Are There Retirement Programs That Can Help You with Your Life Plan?

If you are ready to begin—or have already begun—your retirement planning, you may be interested to know that there are many types of retirement programs, as well as countless web resources, designed to help you decide how, when, and where to spend the rest of your life.

Retirement Planning and Financial Planning.

While the financial aspects of retirement planning pose challenges for most people, today's economic environment makes it even more important to do the things to make sure that you have the funds to maintain the lifestyle you have envisioned. A survey conducted by Denver-based financial planning and investment advisory firm Brown & Tedstrom found that a majority of respondents said their primary retirement concern is running out of money. Read more about the survey at:
www.earthtimes.org/articles/show/news_press_release,19016.shtml.

"One of the first steps in mapping out a plan is to develop a checklist to identify your strengths and address any gaps you might have to help ensure a successful retirement," says Mark Brown, Brown & Tedstrom managing partner.

To do this, you may need the services of a financial planner. At www.aarp.org, you can find plenty of good advice regarding how to determine if you need a financial planner and how to find one that is right for you, including links to help you in your search.

Need Help in Deciding When to Retire?

The decision of when to retire may not be one decision but a series of decisions and calculations. Considerations include anticipated expenses, income sources, and how long you need your retirement savings to last. You also need to think about your life expectancy and health, and when you want to begin drawing on your Social Security or pension benefits and retirement savings.

The Social Security Administration offers a retirement guide that helps you find your retirement age and provides benefit calculators that enable you to examine the soundness of individual retirement programs based on different retirement ages and future earnings amounts (www.ssa.gov/retire2/).

Best Places to Retire? You Might Begin with Western North Carolina.

How do you choose the ideal place to retire? There are a number of factors to consider. There are the practical, such as affordable housing, proximity to health care, and ease of getting around. Then there are the more emotional, such as safety, sense of community, and access to cultural and recreational activities. According to www.topretirements.com, "Asheville, North Carolina, remains the runaway favorite dream retirement town," receiving half-again more web visits than second-place Sarasota, Florida.

Retirement Programs Can Promote Effective Planning.

To help ensure the kind of retirement you have always dreamed of, consider one of the nation's premier retirement programs. Paths to Creative Retirement, offered by the North Carolina Center for Creative Retirement, is a program of the University of North Carolina at Asheville (UNCA). It can help you with your retirement planning, offering senior seminars on when, where, and how to have creative, satisfying retirement. For details, visit our Retirement Program page.

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