Category: Health and Wellness Issues
February 9, 2023 -- Millions of Americans dream about an early retirement. Many others had no such goal, but were pushed into it by the pandemic, unexpected layoffs, or health issues. But however they might have come into the ranks of the retired, many will not fare well. That is according to research reported in the Journal of Economic Behavior and Organization, where Binghamton University researchers found that early retirement can lead to "faster cognitive decline among the elderly".
The study behind these findings comes from data from a Chinese program for promoting early retirement. In an effort to reduce poverty among its rural population, the country provided pension benefits in its 2009 New Rural Pension Scheme (NRP). The Binghamton researchers compared what happened to people in China who took the pension benefits and retired early, versus subjects who stayed in the workforce.
Plusses and minuses of early retirement
On the plus side, those in the study who took early retirement often experienced improved overall physical health. They tended to sleep better and reduced their alcohol and smoking intake. So far so good. However, many retirees began spending excessive time on bookmakers not on gamstop, which contributed to decreased social interactions and diminished mental stimulation. On the negative side, those who retired early seemed to exhibit reduced social engagement and mental activity. Ultimately, they showed an accelerated cognitive decline in the form of delayed recall. Dementia, it seemed, could be predicted in many of the subjects.
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Published on February 8, 2023
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Category: Medicare
February 7, 2023 — The debt ceiling is one of the big issues in the new Congress. How it plays out should be interesting, with Republicans narrowly controlling the House and the Democrats with a slight edge in the Senate. Some lawmakers think that Social Security and Medicare funding could…
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Published on February 6, 2023
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Category: Financial and taxes in retirement
January 28, 2023-- Myths, misunderstandings, and just plain faulty thinking occur in retirement, just like they do in every other phase of life. This "10 Myths That Could Sink Your Retirement" article explains that, unlike earlier stages in our careers, where there might be a second chance at recovery, a mistake in your retirement can be serious. That's why it is key to avoid these common retirement myths and mistakes. Many, but not all of them have to do with money. We welcome other people's insights on the best and worst decisions they made in retirement - please add them to the Comments section below.
Top 10 Retirement Myths and Mistakes
Assuming you will work 'til you drop. Asked when they think they will retire, most people say between 65 and 67 - and many much later, if ever. But in the actual world, a Gallup poll said the average retirement age is closer to 61. The reasons for this vary greatly, but common ones are being laid off unexpectedly, or getting injured or sick and unable to work. The ramifications of retiring earlier than expected are serious, because it usually means that expected retirement savings do not materialize.
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Published on January 28, 2023
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Category: Best Retirement Towns and States
January 23, 2023 — Many retirees move when they retire, although most remain in their existing state. A smaller percentage, probably between 10 and 20%, will find a different “best retirement state”. The big question is – what states are they moving to? The answer to that question is –…
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Published on January 21, 2023
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Category: Financial and taxes in retirement
January 20, 2023 — The end of the year presented several gifts to well off folks with substantial IRA, 401(k), or 403(b) balances. The biggest is that, thanks to the Secure 2.0 Act of 2022, the new age for taking Required Minimum Distributions (RMDs) from those accounts now begins at…
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Published on January 19, 2023
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Category: Best Retirement Towns and States
January 17, 2023 — The search for a safe place to retire is challenging, as the community of Rio Verde Hills just found out. Up until recently, it received its water from neighboring Scottsdale. But due to concerns that it wouldn’t have enough water for its own residents, Scottsdale cut…
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Published on January 16, 2023
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Category: Health and Wellness Issues
January 29, 2023 — If there was ever a good example of the phrase “Use it or lose it”, it would be how flexible you are. You might not do that great on this simple 5 part flexibility test, but the good news is that if you work at it,…
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Published on January 15, 2023
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Category: Adventurous retirement
Editor's note: Bill has been kind enough to write for Topretirements on other topics in the past, including the fascinating tale of his "Cleaning Out a Cluttered Victorian". This installment shares his adventures and lessons learned from driving his new all electric car all the way from Portland, Maine, to Key West, Florida . We think you will find it instructive, particularly if you, like your Editor, are considering buying an electric vehicle!
By Bill Carito
January 15, 2023. This past August, we took a leap of faith in the future and bought an all-electric Volkswagen Id.4 to replace our 2018 VW Tiguan. Why an all-electric? Why not a hybrid? After all, we are a one car family that would not be using this car solely for running errands around town, but also for our 15-18,000 miles per year traveling to see family and for our vacations, including our three-month stay in Key West, Florida.
Frankly? Some of it was about supporting new technology; some of it was a sense of now or never. But, for me, a big incentive was losing the internal combustion engine and all its complications. I’m sure this new tech will have its issues, but I’m going to trust that fewer moving parts means fewer potential mechanical problems.
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Published on January 14, 2023
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Category: Snowbirds
January 11, 2022 -- Millions of American retirees follow the example of their avian friends - they head south to snowbird when winter temperatures cool. Not all of them fly of course, about three times more drive than fly, and some take the Autotrain. According to a 2018 Topretirements survey of snowbird preferences, almost 60% said they are either "Extremely Likely" or "Likely" to be a snowbird in retirement. So if you are one of those who plans on going south for part of the winter, don't make these snowbirding mistakes.
Not reserving early enough. This is the starting impediment to becoming a snowbird. The best spots are usually reserved by current renters before they leave in the spring. So if you wait until late in the calendar year before you book, choices will be limited and prices higher.
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Published on January 10, 2023
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Category: Medicare
By Tom Cretella – CLU at Cretella and Belowsky January 9, 2023 — Medicare’s Open Enrollment Period began January 1. Medicare has plenty of acronyms: AEP, SEP, IEP – but the least used is the OEP or Open Enrollment Period. The OEP is a completely separate enrollment period running each…
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Published on January 8, 2023
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