Read This Before You Decide to Retire
Choosing to retire is one of the biggest financial decisions you'll ever make. Giving up your salary means having to live from other sources of income, and if you haven't planned extensively, then you might not even be aware of the resources at your disposal, let alone how much money they might provide toward your support. By considering the following questions, you'll be in a much better situation to decide whether now's the right time to take your gold watch and end your career.
One of the most important issues that would-be retirees need to address is how they intend to cover their healthcare expenses. If you've had health insurance coverage at work, then quitting your job means giving up that coverage. Those who wait until age 65 can generally qualify for Medicare, which goes a long way toward covering healthcare expenses for retirees. If you're thinking about retiring earlier, then you'll need to know how to bridge the time gap before Medicare kicks in.
If you're married and your spouse is still working, then you might be eligible for coverage under your spouse's group health plan. Continuation coverage under COBRA can also be an option to cover short periods of 18 months or less, but you'll have to pay the full monthly cost of insurance yourself -- not just the employee portion that you used to pay when you were still working. That can be shockingly expensive if you're not prepared for it. Other alternatives include marketplace coverage under the Affordable Care Act, but with healthcare legislation in limbo, it's dangerous to assume that such coverage will be there for you as long as you need it.
Source: Fool.com
