Consumer Reports (March 2013) says the three keys to a great retirement are:
- Set money boundaries
- Address your housing situation well before retirement
- Plan for hobbies or a second career to ease the transition
Money boundaries refers not only to day-to-day spending, but more importantly to family money issues: support for adult children and aging parents.
Undesirable housing can become a big negative for people in retirement—they report feeling stuck. The longer they wait to address it, the harder it becomes.
Hobbies or a second career are especially important for those whose identity is strongly derived from their work. That loss of identity was a key dissatisfier, and hobbies or a second career made people much happier. The article advises thinking ahead to make that transition.
As a financial planner, I think it’s interesting that only one of these keys related directly to money. but the other two might require funding, depending on your decisions. All three require thinking and planning in advance.