There are many factors that compete for your attention when it comes to deciding where you want to retire. You probably consider the climate, recreational amenities, cost of living, safety, and tax rates. Being close to your family and friends may be the most important factor for you. Even if you’re pretty sure you want…
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[This article is an excerpt from my book, The Quest for Retirement Utopia: How to Find the Retirement Spot That’s Right for You.] When you start thinking seriously about where you want to retire, there are dozens of factors you can consider. The number of criteria that your ideal retirement destination should ideally meet can…
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A lot of people, both retirees and those who are still working, enjoy vacationing on cruise ships. I have taken ten cruises that have carried me to Europe (five times), the southern Caribbean, Alaska, Hawaii, Tahiti, South America, and New Zealand/Australia. I have enjoyed them all immensely, especially the last three. Occasionally, a meme appears…
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If you could live anywhere in the world, where would you choose? For now, assume that cost is not a factor and you could afford to live wherever you want. Hopefully you have at least one place in mind, and maybe several. Now for the bigger question: Why? What characteristics of the place(s) you thought…
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When I turned 62, I celebrated by filing the paperwork to start receiving my Social Security benefits. This goes against the advice offered by the vast majority of professional advisers. Almost universally, financial advisers recommend delaying your benefits for as long as you can. Yet I have analyzed the numbers and pondered the non-financial aspects…
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Regardless of whether or not you embrace the practice of making new year’s resolutions, the start of each new year presents an opportunity to reflect upon what went well and not so well during the past year. Of course, any time is a good time to assess your life in its current state and make…
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What is your definition of a successful retirement? Obviously, there is no one-size-fits-all answer. Nor is there a right or wrong answer, although you could say that the best answer is a thought-out, well-defined answer that’s right for you, and the worst answer is no answer at all. Trying to define a successful retirement is…
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There’s a buffet restaurant a few miles from our home called Pacific Seafood Buffet. Most of the food is Asian, and the primary draw for us is the opportunity to eat all the sushi we care to eat for one price. Of course, there are a lot of other good dishes there too: tempura vegetables,…
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For many people, being retired doesn’t necessarily mean never working again. A growing number of retirees are choosing to start their own business. According to the Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation, a leading researcher on entrepreneurship, more businesses are started by people ages 55 to 64 than by those under 25. While it is often difficult for…
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Your Retirement Has Changed – Perhaps For the Better
A couple weeks ago (mid-May, 2020), I was contacted by a writer for MarketWatch who was working on an article about “retiree resentment.” He was seeking input from experts on how retirees can reframe their resentment in a positive, proactive way. In order to give him the best information I could, I asked Retire Fabulously!…
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