What's the worst piece and the best piece of retirement advice you've ever received?

Widow of Vietnam Vet said:
I took the early retirement from SSA , for a widow's benefit, based on what my financial advisor and also my tax person told me to do.
I am encouraged here by many, like me, who had no debts or mortgage when I retired.

However I continued to do volunteer work every day and about 15 years ago my doctor told me to really retire and take it easy. I loved my volunteer job however, and didn't take her advice and am glad I didn't.

I do not use credit cards either. BTW- I had AARP Road and Tow for many years, but they have switched to Allstate Road and Toe and the annual price went up. Still if you live where I live, there is always a chance you might need them.

My battery went dead a few years ago in my Jeep and they paid for the jump charge from a local gas station, and I followed the gas station owner down the hill, to get a new battery.
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I've Auto Club for 45 years (as stated on my card). I use it rarely, but like you, when I need them I want them to be there for me. And they always have been.
 

VintageBetter said:
I haven't received any retirement advice of any note. I don't know why. Maybe I am one of those people society deems should or has to work until they die?

Or maybe I'm one of those unfortunate ones our society chooses to have die in the gutter somewhere? There are numerous people who die homeless, in the literal streets, every day in America. One of our local newspapers lists their names every couple of months.

But in my personal life and in my careers, no one discusses retirement with me. I also have in my head this idea that retirement is mostly for men because they have worked oh so much harder than women. :rolleyes::rolleyes::rolleyes: Women, we have to keep working until we're in our 80s, like Martha Stewart, or Jane Fonda.

That is a type of media brainwashing - to learn from media saturation to be more like Martha and Jane, but never aspire to be like the ladies relaxing in Florida in their 80s. I'm all for women working at something they love until they die because then it's not work at all - it's play. But no one has ever talked to me about my retirement. I don't know why.

I mean someone has to work at Walmart, right? Maybe people look at me and see a Walmart employee in her 80s? That's not my dream, but maybe its their assumption?
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Old age and retirement are like Christmas. All kitchen calendars show how long until it arrives. Some read the writing that's literally on the wall, others wake up Christmas Eve with surprised looks on their faces and nothing done.

For over thirty years the internet has been loaded with credible sources offering excellent retirement advice to men, women and couples. Public libraries and bookstores, longer than that. Virtually all repeatedly caution strongly that SS checks were never intended to solely support retirees; building nest eggs are a must. Heck, since their creation in 1978, IRAs have been heavily advertised by financial institutions every spring.

Your well-written comments suggest you're an intelligent woman. It's difficult to imagine you were surprised by hitting retirement age or that you didn't look at the annual statements SS mailed our years in advance of your eligibility.
 
The worst is people who are retired telling others "Don't retire"! They obviously had no plan for retirement.

The Best "Save all the money you can before you retire" and "have a specific plan for what are you going to do when retired." This does not mean something like "Play golf" or "Go fishing" But, where you're going to live, what is your financial plan, what forms of entertainment will you do, have a health plan (e.g. working out daily, see my doctor and dentist regularly, take a vacation or two or more yearly, have a long-term care plan that your kids know how to set it up), when appropriate have a 'Do not resuscitate agreement, have an end of life plan.
 

63 1/2 and enough. If I could stay 35 forever, I would still be working.
Now I work for Free, but it is mostly upkeep of the Properties. I have
Time to get here in the middle of the day. haha

The best advice I know is look at your health realistically. If you set
most of your adult life, retire early. If you are very active, enjoy your Job.
Stay very active. Time passes faster yes, but happy. If you have
been a setter enjoy.

The Setter most likely has more resources.
The Active person burns through a lot of energy not having time to set.

The Setter hires it done while the Active is out there happily working away
on his yard, mowing, trimming, planting, painting, etc.

The setter leaves everyday mid-day and gets a bag of fast food and a big gulp.
While the active fixes Tea and an Egg omelet or Beef Stew. Green leafy salad or
Shrimp Alfredo. All doing exactly what they planned to do.

