We all want an early retirement to travel, start a business, or spend more quality time with our families. If you're planning to retire at 50, which steps should you take?
For starters, keep in mind that early retirement is not your portion if you're planning to work until your retirement age. You will be working throughout your retirement, at least for a few years; this means that you need to focus on saving for retirement as soon as possible. Otherwise, you may end up regretting not having saved enough money.
It is advisable to learn how to live a financially secure life during and after your working years and during your retirement years.
Some of the steps to take if you want to retire early include:
1. Start by Estimating Your Retirement Expenses
Start by looking into how much you can spend monthly after retiring. You or your partner may have a different monthly income, so you should subtract the amount of money you will be receiving each month. You need to add the monthly retirement expenses like medical expenses, taxes, and other costs.
Make sure that you have an emergency fund sufficient to pay for at least one month's worth of living expenses. Ideally, you will want to keep at least three months of living expenses in your emergency fund, which will help ensure that you can meet your expense if any unforeseen luck happens.
2. Your Current Budget Should Be Adjusted
To adjust your current budget, you need to be disciplined. You need to make sure that you don't spend money on unnecessary things. You may want to start by tracking your expenses for at least a month to achieve this. You can then see where you are spending the most of your money. Be sure to cut back on spending in these areas. You ideally have an option to earn more or spend less if you want to achieve your goal of early retirement.
3. Consult With a Financial Advisor
If you're planning to retire early, some of the challenges you'll have include having little time to save for your retirement or having more time to spend during your retirement age. Your recommended course of action is to consult with a financial advisor who will help you get started with early retirement and give you the advice needed along the way.
A financial advisor can help you come up with a viable investment strategy such that when you retire, you'll still have income streams since you'll no longer be relying on your monthly salary. In addition, a financial advisor can help you determine how much to contribute to your retirement plan.
Furthermore, a financial advisor can give you an idea of how much money would be necessary to ensure your comfort level is maintained. Many advisors can also recommend personal finance experts and provide advice on insurance planning and tax planning.
4. Invest in Tax-Free Retirement Income Funds
If you're currently working, you must start saving for retirement before the time comes. Ideally, you should start saving at least three months' worth of living expenses in your emergency fund while investing the rest of your savings into tax-free income funds such as a retirement account.
When you contribute to a retirement account, it reduces the amount of taxes you'll have to pay. This way, you will save more for your retirement, which is important for early retirees since having an early retirement means that you don't have much time to save.
Conclusion
Many people think of retiring early, but they lack the necessary planning skills, discipline, and financial resources. If you want to retire early, the first step is determining how much money you need to save. If you are currently working and planning to work past 50, you will need to adjust your budget and plan for living expenses during retirement.
The second step is that if you want to retire at the age of 50 or 55, there will be more expenses that you can't avoid, like medical insurance, taxes, and other costs. A financial advisor will help you identify areas where there are potential savings opportunities.