2017 Editions

Is retirement still part of the American Dream?

Thankfully, the answer is yes for most of us. But it will require some planning on your part.

A study by the Economic Policy Institute showed that half the people on the cusp of retirement (ages 56 to 61) had a retirement account balance of less than $91,000. At a typical draw-down rate of about 4 percent per year, that equals around $303 a month in retirement income. That probably won’t get you where you want to go.

Slow, Steady Growth

To plan for a comfortable, successful retirement, follow a couple of ground rules. The first is that financial literacy is a lifelong pursuit. Do it right, and financial planning will be downright boring. Plain-vanilla strategies such as regular contributions, slow-and-steady growth and diversification are often most effective over the long term. It’s also important to get advice from trusted, neutral sources.

The second is to understand your future medical expenses. People often assume that Medicare covers everything, but it doesn’t. After the age of 65, the average couple will spend about $260,000 out of pocket on health care — including insurance and nursing home care. The problem is most households don’t have $260,000. That means that many households face the risk of impoverishment or ending up on Medicaid.

Retirement is changing, and planning for it is changing as well. This is no longer your grandparents’ retirement. Life expectancy is changing, and many people go back to work shortly after retiring. They realize that they retired from something, but not to something. Clients should think about what comes next for them.

If you’re wondering about what a comfortable retirement looks like for you, the right financial consultant can help. Specialized software takes into account inflation, taxes and other variables out of your control, and helps optimize retirement planning.

As you plan for retirement, it just might be the time to try to realize your lifelong dreams. You’ve put them off long enough; now you actually have the time. Great idea. But please be sure to follow the law when you do. There are some crazy laws on the books that just might put a damper on your plans.

BINGO, RABBITS AND A MUSTACHE PROBLEM

For example, if you love to play bingo, and just never had time before, don’t retire to North Carolina. It’s illegal to play bingo there for more than five hours in a row. Or, if you would rather sing when you move there, you’d better be really good. Singing off-key also is prohibited.

If you vacation in Wyoming, and like to take pictures, remember that it’s illegal to take a picture of a rabbit from January to April without a permit. In Idaho, you can eat all the potatoes you want, but never wear a fake mustache in a church.

Alaskan cruises are beautiful, and you may dream of a long vacation by sea and by land. However, if the weather proves to be a bit too cold for you, be careful if you stop at a bar for some warming spirits. You are not allowed to be drunk in a bar. And right here in Ohio, it’s illegal to get a fish drunk.

AND THERE’S MORE, OF COURSE

If you enjoy the holidays and wish they could last forever, don’t move to Maine. Decorations have to be removed and stored by Jan. 14. On the other side of the country, they don’t like folks with a sweet tooth; lollipops are banned in Washington.

Florida women might have their dreams dashed because unmarried females cannot parachute on Sundays. The need to protect women is somewhat understandable.

Each year when “life happens,” we’re reminded of the importance of life insurance.

You may recall the story of former NFL quarterback and now radio and TV sports broadcaster Boomer Esiason and the effects of having no life insurance.

Boomer was 7 when his mother died of cancer. She had no life insurance. His father was left to raise him and his two sisters alone.

Boomer related, “We lived paycheck to paycheck, but my dad did an incredible job taking care of our family. He taught me the true meaning of what it means to be a responsible dad.”

It was his father’s sacrifice that motivated Boomer to protect his family with life insurance. Boomer explained to an interviewer, “Life insurance is about protecting the future and the people you love, which is especially the case when you are caring for someone with special needs.”

Boomer’s oldest son, Gunnar, was diagnosed with cystic fibrosis at age 2.

DO YOU HAVE WHAT YOU NEED?

Life insurance can do some pretty amazing things for loved ones. It can buy time to grieve when clients utilize Final Expense Life Insurance, which takes care of funeral, burial and other end-of-life expenses. Life insurance also reduces stress on surviving family members and may provide financial security.

If you own an old policy, it may be time to review it for expiration dates, named beneficiaries and death benefits. Any policy written before 2006 needs reviewed. Those in the retirement planning business see policies every day that are underfunded, which means the policy is not going to be considered valid.

