Carstens Financial Group
  • Home
  • About Us
    • Pro-Am
  • Services
    • Retirement Income Strategies
    • Tax-Efficient Solutions
    • Investment Planning
    • Long-Term Care
    • Estate Preservation
    • Securities
  • Resources
  • Blog
  • Contact

Blog

Planning Tips to Help You Retire Early

5/2/2018

0 Comments

 
Picture
​Do you want to retire early? You’re not alone. According to a recent study from MSN, two-thirds of millennials want to retire before age 65.1 That’s well ahead of the current Social Security full retirement age of 67.
 
Retirement is a challenge at any age. Many Americans lack the needed savings to fully retire in their late 60s or even early 70s. Early retirement is an even more difficult challenge. If you retire early, you could spend more time in retirement than you did saving for retirement. You may spend many of the early years of retirement without the benefit of Social Security or Medicare.
 
The good news is you can retire early if you develop a plan and stay disciplined. Below are three steps to help you get started on your planning. As is the case with any financial planning, your decisions and actions should be based on your unique needs and objectives. A financial professional can help you develop and implement your strategy to retire early.
Calculate your retirement funding need.
Any retirement strategy should start with an estimate of your spending needs. It’s impossible to predict your exact spending in the future, but with a little research, you can probably develop a reasonable projection.
 
Look at your current spending and consider how it might change when you retire. Will you downsize to a smaller home? Will you travel or take up a new hobby? How much money will you need to live? Also, remember to account for inflation up until and throughout retirement.
 
Once you have a spending estimate, consider how many years you may live in retirement. Those retiring at traditional age may need to plan for a retirement of 20 or 30 years. If you retire early, however, you may need to plan on funding 40 years or more of living expenses. If you multiply your annual spending estimate by your retirement duration, you should get a ballpark figure of how much you may need to save.


Determine how much you need to save to hit your goal.
Of course, you may not need to fund your total living expenses with savings. You will likely benefit from Social Security, and you may have access to a pension or other source of retirement income. Deduct those income sources from your spending needs to estimate your required savings amount.
 
Once you know how much you need to save, you can develop a savings road map. Determine how much you should save each year to hit your target before retirement. Also, consider how your investment strategy may impact your savings growth. Be sure to consider poor investment returns and how lower-than-expected performance could affect your plans.
 
Once you have your savings targets in place, the hard part is staying disciplined and meeting your savings goals every month. Work to limit your unnecessary spending so you can meet your objectives.


Make adjustments as need to bridge gaps.
You may find that even with a spending estimate and savings plan in place, you still won’t have enough to retire as early as you would like. If so, you have a few choices. You can delay retirement a bit so you can save more money, or you can find a way to save more money each year.
 
A third option is to scale back your retirement plans. Look for areas to reduce your projected spending. You could downsize to a smaller home or reduce your travel budget. You could also work part time or seasonally in retirement to generate extra income. Think of ways to reduce your savings need so you can still hit your target.

Ready to develop your early retirement strategy? Let’s talk about. Contact us at Carstens Financial Group. We can help you analyze your needs and implement a plan. Let’s connect soon and start the conversation.

 
1http://www.businessinsider.com/millennials-not-saving-enough-to-retire-early-2017-6

Licensed Insurance Professional. This information is designed to provide a general overview with regard to the subject matter covered and is not state specific. The authors, publisher and host are not providing legal, accounting or specific advice for your situation. By providing your information, you give consent to be contacted about the possible sale of an insurance or annuity product. This information has been provided by a Licensed Insurance Professional and does not necessarily represent the views of the presenting insurance professional. The statements and opinions expressed are those of the author and are subject to change at any time. All information is believed to be from reliable sources; however, presenting insurance professional makes no representation as to its completeness or accuracy. This material has been prepared for informational and educational purposes only. It is not intended to provide, and should not be relied upon for, accounting, legal, tax or investment advice. This information has been provided by a Licensed Insurance Professional and is not sponsored or endorsed by the Social Security Administration or any government agency.
17596 - 2018/4/19

0 Comments

Your comment will be posted after it is approved.


Leave a Reply.

    Kirt Carstens

    Carstens Financial Group focuses on providing comprehensive asset management, estate planning and life insurance solutions. Allow us to help you secure your financial future.

    Archives

    November 2020
    October 2020
    September 2020
    August 2020
    July 2020
    June 2020
    May 2020
    April 2020
    March 2020
    February 2020
    January 2020
    December 2019
    November 2019
    October 2019
    September 2019
    August 2019
    July 2019
    June 2019
    May 2019
    April 2019
    March 2019
    February 2019
    January 2019
    December 2018
    November 2018
    October 2018
    September 2018
    August 2018
    July 2018
    June 2018
    May 2018
    April 2018
    March 2018
    February 2018
    January 2018
    December 2017
    November 2017
    October 2017
    September 2017
    August 2017
    July 2017
    June 2017
    May 2017
    April 2017
    March 2017
    February 2017
    January 2017
    December 2016
    November 2016
    October 2016
    September 2016
    August 2016
    July 2016
    June 2016
    May 2016
    April 2016
    March 2016
    February 2016
    January 2016
    December 2015
    November 2015
    October 2015
    September 2015
    August 2015
    July 2015
    June 2015
    May 2015
    April 2015
    March 2015
    February 2015
    January 2015
    December 2014
    November 2014
    October 2014
    September 2014

    Categories

    All
    2020
    CARES Act
    COVID
    Economic Update
    Election
    Employer Plans
    Estate Planning
    Fed Chairman
    Financial Planning
    Fourth Quarter
    FRA
    Full Retirement Age
    Funding
    GDP
    Health Care
    Health Savings Account
    HSA
    Income
    Inflation
    Insurance
    Managing Medical Expenses
    Medicare
    Planning
    Portfolio
    Retirement
    Retirement Home
    Retirement Planning
    Retirement Strategy
    Risk
    Risk Tolerance
    Say Yes
    Social Security
    Stimulus
    Stock Market
    Supplemental Retirement Income
    Tax Planning
    The Market
    Working In Retirement
    Working Part Time
    Yes

    RSS Feed

Kirt Carstens, CLU, ChFC
Investment Advisor Representative
P: (712) 332-5960
F: (712) 332-5391

605 Hwy 71 S
Arnolds Park, IA 51331
Get Directions

Home     About Us     Services     Resources     Blog     Contact

This information is designed to provide a general overview with regard to the subject matter covered and is not state specific. The authors, publisher and host are not providing legal, accounting or specific advice for your situation.

Securities and Advisory Services offered through Client One Securities, LLC Member FINRA/SIPC and an Investment Advisor.  Carstens Financial Group and Client One Securities, LLC are not affiliated.
​
This information has been provided by a Licensed Insurance Professional and does not necessarily represent the views of the presenting insurance professional.  The statements and opinions expressed are those of the author and are subject to change at any time.  All information is believed to be from reliable sources; however, presenting insurance professional makes no representation as to its completeness or accuracy. This material has been prepared for informational and educational purposes only.  It is not intended to provide, and should not be relied upon for, accounting, legal, tax or investment advice. 

Check the background of an investment professional.  |  Privacy Policy
  • Home
  • About Us
    • Pro-Am
  • Services
    • Retirement Income Strategies
    • Tax-Efficient Solutions
    • Investment Planning
    • Long-Term Care
    • Estate Preservation
    • Securities
  • Resources
  • Blog
  • Contact