Getting confined to something is unfortunate but also an adventure.
Generalizations are the best ya got most likely.

The thought now tends to push the retirement back to 70 or above.
While many would do it if they could most cannot due to physical problems.

Only a political hack has those plans in mind. They have their alliances to help them.
 
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StarSong said:
Old age and retirement are like Christmas. All kitchen calendars show how long until it arrives. Some read the writing that's literally on the wall, others wake up Christmas Eve with surprised looks on their faces and nothing done.

For over thirty years the internet has been loaded with credible sources offering excellent retirement advice to men, women and couples. Public libraries and bookstores, longer than that. Virtually all repeatedly caution strongly that SS checks were never intended to solely support retirees; building nest eggs are a must. Heck, since their creation in 1978, IRAs have been heavily advertised by financial institutions every spring.

Your well-written comments suggest you're an intelligent woman. It's difficult to imagine you were surprised by hitting retirement age or that you didn't look at the annual statements SS mailed our years in advance of your eligibility.
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Ohhhhhhh 💡 ! - so the Internet was supposed to care about me.
Oh Internet, my spouse, my father, my mother, my Best Friend .
I may have to write a poem about how the Internet loves me.
Oh Internet , the one who will visit me in the hospital when I am unwell!
How could I have not perceived your superiority over all humans beings all these years!!!!!
How shall I love thee, Internet? Let me count the ways......
 
I don't remember being told any retirement advice. But I think through osmosis through my parents, we just inherited the (good) common sense to buy and pay off our own place asap. Also the worst advice ,which caused me sleepless nights, is that we had to have a million dollars to prepare for retirement. We have about $170,000 in savings and with our fixed income (CPP and OAS), we are doing just fine thank you.....
 
Freedom Fighter said:
Not sure if this applies to everyone....
I had 3 financial advisors tell me not to worry about paying off a 2.75% mortgage when the same money can make 8-10% in an investment.
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This advice was given when mortgage rates were higher than FDIC insured CD account interest offerings. The idea is to enter retirement clear of outstanding debts including CC, vehicles or mortgages.

You - and a couple of my kids - enjoy great mortgage rates. Kudos! Downside: those extraordinary rates can also be golden handcuffs, locking people into property that no longer suits them perfectly but they can't afford to leave.
 
Worst advice: "Why buy LTC insurance? It's much too expensive and you probably won't need it."

It's true, we might not need it. But if we DO, the costs would quickly put the surviving spouse in straits. And if BOTH of us need care - we are only 2 yrs apart - we would run through our entire portfolio in a few years. We live in a HCOL area; Skilled Care Nursing/Memory Care is now running $10-18K/per month. Spouse has already established a benchline for memory loss with our HMO; his severe stroke at age 50 makes him a prime candidate for dementia, so we will be checking his results on an annual basis going forward.

Best advice: "Do your financial planning, and test your estimates in a variety of scenarios."

Our estimates for future budgets were totally off, no surprise when you're guessing what life is going to cost in 15-20 yrs. But we built in a lot of "give", fortunately. We established what we were willing to give up and what we weren't, so we had 'top and bottom' numbers as our guidelines. We also deliberately underestimated future income, since there was no way of knowing whether he'd ever get an inheritance (only child) or not.

We knew SocSec was never going to be a major part of our income, as he's subject to the WEP penalty (60% of his SS is eliminated) and we never made as much money as most of our friends and relatives were making. We are spenders, and preferred to enjoy our hobbies and time together instead of working 12-hr days.

Were able to both retire early on a comfortable, if not extra-lavish, budget (fortunately we're not super big on traveling). It turned out his parents did leave him a generous inheritance, his pension and our SocSec turned out to be more generous than we had planned, and overall we came out on the positive side.

We were lucky, and are still in decent enough health to enjoy our retirement. No complaints - well, we'd like to have our 35-yr old bodies back, but wouldn't we all? LOL!!
 