Do you remember the beneficiaries in all of your policies? With an out- dated policy, a beneficiary you want now might not be who is listed. That can cause strain for family members left behind.

After you review your life insurance policies, encourage your children and loved ones to get life insurance.

Visualization, done right, can be extremely powerful in achieving any goal. As you think about your goals for the New Year, consider using your imagination to see yourself already in possession of your goal.

Picture yourself with the healthy and fit body you desire, and literally feel what it is like to have it. You cannot achieve anything in your “outer world” until you first see it in your “inner world.”

IS VISUALIZATION REAL?

In one of the most well-known studies on creative visualization in sports, Russian scientists compared four groups of Olympic athletes in terms of their training schedules:

GROUP 1 had 100 percent physical training

GROUP 2 had 75 percent physical training with 25 percent mental training

GROUP 3 had 50 percent physical training with 50 percent mental training

GROUP 4 had 25 percent physical training with 75 percent mental training

The results showed that Group 4, with 75 percent of their time devoted to mental training, performed the best. The study showed that using mindfulness — actually focusing on mental images — can boost physical achievement.

Creative visualization is distinguished from normal daydreaming in a key manner. Visualization is done in the first person and the present tense, as if the visualized scene were unfolding all around you. Typical daydreaming is done in the third person and the future tense.

Using affirmations that begin with “I am so happy and grateful now that …” is an excellent way to begin programming your subconscious mind to move toward your goal.

Visualization is another tool that Olympic athletes use to get their minds in shape for competition. In this technique, athletes mentally rehearse exactly what they have to do to win. Sports psychologists say that visualization boosts athletes’ confidence by forcing them to picture themselves winning. It also helps them concentrate on their physical moves, rather than on distractions around them.

Ohio has made a significant change regarding homeowners who apply for Medicaid benefits for nursing home or assisted living care.

Until July 31, 2016, an unmarried homeowner who wanted Medicaid to pay for long-term care costs had 13 months to put his home up for sale. If the Medicaid applicant was married and the spouse still lived in the home, there was no obligation to sell.

That 13-month time period is gone. As part of the Aug. 1, 2016 change in rules, Ohio Medicaid rescinded the 13-month rule. Now, the unmarried applicant must decide to keep the house or to sell before applying for Medicaid.

THE RULES

If the person decides not to sell, he can choose to invoke Medicaid’s “intent to return home” condition. That means he is not required to sell the house before getting Medicaid coverage. The intent must be expressed in a written, signed statement. This exemption ends if he later establishes a “principal place of residence” elsewhere.

This new “principal place of residence” condition can jeopardize Medicaid coverage.

If someone has been in a nursing home or assisted living community for many months (not for rehabilitation purposes) it’s unlikely his home can still be called his principal place of residence.

If the person’s health isn’t likely to improve, the principal place of residence has probably become the nursing home or assisted liv- ing community. Even if the intent to return home is real, it may not be realistic. As a result, Ohio Medicaid may stop paying expenses for someone whose intent to return home is not realistic.

For now, it’s uncertain if Medicaid will challenge an applicant’s written statement of intent to return home. Upon renewal of Medicaid benefits, however, if he remains in the nursing home or assisted living community, Medicaid officials may rule the person’s house is no longer his “principal place of residence” because, by the time of the first renewal, he will have lived out of the house for at least a year.

With just over 10,000 Americans turning 65 each day, a new wave of the most educated, experienced generation of workers with vast amounts of knowledge is approaching traditional retirement age.

The Cleveland Foundation anticipates that in Cuyahoga County alone, between the years 2000 and 2050, the percentage of individuals age 50 and older is expected t increase 66 percent. At the same time, Americans are living and working longer than ever before.

People work for multiple reasons: they need the money, they love what they do or employers do not want to lose the institutional knowledge employees possess. With so many reasons to remain employed, no wonder encore careers have gained a foothold in Northeast Ohio.

