Planning for Retirement Essay

Even though people live solely off their Social Security now, everyone should have a retirement plan because Social Security may not be there forever. If you want to retire with a comfortable lifestyle, you should start planning now. If you do not want to have to burden others to help take care of you when you are older, you need to be planning now. I have seen to many elderly people not be prepared for retirement, and they are now facing many hardships.

Times have changed, and the government is not as reliable as it used to be.

People are constantly reaching the retirement age and at some point the Social Security funds may no longer be available. People should do everything in their power to plan for their retirement because time goes by all too quickly. Social Security may be obsolete by the general retirement age of sixty-five. This is the retirement age set by the Social Security Administration. Each generation has a set retirement age that the Social Security Administration has set for them.

Sometimes this could not be the right retirement age for you, and you should start preparing for that now.

Three out of every ten retired people live on their Social Security benefits alone. This could be very hard depending on how your health and lifestyle are at the age of sixty-five. No one can look into the future to know if your Social Security benefits would be enough for you. Funds are rapidly declining with the Social Security and could be entirely gone by 2036 (Bradley, 2011). When you have a retirement plan to fall back on, this could be the funds that you need to help with extra expenses that may arise.

Do you want to have to work past your retirement age if you do not have the funds to retire? Having an extra retirement plan besides your Social Security can help ease this burden. If you have extra funds, you will not have to worry about having to work past your retirement age. Have you also considered the fact that you may not be physically or mentally able to work past your retirement age? This is very possible and should definitely be considered. According to the Social Security Administration my retirement age is set at sixty-seven.

I know that I am not going to be wanting to work that long nor may I even be able to work that long. Social Security will not be enough if you want to continue living the lifestyle that you live now. If you do not want to have to worry about money when you retire than you should have an extra retirement fund besides Social Security. You do not qualify for Medicare until you are the age of sixty-five (Bradley, 2011). There may be several unexpected medical expenses that could occur before you qualify for Medicare, and having a retirement fund could help with the burden of these extra costs.

If you are only relying on your Social Security than odds are that you will not have any extra money for unexpected costs that could arise. Having a 401-K plan can be very beneficial when planning for your future. There are so many options with a 401-K plan, and the sooner that you start investing in a 401-K plan the better your benefits will be when it becomes your retirement age. When setting up any kind of retirement funds you should always know how much money you have invested into your plan.

You should always keep a close eye on your money just as you would on any investment that you have put your money into. Exploring all retirement options that are available will be very beneficial to your future. Thinking of retirement as an investment could help you plan better for your future. Everyone should start planning for retirement now. No one really knows what the future may hold for them. Although some people do live solely off their Social Security funds now, those funds may be gone when it is time for my generation to retire.

We should not leave the burden of our own retirement for our children or our family members to have to worry about. By planning for retirement now we are planning for an age that could be somewhat difficult. I have seen many elderly people suffer in so many ways because they do not have any other income besides their Social Security. Sometimes Social Security is barely enough to pay the bills. Having a retirement fund will help you plan for a future that you know is coming. Why not plan for the inevitable now, so that you do not have to worry about it when you are trying to retire?