rent? How much do you spend on insurance? Taxes? Utilities? Medical expenses? These are the hard-and-fast expenses that you’ll need to cover every month.

Next, track how much you spend on non-fixed expenses — things like eating out, clothing and gifts. Add this amount to your fixed expenses, and you’ll have a good idea of how much you spend every month.

Finally, get a solid picture of the income you should expect every month, and from what sources. This income could include Social Security benefits, savings, investments, annuities and pensions. Not sure what income you should expect? We can help you create a financial strategy using insurance and investment products that can help you work toward your long-term retirement income needs. Our goal is to help you live a retirement that is stress-free. Contact us today

The content provided here is designed to provide general information on the subjects covered. It is not, however, intended to provide specific legal or tax advice. Contact us at info@securedretirements.com or call us at (952) 460­-3260 to schedule a time to discuss your financial situation and the potential role of investments in your financial strategy.

Stress in Retirement? It’s More Common Than You Think.

Many of us have an image of how retirement is supposed to be: You’re free! No boss to answer to, no schedule to keep, no demands upon you. In short, retirement equals no stress, right? But the reality is that some retirees report they still have stress after they leave their jobs.

So what gives? Why are retirees feeling stress in a time when they should be feeling footloose and fancy-free? Here are four stressors you may want to be aware of as you approach retirement:

  1. Financial concerns. According to a survey conducted by TransAmerica, outliving savings and investments is the No. 1 retirement concern of most Americans. The idea of living on a fixed income can create a sense of stress for many people, especially those who feel they haven’t saved enough during their working years.
  2. Health concerns. Health insurance provider Aetna reports that more than 70 million Americans ages 50 and older have been diagnosed with at least one chronic condition. These conditions may require expensive prescriptions or frequent visits to a health care provider.
  3. Changes in identity. Leaving a job is a major life change, even if you’re looking forward to retirement. For many of us, our jobs are a big part of our identity. Some people make an easy transition into retirement, but others might experience anxiety, depression and a feeling of loss.
  4. Caring for aging parents and spouses. Retirees may have to assume the role of caregiver for parents and/or spouses. While caring for a loved one can reap great rewards, it can also create continuing stress for the caregiver, especially if it spans several years or the caregiver is not receiving help or guidance from friends, relatives or medical professionals.

Tips to Help Avoid Retirement Stress

While it is not inevitable that you’ll experience stress during retirement, here are three tips to help ward off retirement stress before it happens:

Have a game plan. Many people head off into retirement with little thought of how they’ll fill their days. It’s important to take stock before you retire, to create a game plan. What does retirement look like to you? Is it volunteering? Time with family? Travel? It’s a great idea to go into retirement with a plan for what you might like to try or accomplish during this time.

Take care of your health. Obviously, not all health conditions are avoidable. However, taking a proactive approach to your health and lifestyle choices can help provide you with a healthier outlook throughout your retirement years. You don’t have to make major changes all at once: Start with physical activity and eating healthier.

Build your relationships. Many people find it harder to maintain social connections during retirement, especially if they worked in an environment where they naturally connected with a wide variety of people. You may need to reach out to new social groups or become involved with new organizations.

Don’t “Do-It-Yourself” for Your Financial Strategy

We live in a do-it-yourself culture. From home remodeling to teaching yourself how to play an instrument, the internet gives us the resources to learn and do just about anything on our own.

That includes creating a financial strategy. The vast array of resources available out there make putting together a financial strategy sound simple. But the benefits of working with a financial advisor to create a cohesive, personalized strategy can outweigh the pros of going it on your own. Here are just a few reasons you should work with a financial advisor to put together your strategy:

  1. Time. You may have the ability to put together your own strategy, but do you have the time? Putting together a financial strategy can take lots of time — time spent pulling current statements, researching options and making changes. A financial advisor can save you time by presenting options to you and handling the legwork to establish new strategies. He or she also can monitor and update your strategy as needed.
  2. Knowledge. A financial advisor understands the options available and how they work in tandem with the other items in your strategy. A financial advisor also understands the latest features of the available investment and insurance products.
  3. Accountability. A financial advisor will not only help you create a financial strategy, but he or she will keep you accountable to it. He or she can help you keep the bigger picture in mind and help you understand the progress you’re making toward your financial goals.

Is your financial strategy up to date? If not, it’s time to make it that way. We can help you create a strategy that is unique to you and your life. We will help identify any gaps in your current strategy and analyze various options to help get you to your goals. Contact us today to get your personalized financial strategy.

 

The content provided here is designed to provide general information on the subjects covered. It is not, however, intended to provide specific legal or tax advice. Contact us at info@securedretirements.com or call us at (952) 460­-3260 to schedule a time to discuss your financial situation and the potential role of investments in your financial strategy.

Danielle Christensen

Paraplanner

Danielle is dedicated to serving clients to achieve their retirement goals. As a Paraplanner, Danielle helps the advisors with the administrative side of preparing and documenting meetings. She is a graduate of the College of St. Benedict, with a degree in Business Administration and began working with Secured Retirement in May of 2023.

Danielle is a lifelong Minnesotan and currently resides in Farmington with her boyfriend and their senior rescue pittie/American Bulldog mix, Tukka.  In her free time, Danielle enjoys attending concerts and traveling. She is also an avid fan of the Minnesota Wild and loves to be at as many games as possible during the season!