6 Ways Middle Income People Can Prepare For Their Retirement

1. Sign Up For Health Insurance and Medical Planning Services

As your impending retirement slowly approaches, you’re not getting any younger and healthier. While you’re still at an early age, prioritize in signing up and paying for your health insurance in case of any medical eventualities. In this way, your potential medical expenses will not interfere with your retirement savings.

Apart from medical conditions, the elderly in their retirement are also prone to slip and fall accidents, which are completely alarming, especially when it occurs when the victim is alone at home. Having health insurance can definitely assist you during these dire moments

Health insurance and medical planning services aren’t created equally, hence the challenge of finding the right one. When finding a healthcare plan service provider for your retirement, choose one that’s meant for the middle class, like the Medicaid planning services, so they can assist you better with your needs.

Signing up for a long-term healthcare plan covered with insurance is one of the best financial decisions that you can make. It physically, emotionally, and financially protects not only you but also your loved ones.

2. Save, Save, Save!

Whatever your current age is, once you start receiving income, make sure to allot at least 20% of it for your savings.

However, this can be a huge challenge for middle-class workers since their salaries are barely enough to cover their expenses. Using the right financial preparation and planning, you can still opt for saving even 10% of your monthly salary, while you’re still young. Eventually, you’ll thank your younger self for doing this.

While you’re saving up for your future, always remember to stay away from luxurious temptations and stick to your goals. But, that doesn’t mean you’re not allowed to have fun. Whenever you’re spending on wants and luxuries, always make definite plans for these expenses and don’t spend your money on unanticipated and unplanned ones.

3. Start Investing

The problem with low to medium-income earners is their incapacity to make wiser financial decisions during crises. When they experience financial emergencies, they end up taking short-term loans and paying huge interest, which can be avoided if you have enough savings and investments. With the help of financial investments, you can double up your future savings for unexpected events and retirement.

Your saving methods are as important as your savings amount. Diversify your investments – don’t focus on one category since this will lessen your return and increase your risks. Seek different basic investment platforms in your area, learn about the plan’s investment options, and don’t be afraid to ask questions.

4. Get A Life Insurance

While you’re always told to get a life, now we’re telling you to get life insurance as well. Having life insurance ensures that your loved ones are financially secure, and they won’t have to carry the financial burden and liabilities that you might’ve left behind. Unfortunately, a lot of people are still skeptical about getting life insurance.

It’s important to take note that life insurance isn’t only for death benefits that beneficiaries will receive after the death of the insured, but it’s also a great way to build your retirement nest egg. The best way to build your nest egg is by signing up for permanent life insurance that offers cash-value accumulation. This way, you can save up for a sum of money while paying your monthly premiums.

Getting life insurance for retirement purposes varies from provider to provider. Most financial advisors recommend tapping into cash-value after 10 to 15 years of growing your insurance, but this can be impractical for middle-income earners. Thus, talk to your insurance provider and settle this out since life insurance costs depend on many factors as well.

5. Delay Your Social Security Benefits

Financial experts attempt to analyze the best retirement configuration and strategies for middle-class Americans to make their retirement savings worth it. Although this might not be entirely applicable to your case, you can get a few tips from this professional financial advice.

They ended up with two retirement plan strategies: the first one is to delay your social security benefits in order to boost those benefits.

Usually, workers retire at the age of 66 or 67, and they can start receiving social security benefits given that they’ve worked consistently for at least 10 years. These benefits cover 66% to 80% of an ordinary retiree’s income.

Yet, if the benefits are delayed every year, until the age of 70, the social security benefits boost by up to 8 percentage points, and a maximum of 124% to 132%, for people born in 1960 and born before 1960 respectively.

Therefore, delaying your benefits as long as possible is a good tactic, but only for married people. Those unmarried and non-primary-earning individuals might want to consult a financial adviser first.

6. Arrange Retirement Paychecks

Consequently, the second retirement strategy that financial experts have advised is to set up ‘retirement paychecks’ that will ensure a stable income. These retirement paychecks refer to covering your fundamental living expenses, such as food, medical services, housing, among others, through distributing financial assets from your retirement accounts.

Using this strategy, you should only withdraw an assigned percentage of your account balance if you want to start receiving your paycheck. It can either be monthly, quarterly, or annually, but these amounts should stick to the required minimum distributions (RMDs) highlighted by the Internal Revenue Service (IRS).

If you’re interested in taking up this advice, you can check out the full report here and decide if it’s a viable option for your financial retirement needs.

Bottom Line

While you’re still young and in good health, preparing for your retirement is essential as it’ll predict how satisfied you are with your retirement lifestyle soon.

With the help of these ways, even if you’re a middle-income earner, you’re still able to prepare for retirement. Always remember that a healthy and secure retirement plan is equivalent to a stable retirement life.