Should Couples Retire Together?

Couples should carefully consider the financial and emotional consequences of retiring simultaneously before making the decision.

If you're considering retiring at the same time, we walk through 4 questions you should consider first:

• Have You Correctly Calculated Your Cost of Living in Retirement? According to a recent study: 46% of older adults spend MORE money during their first few years of retirement than before retiring!
• When is the Best Time for each Person to Claim Social Security?
• Do You Feel Ready to Retire? The decision to retire is not just a financial one.  And keep in mind, when spouses retire simultaneously, they suddenly start spending A LOT more time together.
• Do You Have a Good Retirement Plan? If you'd like to work through the financial benefits and drawbacks that come with retiring at the same time, please reach out to Ryan.

Full Transcript:

Erin (00:05):

Ryan, good to see you. I really liked today's topic. Should couples retire together? Couples should carefully consider the financial and emotional consequences of retiring at the same time, and you suggest they walk through four questions. First, have you correctly calculated your cost of living in retirement? That's because 46% of older adults spend more money during their first few years of retirement than before retiring.

Ryan (00:30):

Yeah, it's so true. I mean, it starts with knowing what your expenses are before you retire. I mean, really, that's what gives you the confidence to retire, gives you that confidence to spend. And I always suggest that you break out your expenses between both your core and your discretionary expenses. Know what your needs budget is, what it costs for housing, for your food and all that. And then also for the other things that you're going to want to do, trips, vacations, travel, concerts, whatever it is. And remember that when you retire, it's like every day is Saturday. And so typically Saturday is the day that most people spend the most money. So you want to make sure that you get a handle on what your expenses are going to be. Most people, for the first that I find, first five to 10 years of retirement is when people want to spend the most money. I'm thinking of one guy right now. He was working in a corporate job working about 50, 60 hours a week. Didn't have time to take all the vacation that he actually had, and then he retired. I had all these things on his bucket list, including a trip to Europe and some other places and things like that that he just couldn't get away and do before. And obviously this costs money. So mapping that out and knowing what that plan is is hugely important.

Erin (01:44):

Right? Next you have to determine when is the best time for each person to claim Social Security.

Ryan (01:51):

So Social Security, the decision there on when to claim for both a husband and wife needs to be made within the context of the overall income plan. You need to know when you're going to take money from different sources and when, remember, Social Security, when one spouse passes away, the surviving spouse is going to lose a Social Security check. You'll keep the higher of the two, but you'll lose that smaller one, and that's important, and you file as a single person now going forward. So it's so important that you get those decisions right with Social Security, and a lot of people are entitled to spousal benefits, so you want to figure out how to maximize that, and then possibly survivor benefits the road.

Erin (02:34):

Next. Of course, you need to ask yourself, do you feel ready to retire? The decision is not just a financial one because of course, keep in mind, if you retire at the same time, you're going to suddenly be spending a lot more time together.

Ryan (02:46):

Yeah, a lot more time. Like I said, it's like every day is Saturday, and it is always one of those things. It's kind of a touchy issue because as much as we may love our spouse or we love our best friends or whoever they are, no matter who that is, for most of us, maybe all of us even, we don't want to spend 24/7 with the same individual. So it's so important to have an idea of what you're going to be doing once you do retire. What time are you going to spend together? What time are you going to spend with maybe other friends or hobbies, different types of activities. I've also found this challenging with married couples when one spouse is more introverted and one spouse is more extroverted, then that extroverted spouse gets a little bit antsy. He wants to be out and doing things, and the introverted wants to be a little bit more in, and there can be a little bit of tension there. So getting a handle, not just financially, but even beyond that, what are you going to be doing every single day or on a regular basis in retirement?

Erin (03:54):

Such an important consideration. And then last and maybe most important, this all comes back to do you have a good retirement plan?

Ryan (04:03):

Yeah. I mean, certainly you have to have a well-built retirement plan before you retire, but thinking through all these issues, if you are going to retire at the same time as a couple, as I always say, if your last day of work is on a Friday and now Monday morning rolls along, and now you're having that morning cup of coffee together or something like that, knowing, okay, now what are we going to do? Are we going to lunch today? Or what is our plan here going forward? So it's so important, how are you going to fill that time and get the most enjoyment.

Erin (04:42):

Like you're saying, having this conversation and this plan earlier rather than later is so important. So Ryan, if somebody wants to talk through their plan with you or create a plan with you, what's the best way to reach you?

Ryan (04:55):

Welcome to call 714-462-9155 or can simply go to the website, CravitzFinancial.com.

Erin (05:04):

All right, Ryan. Thank you.

Ryan (05:06):

Thank you.