What Should I Do 5 Years Before Retirement?

Updated On Aug 19, 2021

What Should I Do 5 Years Before Retirement?
Take Away

The five years going up to retirement are your last chance to pay off debt and build a substantial nest egg. Taking care of a few loose ends will help you enjoy your retirement years more. Here's how to boost your retirement savings in your final years of working. And at a certain point, you should consider the many types of retirement accounts that can assist you in collecting the corpus to support your future.

A retirement fund is vital to live a healthy lifestyle even after you no longer have a work and the same flow of income; it helps you overcome the psychological impact of superannuation while also ensuring that your level of living is unchanged and your needs are covered.

What Should I Do 5 Years Before Retirement?

The things include:

Keep A Strict Check On Your Budget

Begin living on your expected retirement budget a few years before retiring to ease into your more restricted fixed income. Getting acclimated to a lower budget before you have to live on it can help with the shift. If you think that the restricted budget is too limiting, you still have the option to postpone retirement for a few more years and save more money. What you don't want to do is begin drawing Social Security, leave your long-term work, and withdraw funds from your retirement accounts, only to discover that your retirement budget is far too restrictive for your liking.

Keep On Adding To Your Savings

Older workers can contribute a catch-up sum to their retirement funds. If at all possible, try to max out your individual retirement account during your final five pre-retirement years. If it isn't possible, put as much money into these accounts as you can. The tax breaks and company contributions that these accounts frequently provide will provide you with even more cushion for retirement.

Older employees with certain types of health insurance can additionally contribute to a health savings account. Your health-care costs are sure to rise during retirement, and having this set aside money for health-care needs that follows you into retirement could help a lot with those payments.

Consult An Experienced Financial Planner

A financial advisor can walk you through your alternatives if you're unsure how to effectively accept distributions from your retirement accounts or if you'll need to work part-time during retirement. A reputable fee-only financial advisor will not try to sell you anything. He or she can assess your existing financial condition, assess your retirement needs, and assist you in making decisions about your annual retirement budget.

Pay Off All Your Debts

You want to be as debt-free as possible as you approach retirement. This will help you balance your budget and live a fulfilling life on a limited salary. Make additional mortgage payments so that you can pay off your home before or shortly after retirement. If you sell, you'll have even more equity to use when purchasing a new house.

Also, make sure you have a reliable vehicle for the next few years and that it is paid for. If your family has two automobiles, examine if you will still require two if both you and your spouse retire. Then, make an effort to reduce your vehicle payments so that you have even less payments going out of your retirement budget.

Have A House of Your Own

If you plan to stay in your current home during your retirement, now is the solution to evaluate any big or minor repairs that may be needed in the next 20 or 30 years.. Maybe you need to repair your roof, reroute your gutters, or upgrade your appliances. If you spend the money now, you won't have to dip into your retirement savings to pay for them later. A few upgrades now will help you avoid the need for costly and urgent repairs in retirement, which will put a strain on your limited budget.

Take Away

Getting your retirement account in proper shape with adequate funds during the five years running up to retirement will require tremendous discipline and financial attention. However, making a few sacrifices now will help you get your retirement off to a good start.