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Prime

Ways to cut costs

during retirement

he average person will spend more than 50 years in
the employment sector. As retirement draws closer,

Tmany professionals begin to daydream about giving
up the commute and having more time to pursue their
personal interests.

Even if planning for retirement has been many years in
the making, it can take some time for a person to become
acclimated to having less income. According to data

from the Bureau of Labor Statistics, “older households,”
which are defined as those run by someone age 65 and
older, spent an average of $45,756 in 2016, or roughly

$3,800 a month. That’s roughly $1,000 less than the
monthly average spent by typical American households.
Housing, transportation, health care, and food are • Pare down on possessions. Take inventory of what you
some of the biggest bills retirees will have to account have and scale back where possible. If you are no longer

for. Aiming to have savings in addition to any other commuting to work, you may be able to become a one-car
household. Downsizing your residence can help seniors
retirement income or government subsidy coming in to avoid spending too much of their retirement time and
cover that amount is a step in the right direction. money maintaining their homes.

Retirees can make their money go further if they take
inventory of their spending and make some cuts where • Take advantage of senior discounts. Take advantage of
possible. the many discounts that are offered to seniors. Retirees can
usually save on restaurants, travel, groceries, and much more
• Know where your money is going. It’s impossible by simply shopping on specific days or verifying their age
to save without knowing what your expenses are each when checking out.
month. Many people are surprised to learn how much • Purchase less expensive life insurance. According
little things add up over the course of a month. For Cheapism, a site that advises consumers about how to be
example, spending $4 for a take-out coffee each day
can quickly become an expensive luxury. Add all more frugal, the chief purpose of life insurance is to replace
income to ensure the financial security of dependents in the
expenses and see where you can trim, especially if
The Morning Call there’s a deficit each month. event of death. Retirees may have no dependents and little
income. Therefore, a large life insurance policy may not be

necessary, especially if you’ve already set aside funds to
• Consider extra health care. In the United States,

Supplement Insurance plans to help reduce out-of-
| Medicare participants can choose Medicare cover funeral costs.
• Pay off a mortgage. Housing is many people’s most
Sunday, January 23, 2022 cover some of your health care costs. Supplemental substantial expense. Paying off a mortgage can free up more
pocket health care costs. Medicare Parts A and B only
money each month and allow retirees to spend their golden
insurance can cover some of the costs not covered by
years doing as they please.
original medicare, like copayments, deductibles and

reduce their monthly expenses.
12 coinsurance, according to AARP. As retirement nears, adults can employ various strategies to