The big 5-0 is a major life milestone. It's time to get really serious about your financial future.
Financial advisor Richard Rosso, of Clarity Financial, says if you haven't started saving yet, it is not too late, but you will need to sock away much more to make up for lost years. Rosso said you need to do these five things:
- Assess your current situation.
Do you still have kids you need to put through college?
How much have you saved for retirement?
- Increase your savings.
You should save between 25-30 percent of your gross income for retirement.
- Downsize to help with savings.
Rosso says many of his clients move into smaller homes, drive their older cars longer and spend less on discretionary items like travel and dining out.
- Do not take on new debt.
- Maximize your benefits at work.
Make sure you are contributing to any 401 9(k), flexible spending accounts and health care savings accounts to take advantage of pretax savings.