Lethe200 said:
Worst advice: "Why buy LTC insurance? It's much too expensive and you probably won't need it."

It's true, we might not need it. But if we DO, the costs would quickly put the surviving spouse in straits. And if BOTH of us need care - we are only 2 yrs apart - we would run through our entire portfolio in a few years. We live in a HCOL area; Skilled Care Nursing/Memory Care is now running $10-18K/per month. Spouse has already established a benchline for memory loss with our HMO; his severe stroke at age 50 makes him a prime candidate for dementia, so we will be checking his results on an annual basis going forward.

Best advice: "Do your financial planning, and test your estimates in a variety of scenarios."

Our estimates for future budgets were totally off, no surprise when you're guessing what life is going to cost in 15-20 yrs. But we built in a lot of "give", fortunately. We established what we were willing to give up and what we weren't, so we had 'top and bottom' numbers as our guidelines. We also deliberately underestimated future income, since there was no way of knowing whether he'd ever get an inheritance (only child) or not.

We knew SocSec was never going to be a major part of our income, as he's subject to the WEP penalty (60% of his SS is eliminated) and we never made as much money as most of our friends and relatives were making. We are spenders, and preferred to enjoy our hobbies and time together instead of working 12-hr days.

Were able to both retire early on a comfortable, if not extra-lavish, budget (fortunately we're not super big on traveling). It turned out his parents did leave him a generous inheritance, his pension and our SocSec turned out to be more generous than we had planned, and overall we came out on the positive side.

We were lucky, and are still in decent enough health to enjoy our retirement. No complaints - well, we'd like to have our 35-yr old bodies back, but wouldn't we all? LOL!!
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I feel bad for those who are subject to WEP. But how nice that things worked out as they did and your husband's inheritance provided an extra cushion. That you planned for retirement at all is admirable since many people don't bother to do it. Hopefully your husband's health will be stabilized. New Jersey has one of the highest nursing home costs in the country but I'm astonished at the price you quoted! Is that for a private room?
 
Lethe200 said:
Worst advice: "Why buy LTC insurance? It's much too expensive and you probably won't need it."

It's true, we might not need it. But if we DO, the costs would quickly put the surviving spouse in straits. And if BOTH of us need care - we are only 2 yrs apart - we would run through our entire portfolio in a few years. We live in a HCOL area; Skilled Care Nursing/Memory Care is now running $10-18K/per month. Spouse has already established a benchline for memory loss with our HMO; his severe stroke at age 50 makes him a prime candidate for dementia, so we will be checking his results on an annual basis going forward.

Best advice: "Do your financial planning, and test your estimates in a variety of scenarios."
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We couldn't have afforded the premiums for LTC insurance - especially considering the way they ratcheted up premiums over the years. Sure, it'd be nice to have, but it wasn't in the cards.

That said, my concerns have dropped considerably over the past few years, mostly because of changes in CA laws.

As of January 1, 2024, access to Medi-Cal in California is based on income only. Asset tests are eliminated. Income limits are 138% of the Federal Poverty Level (so income of $28,208 for two people) - not sure how it works if you're over those limits, but according to the websites you can also get Medi-Cal if your' over 65 or in a SNF or intermediate care home. From what I can gather, if your income is $50K but the cost of a SNF is $180K, Medi-Cal will require you to pay a greater share of the cost before partnering up. Better than forcing indigence first, as in most other states.

There have been a lot of changes made in CA that permit people to retain most of their assets and still qualify for Medi-Cal coverage in SNFs. Look into it - it may bring you peace of mind.
 
Best advice: If you have a pension, once you are able to retire you are no longer working for X. You are working for X minus what your pension would pay you. Is it worth continuing to work? It wasn't for me.
 
Worst advice: When I was in my 40s I told a dear person who was a business associate that I would like to retire at 55. He said "you will reach your goal and retire at 55". I could have never retired at 55.