WHY PURSUE AN ENCORE CAREER?

Having the ability to transfer both professional skills and sometimes personal skills or hobbies into a flexible part-time job can be rewarding. Skills can be parlayed into work for local nonprofit and government agencies that match social interests. Enjoy animals? The local animal shelter may need fundraising or marketing help. Did you work in education? A local nonprofit providing adult education programs may use your assistance in their resource library.

If you have been retired for an extended period of time and need to re-enter the workforce for financial reasons, networking can help you connect with other professionals.

COMMUNITY BENEFITS

Most nonprofits and governmental agencies depend on federal and state funding or private foundation support. That can mean lean budgets and even leaner staffing while struggling to acquire experienced staff to help build and sustain programs. A passionate and experienced encore employee can provide skills that have been put to the test on a day-to-day basis, helping to grow a business and its funding.

With years of real-world professional skills, encore employees also know how to develop and manage people.

If you’re ready to jump ship to a new job, there are plenty of ways to kick-start your journey.

You can find help locally and online. Grab a computer (and a cup of coffee) and start your brainstorming with online resources you can access at any time.

Have career options in mind but are not exactly sure what the job entails? Start with The Occupational Information Network at onetonline.org, a free database containing hundreds of occupations and their definitions.

FREE WORKSHOPS, ONLINE HELP

Now that you’ve narrowed your focus and done your research, it’s time to prepare for the job search, write a resume and sail through an interview. Try free, local workshops and events and go back online to guide you through the process.

Jim Ahern is director of Hudson Job Search, a nonprofit group that teaches clients how to find jobs.

“Many 50 and older job seekers are concerned that they will appear overqualified and therefore employers will see them as a flight risk if they are hired at any position lower than the one they last had,” Ahern says. “Resolving this issue can only be done by the 50-plus interviewee making their case for why the position is the one for them.”

Ahern says joining the online professional networking group LinkedIn is vital for job hunters.

CHECK THESE OUT:

Hudson Job Search invites mature job seekers to meetings on the first and third Mondays of each month at Christ Church Episcopal, 21 Aurora St., Hudson. hudsonjobsearch.org

Cuyahoga Community College (Tri-C) is offering workshops February through April. Topics include the following: Resumes that Get Results; Ace That Interview; New Job: Tips for Success; and Leveraging LinkedIn. Registration is required. tri-c.edu/careerservices, 216-987-4913

Many libraries offer basic computer and email courses, but most also add career-related workshops a few weeks in advance.

Debbi and Rick Sands’ lives are busy and fulfilling with a dose of fun thrown in to keep things interesting. Their jobs suit their interests and abilities.

Married for 37 years, the affable couple raised and launched two kids.

Rewarding? Sure.

Chance? Maybe.

The Sandses are a good example of people who have the confidence — and faith — to make mid-life career shifts. They’ve parlayed past jobs, current goals and an ongoing optimism into lives that work not only for themselves but for others, too.

BREAD AND MORE

Rick Sands is the kind of guy who doesn’t seem to be in a hurry. He gives off a mellow vibe that’s both unexpected and appealing — a vintage Volkswagen bus-owning sort of guy. In fact, he did have one, but sold it awhile back.

Rick and his wife, Debbi, own Great Harvest Bread Company in Stow in Summit County. Both worked hard to grow the popular franchise bakery into a must-visit stop for local bread lovers. These days, Rick is likely to be the one floating between the front counter and the ovens, offering up conversation and bread to customers. Baking bread and being a small business owner seems like a long way from his years working in warehouses and running forklifts.

Debbi, with an accounting and bookkeeping background, manages the bakery’s finances. More than a decade ago she transitioned away from daily bakery operations to focus on her own midlife career change: working as a Christian counselor.

Anyone who needs a nudge to make a mid-life job or career change would do well to take a lesson from the Sandses. They’ve been open to opportunities, willing to take risks and determined to make their work reach beyond the borders of Summit County.

Debbi grew up in Mentor and graduated from Lakeland Community College with an associate degree in business the same year she married Rick.