Top 5 Tips for Planning Retirement at Home
(NC) Most of us want to continue living independently when we retire. In fact, an RBC survey found that 61 per cent of working Canadians aged 50 plus* expect to stay in their current home and 33 per cent plan on downsizing. Only six per cent plan on relocating to a retirement community.
Hilary Farr, a Canadian designer, says that regardless of where you live in retirement, your home should continue to meet your lifestyle needs over time.
Here are Farr’s top five tips:
• Consider how close you want to live to family and friends.
• Anticipate time and costs you’ll likely require for home maintenance.
• Ensure you have easy access to healthcare, activities, shopping, entertainment.
• Check how well your home will support accessibility and mobility for your later years.
• Think about how you’ll want to use your home – as a snug retreat, a base to travel from, a gathering spot for family and friends?
“Planning your home in retirement is much like the process of designing a home from scratch,” adds Farr. “Couples must get on the same page early to ensure that their desires and practical needs are taken into consideration.”
She suggests each partner start by listing their individual priorities, then compare. Where priorities differ from each other’s, a retirement designer can help to create a shared plan that you both agree on. More tools are available at www.retirementdesigners.ca.
*aged 50-75; $100,000-$999,999 in investable household assets
www.newscanada.com
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