Articles Posted in Retirement

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Joker01Addiction, as many Baby Boomers and seasoned citizens have learned, comes in all shapes and sizes. While alcohol and drug dependencies are usually at the top of the list of debilitating and potentially life-threatening problems, other habits and obsessions can take their toll on the unsuspecting.

Fortunately, seniors and older Baby Boomers have generally beaten the odds and made it to their golden years with only a few bumps and bruises. But believing one can beat the odds may actually prove to be the downfall of some people as the years pile on.

What we’re talking about spells trouble… with a capital “T” and that rhymes with “G” and that stands for gambling. While we make light of this here, there is no humor in the way in which some aging Boomers and senior citizens can find themselves caught in the downward spiral of a serious gambling addiction. Perhaps you’ve seen the public service messages on TV promoting help for gamblers of all stripes, but it’s those individuals living on fixed incomes with little or no free cash available to feed a gambling addiction who can be truly hit the hardest. Continue reading →

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Whether you’re a newly-minted senior or one of the many longstanding “seasoned citizens,” Baby Boomers and older folks alike certainly possess a wealth of choice and experience when it comes to treating their grandkids to a good time. As a late-stage Boomer, I can recall the days when I and my siblings were just kids in elementary school going about our tiny lives amid the hazy backdrop of the 1960s.

Remembering those carefree days, filled with walking to and from school, having kickball games at recess, taking in the smells of hot lunches in the cafeteria and the sounds of rustling lunch bags and clanking Daniel Boone, Lost in Space and Barbie-themed lunch boxes, we had few if any concerns in the world.

Now, time can be a rather abstract concept to a grade school kid, but by fourth grade the calendar was a concrete thing to me; a tangible representation of the future, which I and my sisters would use to plan and contemplate distant, yet important events.

Some of the more important mileposts during our “kid-year” were those precious visits from our grandparents. Inevitably, once an arrival date had been established, we would keep count of the days until Nan and Pop would come into town for one of those longed-awaited visits. Usually coinciding with birthdays, holidays and, of course, summer vacation; those were the times for which we truly lived. Continue reading →

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For many, the next bit of news should not come as any great revelation, especially when considering the financial and housing meltdown of recent memory. But here’s the shocking bottom-line assessment: Baby Boomers’ nest eggs are sorely lacking these days.

It’s safe to say that only a very few would have been completely blind-sided by this stunning discovery. And for those who may have passed out from the information, hopefully there are some smelling salts in your medicine chest….

So what of this latest development? Well, economists and other financial experts estimate that the average Boomer — that is, anyone born between 1946 and 1964 — is about $500K short on his or her retirement savings goal. In a nutshell, the outlook for many Baby Boomers and younger seniors seems quite dim when it comes to kicking back and enjoying their golden years. But perhaps you already knew that.

Many Would-be Retirees Now in Survival Mode

For a large number of people, staying in the workforce longer, but likely working just as hard as they did in their younger days, seems to be the standard course of action for those looking not only to shore up an ailing savings account, but also interested in plain old survival. But according to the experts, savings is not the only the issue; there’s debt out there, and apparently lots of it. Continue reading →