What Now? How To Address Retirement In 2021...

I recently had the opportunity to speak with one of the retirement industry's leading experts and teachers -- Tom Hegna.

Tom's teachings are based on science and math -- which are not always aligned with popular advice. He's the author of several different books and hosted the PBS special "Don't Worry Retire Happy."

During our conversation, we really dug into four things you can do right now to address your retirement and get it on track in 2021.

So, with no further ado, here are the 4 things you should be looking at to get your retirement on track this year.

1. Most people are very concerned about outliving their money. So, you need to cover your basic living expenses in retirement with guaranteed lifetime income. 

What is guaranteed lifetime income?

It's the amount of money you will get on a monthly basis from Social Security and/or your Pension and/or a Lifetime Income Annuity. 

If you're not clear about how much money you will have coming in on a monthly basis, you need to figure that out or have your financial professional help you. 

We've been seeing a lot of people overestimate the amount of money they will actually be getting from their pensions and retirement accounts which causes them to have an income gap that they will need to cover.

Knowing what those numbers look like before your retire is critical to the success of your retirement.

2. Once your basic living expenses are covered you need to optimize the rest of your portfolio to protect yourself from rising inflation. 

Depending on your individual situation, there are a number of different ways to do this and it's something your financial professional can help you with.

3. You need to have a plan in place for Long-Term Care.

Most people think long-term care insurance is too expensive. And, it is expensive.

However, with the cost of most long-term care facilities hovering between $8,000 - $10,000 per month depending on the type of care and their location, you don't want to be in a position of having to figure out how to pay for long-term care on your own.

There are several different types of Long-Term Care options available that address different financial and health situations. And, it's best to work with a professional who can help you determine which one will work best for your individual circumstances.

4.  Don't plan on leaving any money to your kids! You need to leave your kids life insurance. It's the best way to give them a tax-free inheritance for pennies on the dollar.

You need to use and spend your money intentionally so you are living your definition of a rich life in retirement. Take the time to model several different planning scenarios or set up an appointment with your retirement professional to see how doing this could benefit you.