10 Retirement Resolutions
Review your Social Security statement. Watch for your Social Security statement in the mail each year, says Salisbury. Be sure to review it for accuracy and contact the Social Security Administration with any corrections.
Save before you spend. "Pay yourself first, and find ways to invest automatically," says Heather Dzielak, senior vice president of retirement income security ventures for Lincoln Financial Group. "Get in the discipline of setting aside money for your retirement." Many companies will let you automatically deposit a portion of your paycheck into savings or investment accounts, so you can save it before you even get a chance to spend it. Martin Weiss, president of Weiss Research Inc., recommends prioritizing retirement even above your holiday spending. "I know it sounds a little bit selfish, but the holiday spending and undersaving is the big hit to the nest egg," he says. "If we could save for a nest egg the same amount that we spend for gift giving during the holidays, that one change alone could have a very dramatic impact on the quality of our life during retirement."
Plan for the financial transition. It's important to develop a plan to transition your retirement savings into a stream of retirement income. "It's the way you take it out that will determine how much you and your family keep and how much goes to the government," says Slott. "If you take it out the wrong way, it all goes back to the government." A financial adviser can help you determine the most tax-advantaged way to withdraw money from retirement accounts. You'll also want to double-check the beneficiary forms on all your retirement accounts. "The beneficiary form is the key document that's going to determine who gets all this money you've saved," says Slott. "Most people think that somebody else took care of this, and then they are surprised to find out that they didn't."
Set a retirement savings goal. Only 42 percent of workers have actually calculated how much they need to save for a comfortable retirement, according to EBRI. And 41 percent of those who did the calculation created their own estimate or guessed. It's a good idea to sit down with a financial adviser and calculate exactly how much you will need to cover your expected retirement expenses or use an online calculator or retirement worksheet.
Stick to your other resolutions as well. It can't hurt to eat right and exercise–and it might actually pay off. The EBRI estimates that a couple age 65 retiring today will need $295,000 to pay for health insurance premiums and out-of-pocket expenses during retirement, not including long-term care, assuming the average life expectancy of 82 for men and 85 for women. So, staying as healthy as possible, making sure you are always covered by health insurance, and investing in preventive care could protect your retirement nest egg.
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