Folks make mistakes and from time to time we might learn from them assuming it is not too late. Should you find a rather serious planning mistake after you’ve picked up your last check, your retirement years are likely to suffer. Fortunately , forewarned is forearmed, meaning becoming educated about common retirement mistakes will aid in avoiding them in times to come.

It’s a mistake to put off retirement planning:

In the opinion of the Employee Benefits Research Institute, 60% of today’s employed workers have not determined how much they’ll need to save for their retirement needs which is the first step in retirement planning. It is a rather complicated process, and the assistance of a financial planner can be useful when making a step by step program which will take you to your goal. Take time to review asset allotment, monitor investment performance, and make changes as needed. Though it may not be convenient, failing to plan will lead on to missed opportunities, lost tax benefits, and less than golden retirement years.

It is a mistake to believe your savings are safe:

In the past, financial advisors often told their senior clients to put 60% of their savings in bonds and 40% in stocks, with a switch to 80% bonds upon retirement. Their logic was to preserve pension savings by reducing investment risk. With longer life expectancies, many view this advice as invalid. Inflation, growing faster than the modest returns of so-called safe investments, will ultimately eat away at your savings and cut back your purchasing power.

Today counsellors endorse keeping the capability for growth in your portfolio up to and through retirement. A mixture of products that will make you a real rate of return after inflation and taxes should raise your purchasing power over a period or at a minimum keep it steady while still reducing risk. Balance should be sought between investment security and making sure you have plenty of savings through your retirement.

It is a mistake to be excessively generous:

If you’re among the fortunate few that think they have masses of retirement savings, you could be open to share your wealth with your family before you retire. While your kids will surely value a paid trip through college or your help purchasing their first house, giving away assets now can put you in an awkward situation later . Nobody knows with certainty what the future holds. You’ll live far longer than anticipated. You may require pricey long-term medical care. If you’ve been too liberal with your savings, you may find yourself without. Always take the longer view whenever using your savings and be mindful of the unforeseeable future.

It's a mistake to belittle your budget needs:

Will you actually spend considerably less than you do now during your retirement years? In the past, a rule among planners was to expect post-retirement expenditures to be about 80 percent of your present ones. But this isn’t always the situation. While you may not be commuting to the office every day, or laying out cash on work lunches, travel and leisure activities can cost even more. Plus, certain costs like life insurance, health-care premiums, and co-payments are likely to become more expensive. Also, Medicare doesn’t cover things like dental, vision, hearing or skilled nursing costs.

As you consider what you need for retirement, your future is at risk from your happiness to your economic security. Avoiding mistakes will help you create a more optimistic future. Spend some time to discuss your situation with a fee based certified financial planner making sure they earn no commissions on their guidance or selling you financial products. Also be certain to put some of your savings to work using info and education such as what’s offered bySummerland Associates to help you attain your goals. Making these little changes as soon as possible will offer big benefits in your retirement years.

John A. Larsen, the Managing Director of Summerland Associates, LLC, has worked in financial services for 20+ years starting in banking. John has held Series 7, 63, and insurance licenses working with high net worth clients to craft better portfolios. John has spent the last 10+ years refining advanced investment ideas into a series of applied methods that drive the Summerland Alerts. More articles can be found on Summerland Associates website or via Wealth Building Ideas, published for iPads.