You are not close to where you planned to be at this point in your life. At the age of 53 both you and your spouse did not anticipate still having ten years left on your house mortgage, as well as credit card debt, and only a small amount of money set aside for your daughters’ college education. Luckily, you have been blessed with another four years to get your act together. Your oldest daughter was just informed that she has received a full tuition, room, and board scholarship to a small private college. Gifted with this next four years you have set some very specific financial goals.
Your wife has decided to pick up some extra writing work from home to help pay down credit card debt. In addition to her substitute teaching this extra income should finally make it so you are not living paycheck to paycheck. By paying off the largest interest credit cards first, you will work your way closer to the financial goal of no debt other than your house payment.
Once the credit card balances have been eliminated, along with the ridiculous amounts of high interest you have been paying, you will then move on to paying off the rest of the house loan. In addition, you have a renewed commitment to investing money into your retirement funds, your savings accounts, and your college education accounts. Although you have these first four years without the expense of college, you understand that in four years your older daughter will likely be going on to graduate school and your younger daughter will be starting college and working on her bachelor’s degree. The goal is to help both of the girls complete at least one degree with no debt. For your oldest daughter, you will likely offer to pay for her masters degree if she decides to get one.
None of these goals, however, would ever be possible without the close advisement of a professional investment analysis. Although you have set financial goals before, the most recent professional investment analysis indicates that although less than ideal, you can remedy your current plan and financial goals.
Financial Advisors Can Help You Get on Track Toward Your Retirement Dreams
Not everyone’s retirement planning is where they want it to be. Day to day expenses as well as financial emergencies keep many from saving the funds they need to reach the goals they have. Consider the following facts about the number of people still working beyond their first retirement:
- 56% of Americans still have outstanding debt when they quit working.
- 54% of American workers say they plan to continue working after they retire.
- 43% of American workers say they plan to work part-time during retirement.
- 11% of American workers say they plan to work full-time during retirement.
- 19% of American workers say they do not plan to work at all during retirement.
- 27% of American workers say they are not sure if they are going to work during retirement.
It does not sound like much of a retirement for the majority of these individuals, does it? Where would you like to find yourself when you finally reach the retirement age that you are targeting? Do you have an investment plan that will help you eliminate your debt before you retire?
Unfortunately, many Americans do not have much of a retirement savings in place. In fact, women over the age of 65 are more than 30% more likely to depend exclusively on Social Security benefits for their retirement income than men. This is in spite of the fact that many employers offer a retirement savings plan.
The latest statistics indicate, for instance that as many as 80% of full-time workers have access to some kind of employer sponsored retirement plan. Additionally, more than 80% of these workers participate in a plan. The problem is that although many are participating, few are participating to the extend that they will have the money they need when it comes time to retire.
The best way to make sure you are able to enjoy a financially sound retirement is to work with a financial advisor and conduct an investment analysis. The information from a investment analysis will help you determine what steps you should take now so that you can enjoy your retirement years.