JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — We’ve got three experts talking retirement.
Kendal Cann, and actual financial planner has gotten many people to their retirement dreams.
Then there are the guys who’ve actually lived that life and done it: Tim and Mike, who both took different paths to retirement.
"I started very early, lucky to be married to a woman who is very thrifty,” Tim said.
“If you're young, you’re out there in the military or a regular job, start paying yourself now, put aside money,” Mike said.
There are lots of things you can find on Google, but Kendal has some tips that you may not find online, and may sound like tough love.
Obviously, we've all been told to start early. But she says some people are going to need to find places to cut.
Think about ditching the car, she says.
“Getting a bike leads to a more active lifestyle and you can save thousands leading up to retirement or into retirement,” she said.
Cann also says you may need to open a second or third retirement account. The one your employer offers may not be enough on its own.
“The most successful people I know are saving 20% of their income," she said.
Yes, 20% sounds like a ton of money, because it is.
But she says your employer-matched contribution counts toward that amount.
For instance, if your company matches 6% toward your retirement account, and you're putting in 6%, then that obviously adds up to 12%.
She says you'll need to dig deep and find another 8% to put into an account like a Roth IRA.
That would be a personal contribution of 14%.
Also, many financial experts echo this sentiment: Don’t count on Social Security.
Sure it’s there now, but no one knows the future of that government program. And why hang your hat on an unknown?
The goal financial experts suggest is to have enough saved to pay yourself 80% of your income each year of retirement.
"You've got to have a budget and a plan," Tim said. "And you have to have buy in from your spouse."
Another financial hurdle to jump over, that can really help in retirement is to have as much if not all debt paid off.
But Cann says there's more to planning for your retirement dreams than just money.
There's a philosophical component to this as well, she says. Make sure that you have things to do, and to get excited about after you've left the career you've spent a lifetime busy with.
“I tell people this all the time, people should not retire unless you have plans," she said. "You have to have something that you're passionate about ready to go when you retire, something you have to look forward to.”