different accounts during retirement<\/a> based on how soon you will need it.\n<\/p>\n \u201cKeep five years of income needs in safer assets like cash, CDs, or short-term bonds so a market drop doesn\u2019t force withdrawals from stocks at the worst time,\u201d she said. Then, the bulk of your savings can stay invested to allow it to keep growing when the market turns around.\n<\/p>\n
Track Your Expenses <\/p>\n
It can be easy to assume you have plenty to spend in retirement if you spent years saving. But if you aren\u2019t tracking your expenses, you might run through your savings before you realize it.\n<\/p>\n
\u201cThe number one mistake is that people end up guessing their retirement spending without actually tracking it,\u201d says Espinosa. \u201cMost people underestimate their true spending numbers, and this can lead to depleting their portfolio earlier than anticipated.\u201d\n<\/p>\n
Caro agrees, saying, \u201cThe biggest mistake is assuming spending will drop just because you\u2019ve retired. It rarely does.\u201d Many retirees want to travel or take up hobbies, and as you age, your home or healthcare costs are likely to increase. Plus, Caro adds, \u201cold spending habits don\u2019t disappear just because the paycheck does.\u201d\n<\/p>\n
Keep Spending Dynamic <\/p>\n
Another mistake to avoid? Assuming your spending can stay the same each year.\n<\/p>\n
\u201cRetirement spending should be dynamic, meaning higher in good markets, leaner in down years,\u201d said Caro. \u201cThe retirees who stay solvent are the ones willing to adapt when conditions change.\u201d\n<\/p>\n
In addition to tracking your spending, track the market. Pay attention to how far your dollar stretches. Save big expenses, like travel, for times when the market is up, and avoid debt so you can adjust your daily expenses more easily when prices rise.\n<\/p>\n
Be Thoughtful About Social Security <\/p>\n
Many Americans are worried about the future of Social Security, but both Caro and Espinosa advise against worrying too much. \u201cI\u2019d say worry is understandable, but panic is misplaced,\u201d said Caro.\n<\/p>\n
Espinosa notes that even if the Social Security trust fund is depleted, retirees will still receive most of their expected benefits. Currently, the Social Security trust fund that covers retirement benefits is on track to be depleted by 2033, but the money paid into it by workers will be enough to cover 77% of scheduled benefits after that.\n<\/p>\n
“The system may adjust through smaller cost-of-living increases, higher taxes, or later eligibility, but benefits aren\u2019t vanishing,\u201d said Caro.\n<\/p>\n
For younger investors, experts suggest planning retirement without counting on Social Security to create more flexibility.\n<\/p>\n
\u201cInstead of guessing at policy changes, focus on what you can control: how early you claim, how long you work, and how much private savings you build<\/a> to complement your benefits,” said Caro.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"With the future of Social Security feeling uncertain and the cost of living on the rise, many Americans…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":185643,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[14],"tags":[138,246,111,139,69,244,245],"class_list":{"0":"post-185642","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-personal-finance","8":"tag-business","9":"tag-finance","10":"tag-new-zealand","11":"tag-newzealand","12":"tag-nz","13":"tag-personal-finance","14":"tag-personalfinance"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/185642","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=185642"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/185642\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/185643"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=185642"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=185642"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=185642"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}