Grow Wealthier During Retirement
Written by Jeremy Biberdorf
Most people think of retirement as a time to live as simply as possible with the hope savings accumulated through life won’t run out before the end of your life. While this is the reality that many older adults deal with, it’s not absolutely necessary. In fact, it’s possible to grow wealthier during retirement. It may require some reallocation of assets, but if you’ve prepared for retirement, it may surprise you to know that your wealth can actually grow as you go.
1) Eliminate Inefficiencies. It’s important not to waste money. Take a careful look at your life and make those difficult changes. If you have poor credit, you’ll pay much more for loans for the rest of your life. Choose OneMain personal loans to see some practical examples. If you are currently renting, consider buying a home. This will build personal equity, another leverage point for future borrowing. Restrict monthly spending as much as possible. If you don’t need it, don’t buy it. And if you feel you must have it do without something else as a tradeoff.
2) Focus on Enrichment. Retirement is a time to live gently. Fortunately, gentle living is not terribly expensive. Spend time exercising, meditating, reading, taking classes, and hanging out with the people who mean the most to you. Not only will filling your days with healthy activities like these preserve your wealth, it will make you healthier so that you enjoy your retirement more.
3) Increase Saving. No matter what age you are, you should be saving as much as possible, at least if you hope for a retirement that’s free of financial anxiety. Your savings will be the basis of future security. Even if you are well on your way to a comfortable retirement, saving is an integral skill to keep active. If you are able to work part time, through a job or a profitable hobby, you can continue to add to your savings.
Now we come to the investment portion. Once you’ve controlled spending and increased your savings, you want to allocate your financial resources in a way that will build wealth without requiring too much in the way of active management. Here are some ways to do that.
1) The 4% Rule of Investment. Let’s say you have $1,000,000 invested in index funds through Vanguard. Investments like these grow, on average, about 8-10% per year. Retirees who withdraw 4% of their investment balance every year ($40,000 in this case) still see their investments gaining value, at a faster rate than money is being withdrawn. This is an incredible way to gradually accumulate greater wealth during retirement, even as you’re living off of the investment balance. The less you take out to live on, the larger balance you have gaining value.
2) Real Estate and Other Passive Income. Some people build wealth through ownership of property, companies, and more. If you have a property that yields a positive cash flow through renters or other forms of tenant, you can live off of this income or use it to increase your wealth. Once you’ve paid off the property which, by the time you retire, may have already happened, you’ll enjoy that entire monthly rental balance in your pocket less the on-going costs to maintain the property.
3) Make Sure You Know About All Assets. By the time you retire, you will likely have worked a number of jobs, lived in many houses, and had an incredible variety of experiences. In this time, you may have received inheritances, retirement accounts from work/pensions, property, and other assets. It is important to make sure you know what you own, and to have it allocated in the way that best provides ongoing security. By knowing exactly what you have you can better maximize your returns. Get rid of low performers and build an efficient portfolio of quality investments.
Retirement doesn’t have to be a time spent watching your resources move inexorably to zero. You may be able to create a situation in which you money grows significantly, even when you no longer have direct income from your career. This takes time, hard work, and making the best of your opportunities prior to retirement, but if you are able to hit these targets you’ll have a prosperous retirement with a large estate.