Best advice: One of my employees retired in her 50s because she and her husband had plenty of money socked away and she didn't need to work. She called me when I retired at 62 and said I would have much less stress and would live a healthier life. She was right. My Systolic blood pressure was frequently 160 when I was working. Now it is in the 130's. That is how much stress can affect one's health.
 
seadoug said:
Worst advice: When I was in my 40s I told a dear person who was a business associate that I would like to retire at 55. He said "you will reach your goal and retire at 55". I could have never retired at 55.

Best advice: One of my employees retired in her 50s because she and her husband had plenty of money socked away and she didn't need to work. She called me when I retired at 62 and said I would have much less stress and would live a healthier life. She was right. My Systolic blood pressure was frequently 160 when I was working. Now it is in the 130's. That is how much stress can affect one's health.
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Doug, I was told by my fellow State workers, including my supervisor, that I would not be able to retire at age 50. They had been on state payroll longer than I was and thought it wouldn't be financially feasible. I proved them wrong. I transferred from the municipal public health position to state position 14 years before, but blessedly, they were both under the same state pension plan and I had exceeded my 25 years. I retired one month before my 51st birthday, which was my present to myself. I took a 12% cut in pension because it was (considered) 4 years before the early retirement age, which at that time was 55.

I knew I could make it work because our HOAs and other housing costs were very low, my retiree health benefits are excellent and I was debt free.
I never expected my husband to pay for my personal expenses and those did not exceed my pension amount. Also, to "practice" living off a lower amount, for the last two years I worked, I was having 20% (the max amount allowable) of my earnings taken out for the deferred compensation plan. At that time, I only had 40% of what I anticipated I'd have in my retirement fund, partly because I retired two years earlier than planned. As you probably know, I continued saving and investing after retirement. I wound up being busier in retirement than when I was working (as my mother and husband teased) but I never regretted retiring when I did.
 
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Serene said:
退休对每个人来说可能有不同的意义和期望。有些人可能希望在退休后享受更多的闲暇时间，追求自己的爱好并与家人和朋友共度时光。而另一些人可能希望继续从事某种形式的工作并保持积极而有意义的生活。

关于赚更多的钱和长寿之间的关系，研究表明，经济状况与健康和长寿之间存在相关性。更高的经济水平提供更好的医疗保健和生活条件

平衡工作和个人生活并根据您的价值观和目标做出决定非常重要。每个人对于退休和赚更多钱都有不同的情况和偏好
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Google translation (Chinese):
Retirement can have different meanings and expectations for everyone. Some people may want to enjoy more leisure time in retirement, pursuing their hobbies and spending time with family and friends. Others may wish to continue working in some form and maintain an active and meaningful life.

Regarding the relationship between making more money and living longer, research shows a correlation between financial status and health and longevity. Higher economic levels provide better health care and living conditions

It's important to balance work and personal life and make decisions based on your values and goals. Everyone has different situations and preferences about retiring and making more money.
 
Serene said:
退休对每个人来说可能有不同的意义和期望。有些人可能希望在退休后享受更多的闲暇时间，追求自己的爱好并与家人和朋友共度时光。而另一些人可能希望继续从事某种形式的工作并保持积极而有意义的生活。

关于赚更多的钱和长寿之间的关系，研究表明，经济状况与健康和长寿之间存在相关性。更高的经济水平提供更好的医疗保健和生活条件

平衡工作和个人生活并根据您的价值观和目标做出决定非常重要。每个人对于退休和赚更多钱都有不同的情况和偏好
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Reported.
 
officerripley said:
Reported.
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translated :

Retirement can have different meanings and expectations for everyone. Some people may want to enjoy more leisure time after retirement, pursue their hobbies, and spend time with family and friends. While others may want to continue with some form of work and maintain an active and meaningful life. Regarding the relationship between earning more money and longevity, research has shown that there is a correlation between economic status and health and longevity. A higher level of economy provides better health care and living conditions It's important to balance your work and personal life and make decisions based on your values and goals. Everyone has different situations and preferences when it comes to retiring and making more money.
 

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