BOSTON, Mass. — Millions of Americans are set to turn 65 this year and are poised for retirement. Even as concerns about inflation and rising costs of living continue, many experts say there's no reason to panic or be overly concerned about being financially stable in your golden years.
"It's a good time to recalibrate and look at how you are allocating money," said Todd Steen who teaches economics at Hope College in Michigan.
Even though inflationary rates continue to remain high, most financial experts say now is actually the time to pour more money into your retirement account — since the cost of investing in index funds is fairly low.
"Sometimes they say when it feels the worst to be putting money into the market that's the best time to invest," explained Jane Delashmutt O’Mara, a senior portfolio manager at FBB Capital Partners in Bethesda, Maryland.
If there's a positive to this inflationary period we're in, it's that Americans are no longer setting their retirement plans on auto-drive.
"I think the vast majority of Americans don't check their account balances on a daily basis," said John Scott with the Pew Research Center.
But if you are retiring within the next two years here are some things financial planners say to consider:
- Don't pay off any fixed-rate loans if your interest rates are low
- Postpone retiring even for six months to a year
- Don't withdraw from Social Security early
If your retirement plans are in the next 10-20 years:
- Put as much as you can into index funds and let that money grow over time.
- Look for higher rates of interest on saving accounts to maximize money while it sits.
- Don't pull money from retirement accounts early
