Retiring Baby Boomers:
Senior Living in San Diego
You’ve toiled 35 years in the workforce, and you can almost taste it: retirement is right around the corner, and you already have some great plans for your days that are about to be blown wide open – completely devoid of work schedules, PTO banks and late nights at the office. This is the case for most Baby Boomers in the area, who are ready and eager to move beyond their career days in favor of passing the rest of their time enjoying senior living in San Diego. However, as many come to find out all too quickly, retirement isn’t all it’s cracked up to be unless you’ve planned accordingly.
This, obviously, takes finances into account, but there’s much more to consider before you throw in your work towel and lounge by the pool for days on end. Millennials have done a fantastic job living life to the fullest, so don’t hesitate to look to them for some tips on how you can be happy and keep everyone around you happy in retirement.
Senior Living in San Diego – Plan, Plan, Plan
Unfortunately, it’s not quite as easy to stop working as one would think. Sure, the thought of a few months off is relatively easy to swallow for most, but ultimately you’ll be better off if you have a plan for your empty schedule. Why? Boredom is often the culprit for miserable days well into retirement years. If it’s not boredom, it’s conflict with your spouse who envisions your retirement years together in a completely different way. If it’s not conflict, it’s a lack of financial freedom, and if it’s not a lack of financial freedom, it’s loneliness. So… what are you planning for? What will senior living in San Diego bring to you? Take some time the years before you retire to proactively meet these issues before they take you by surprise when you hang up your work hat.
Plan to Communicate Before Retiring to San Diego Senior Housing
Communication with your spouse is key to ensuring a happy retirement for senior San Diego home owners. Some would even say that over-communication is a great practice when you’re approaching retirement. Why over-communicate, though? Chances are you’ve got life together down pat by now – you’ve braved the brazen years of your twenties, raised children together, encountered a few of life’s happiest and saddest moments together, and over the years you’ve slipped into a rather nice routine of work, life, and balance.
Retirement should be an easy slip into a blissful future together, right? If you think back, you might remember a time where life wasn’t so easy; you were still learning about each other, figuring out how to balance out each other’s interests in light of your own. Retirement can bring back this conflict fiercely if there’s a lack of communication. It’s important to bear in mind that with all of this new free time, you and your spouse are likely to have ideas on how to spend it, and they likely don’t agree completely. You want to lounge, she wants to travel; you want to golf with your buddies, and she wants to spend time with the family. Communicate up front about what you’d each like to do with your free time, and even if it feels like over-communicating, it’ll ensure that conflict isn’t a problem for you in retirement.
Baby Boomers Selling their Homes – Plan for Financial Freedom
Part one of planning for financial freedom for a senior living in San Diego, or even baby boomers selling their homes is not retiring too early! Collecting that social security check too soon is a surefire way to short yourself on income. Find out the age you’re allowed to retire fully – this will largely depend on the year you were born, and hold out if you can. Next, budget, budget, budget. Many go into their retirement years with no boundaries in terms of spending. Some hardworking Baby Boomers are susceptible to a feeling of entitlement when they retire, which gets many in trouble.
You did work hard all those years, and it would be nice to travel the globe, but can you afford it based on your budget? Don’t swipe the card and spend the money without working it all out first; that might work out at first, but make a devastating turn in the long run. Making a budget and sticking to it is a pivotal part of living wisely in retirement. In addition, though it may go against your grain to take a risk, don’t be so conservative in those investments. Take advantage of the resources that sit in front of you: apps, advisors, the Internet, and play the stock game in a way where there might be a greater return for an elevated risk.
On the subject of technology, don’t forget to have fun with it! There’s a lot to learn, and as you’re playing around, learning to use apps, you’re probably going to find that there are actually a few ways to make your life easier. Online banking, shopping, and a plethora of other tasks can be completed from the screen of your smartphone or from your home computer. The retired life is not only fun; it can be easy.
Plan to Be Independent for Senior San Diego Home Owners
Gone are the days of needing a heap of money and a financial advisor to make magic happen. The Internet is a wealth of information; apps are accessible and many are free… there’s no reason you should have to rely on someone else, like an advisor, to live retirement to the fullest. As it so happens, many baby boomers rely on others to advise them on things like money, technology and entertainment; it’s not that they can’t do it, it’s that sometimes the interest to learn new tools dies down when you already have so many tools in the tool belt. As a senior San Diego home owner with twenty to thirty years ahead of you, staying up to date on those resources will be freeing and empowering. Now’s the time to take advantage of those tools that will enrich your lifestyle as a senior living in San Diego tremendously!
Plan to Get a Job and Obtain the San Diego Senior Housing Lifestyle
Lastly, though you’re almost retired and your career is a thing of the past, don’t stop pursuing your dreams. Maybe now’s the time to start that business with your child that you’ve always talked about starting together; you have the time, so why not? Rest assured, no matter what your age, any instance of pursuing your passion – though sometimes risky – cannot be called a waste. Maybe you’re dream job is the one that you just retired from, and though you know that chapter is closed, you still crave a work culture. Just because you’re retired and someone living in San Diego senior housing doesn’t mean you can’t work; and just because you work doesn’t mean it has to be career focused.
Companies all over employ people part time and flexibly to keep everyone happy. So, maybe in working your budget, you find that a little extra spending money every month would be helpful. Maybe you’re toying with the idea of going back to work a year or two into retirement out of sheer boredom, but you’ve grown accustomed to the flexibility of life in retirement. Maybe you’re lonely and you miss that daily interaction with colleagues, coworkers, and clients. Just because you worked forty years as an attorney doesn’t mean you’re overqualified for a job with Uber, for example, or as a part time content producer for a local law firm. In fact, a job like that may be just the mental stimulation, challenge, or financial boost you need.
As a senior living in San Diego, when it comes right down to it, you have some challenges to overcome and a new life to adjust to. Today, seniors aren’t just living in their old houses, they’re either buying new homes or moving into retirement communities to bookend their lives with some brand-new memories. This is a new start for you; just make sure you not only get the home you want (if you plan to move), but that you follow the steps we mentioned above in order to keep your life together long into your retirement years.
Call me or send me an email, I’ll be happy to help you sell your home when you are ready.
Call 726-999-0566