Skip to main content
Does Your Portfolio's Risk Level Fit You?         360-336-6527      

Sound Financial Planning, Inc

  • Home
  • About 
    • Overview
    • Team: Bill Morrissey
    • Team: Tammy Prouty
    • Team: Sheryl Jakel
    • Our Process
  • Services 
    • Overview
    • Financial Life Planning
    • Investment Management
    • Retirement Planning
    • Education Planning
    • Estate Planning
    • Life Transitions
    • Retirement Wellness
    • Everplans
  • Resources 
    • Useful Websites & Tools
    • Calculator Library
    • Video Library
  • Clients 
    • Client Login
    • Become a Client
  • Contact
  • Blog

 

Will you end up alone, out-of-touch, bored, or broken in retirement because you don't have your priorities straight?

Take the quiz!

 

    You are here

  1. Home
  2. Blogs
  3. One Couple, Two Different Retirements

One Couple, Two Different Retirements

Submitted by Sound Financial Planning, Inc on June 6th, 2017

One Couple, Two Different RetirementsWhen you see online ads or TV commercials about retirement planning, do they ever show baby boomer couples arguing? No. After all, retirement planning is about the pursuit of a happy outcome – a fun and emotionally rewarding “second act” that spouses and partners can share.
   
Realizing that goal takes communication. As you approach retirement, you may not be who you were at 30 or 50. You and your significant other may want different daily lives once you retire. This is a frequently ignored reality in retirement planning. In preparing to retire, you might want to consider your individual preferences and differences when it comes to these factors:
 
How you spend your days. What does a good day in retirement look like to you? What does it look like for your spouse or partner?

Social engagement. How much time do each of you want to spend working, volunteering, or socializing? Your preferences may differ.

Your health. If you contend with serious health issues, you may define a “good day” in retirement much differently than your spouse or partner does. 
  
Your spending. Where will your retirement income go? What will it be spent on besides basic living expenses? Your discretionary spending priorities and those of your spouse could vary. If they vary widely, this could be the source of some drama.
    
Your time alone. Some couples build businesses together or work in the same office or practice for years; others spend just a few hours per day around each other for decades. In retirement, you will likely be around each other for more hours of the day than when you worked. You will need to decide how much “me time” you need. 
    
Your roles. Have you done most of the cleaning around the house? Or tackled most of the home improvement projects? Should it remain that way in retirement? 
  
To some extent, your spouse or partner’s vision of retirement will vary from yours. It could vary 1%, or it could vary 99%, but some variance is almost certain. It need not breed discord so long as you recognize the following three truths.
   
Some of your shared retirement savings will be used to fulfill individual dreams. The money you have saved and invested will provide financial support for you as a couple, but you also must concede that some of those dollars will be spent relative to each other’s individual goals, passions, and pursuits. The same applies for your retirement income.

You will not automatically see money the same way. Those online ads and TV commercials would have you believe that some kind of magic happens once retirement starts, leaving every retired couple to walk along the beach smiling, laughing, and in total agreement about their future. Yes, retired couples do disagree about money; they also learn to overcome those disagreements through understanding and compromise.   

Many things are more valuable than money in retirement. Time is probably your most valuable asset, and your health and relationships are close behind. So, whether your retirement savings falls short of or far exceeds the median baby boomer amount of $147,000 (as identified last year by the Transamerica Center for Retirement Studies), keep what matters most in mind.1

 

1 - forbes.com/sites/forbesfinancecouncil/2017/05/15/retirement-its-not-as-simple-as-it-used-to-be/ [5/15/17] 

Tags:
  • Retirement

Recent Blog Posts

  • How to Organize Your Financial Life
  • When Should You Retire?
  • What You Need to Know About Long-Term Care Insurance

Archived Blog

  • December 2019 (1)
  • November 2019 (2)
  • October 2019 (2)
  • September 2019 (2)
  • August 2019 (3)
  • July 2019 (2)
  • June 2019 (3)
  • May 2019 (9)
  • April 2019 (9)
  • February 2019 (1)
  • January 2019 (2)
  • November 2018 (1)
  •  
  • 1 of 3
  • ››

Categories

  • 529 plan (1)
  • Aging (1)
  • Alzheimer's (1)
  • beneficiary (1)
  • caregiver (2)
  • charitable giving (1)
  • charity (3)
  • children (2)
  • College (1)
  • college expenses (1)
  • college savings (1)
  • College Savings Plan (1)
  • college student (1)
  • cost (1)
  • credit score (1)
  • cybercrime (1)
  • Decisions (1)
  • dementia (1)
  • donation (1)
  • durable power of attorney (1)
  • Emotions (1)
  • employee assistance programs (1)
  • employee stock options (1)
  • equity (1)
  • ESA (1)
  • estate planning (1)
  • executor (1)
  • finance (1)
  • finances (2)
  • Financial Literacy (1)
  • financial stress (1)
  • full retirement age (1)
  • giving (2)
  • goals (1)
  • guardian (1)
  • health (1)
  • health care spending account (1)
  • health insurance (1)
  • Healthcare (1)
  • healthy habits (1)
  • high school student (1)
  • homeowner (1)
  • HUD (1)
  • identity theft (1)
  • Insurance (1)
  • investing (1)
  • life expectancy (1)
  • living will (1)
  • longevity (1)
  • ltc insurance (1)
  • Money (1)
  • money management (1)
  • money worries (1)
  • motivation (1)
  • Newsletter (4)
  • old age (1)
  • personal data theft (1)
  • personal finance (2)
  • planning (1)
  • purpose (1)
  • renewable energy (1)
  • required minimum distribution (1)
  • retire (2)
  • Retirement (4)
  • retirement age (1)
  • retirement benefits (1)
  • retirement savings (1)
  • revocable living trust (1)
  • rmd (1)
  • Savings (4)
  • scholarships (1)
  • self-care (1)
  • social security (2)
  • solar energy (1)
  • spousal benefits (1)
  • stress (1)
  • student loans (1)
  • survivor benefits (1)
  • tax deduction (1)
  • time management (1)
  • Tuition (2)
  • will (1)
  • worry (1)

Book a Meeting

Tell a Friend

Contact Us

Don't hesitate to get in touch with us.

Where to Find Us

1111 Cleveland Avenue, Suite 101, Mt. Vernon, Washington 98273

(360) 336-6527 | Get Directions

650 Mullis St. Suite 101, PO Box 1610, Friday Harbor, Washington 98250

(360) 378-3022 | Get Directions

info@soundfinancialplanning.net

   

Bill and Tammy are both CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER® professionalsBill Morrissey and Tammy Prouty are NAPFA-Registered Financial Advisors

Quick Message

  • Sitemap
  • Legal, privacy, copyright and trademark information

All written content is for informational purposes only and does not constitute a complete description of our investment services or performance. This web-site is not a solicitation or offer to sell fee-only financial planning and investment advisory services except in states where we are registered or where an exemption or exclusion from such registration exists. Sound Financial Planning Inc. is a Registered Investment Advisor with the Washington State Securities Division. Information presented on this site is obtained from sources believed to be reliable, but we do not warrant or guarantee the timeliness or accuracy of any information posted on this or any linked web-site. Nothing on this web-site should imply that past results are an indication of future performance. Opinions expressed are those of Sound Financial Planning, Inc.

© 2019 Sound Financial Planning, Inc. All rights reserved.

Website Design For Financial Services Professionals