Better retirement income

You can increase your retirement income. Yes, it is possible. You can even have fun doing so. How do I know? Because I have done it and in the process have met many other seniors who are doing so too.

When I retired from full time work, I knew I would need additional retirement income if inflation picked up in a few years. (Just look at the increases in price of gas and home heating in the last year or so) Back in the 1970's I watched some retired friends adjust their living standards as inflation, unexpected illness or a large house repair threw their budget out of whack.

Those experiences taught me that unexpected events could trigger a need for more money. And when you are retired, that can be a problem.

There are three BIG ways to improve your finances at any age:

  • Earn more money
  • Reduce expenses
  • Find a way to 'get more for your money".

I hope you will bookmark this page so you can come back to it and read more about all three of these ideas. Sometimes a combination of strategies works better than relying on just one.

Earn more money

You can earn more money to improve your retirement income There are MANY ways to earn money in retirement. What many retirees do not realize is that some of these can be fun. Some provide new learning experiences. Others offer you an opportunity to share the knowledge, skill or passion you have acquired over they years .

.

If the truth be known, as a senior citizen have more options for earning income now than when you were employed. Why?

Your hours can more flexible because your time is yours. And since you are not building a career, you can afford to explore areas of work that were not part of your adult 'career track. If you have a lot of interests or if you know a particular field well, you may even work for yourself. Many senior citizens set up their own part time businesses - even at home. This is one area where the economy is growing and seniors are prime movers here.

Part time work can be energizing as well as adding to your retirement income. Read more at:

Reducing your expenses - without reducing your quality of life

  • Many people make small changes in their daily routine during the first years of retirement. Still many retirees keep buying the same goods and services as when they were working - even if they no longer need them. Habits can be strong! One way to reduce expenses is to review your daily and weekly expenses. Take out your last 3 credit card bills and you last 3 months of checks. Stop paying for things that you no longer need.
  • Another way to improve your retirement income is to take senior discounts.
advantage of a recent trend in corporate marketing. There are 100's of companies that want you to become their regular customer. They want this so much that they offer discounts of 10 - 30% on their goods and services to retirees, pensioners or senior citizens.

BUT many  companies will not give the discount unless you ask. A simple, "Do you offer any discount for seniors (pensioners, veterans etc.)", is all you need to say to a sales clerk. Even if they say, "No", you have lost nothing by asking. Just a smile and "I thought I would ask." covers any awkwardness. But if they say, "YES", you have saved some money. NOTE: a few companies want you to get a company card to use for their discounts. It is often worth filling out the paper work - especially if you shop at the store fairly often.

  • You can save money on driving by buying the most efficient fuel cars. Here is link to a government site that shows relative fuel economy on cars.

    • The future of getting more for your money

    All around the country older adults are changing the economy. As I get more pages written up on this new, grass roots movement, I shall to this page.

    I hope you will book mark this page or subscribe to our RSS feed (See the navigation bar on the left). Or if you want to keep up with the latest in Anti-aging news, I offer an Anti-Aging newsletter each month.

    Why not let me do the research and send you the latest news each month? There is no cost. Just click on Subscribe to: Anti-Aging Tips Click here for Retirement advice articles

    Go to HOME

    Home | Privacy | Financial Disclosure | Donate