Good planning is crucial if you want a comfortable retirement. That means you need to start saving early and write a clear budget for all of your costs. Working out exactly how much you will spend on a monthly basis means that you can set clear savings goals and ensure that you are putting enough into your retirement accounts each month.
Image Source – Pixabay CCO License
Unfortunately, this careful planning falls apart if you overlook big costs, which is fairly common. There are a lot of expenses that people simply don’t account for, so they run into problems later on when they need to pay for them. These are some of the big expenses that people tend to overlook when budgeting for retirement.
Home Renovations
One of the most common expenses that people forget about is home renovations. Most homes need to be updated and improved as they age, which can be very expensive. You will also have to introduce home mobility solutions like stairlifts to make sure that you can get around on your own. If you want to maintain your independence, you will need to set money aside to make home renovations during retirement.
Health Insurance
People mistakenly assume they don’t need to worry about health insurance because they have Medicare when they retire. Unfortunately, that’s not always the case because there are a lot of things that Medicare doesn’t cover. Private insurance can be surprisingly expensive, especially if you need ongoing care, so it’s important that you budget for this. If your Medicare won’t cover you and you don’t have a health insurance plan in place, you will have to foot the bill yourself. When you only have a limited amount of money to fund your retirement, this can cause you some serious problems.
Taxes
When you stop working, you will need to pay a lot less tax – but not no tax. There are still some expenses that can be deducted from your income, including state taxes and real estate taxes, which means you won’t have to contribute as much money throughout the year. Specific tools such as Taxcaster can assist you with crunching the numbers. However, if your home or property values increase during retirement, there is a chance that you will have to pay capital gains tax for the first time. This can be expensive if you are not expecting it, so it’s important that you keep an eye on these numbers and plan ahead.
Transport
As you get older and less mobile, there is a chance that you might need to use a wheelchair or other mobility device. If this is the case, it’s important that you plan ahead for the costs of transport during retirement. Public transport can be expensive if you rely on it regularly, but renting mobility devices such as wheelchairs and scooters can be even more costly. You need to either set money aside or look into getting some form of private transport during retirement.
If you want to be able to enjoy retirement and not worry about how much it is costing you, then you need to plan ahead and set a budget, making sure to include all of these hidden costs.