At age 55 and above, you assume the status of a senior citizen. You will probably be retired and your source of income will also drop. The headache is always how to make do with the money you get from your retirement savings account, children, friends, or even the government to take care of yourself.
I understand how it feels especially when you make less than $1000 monthly as a senior citizen or retiree and your expenses are more than that.
I’m here to help and that’s why I share with you the best money management tips for seniors and retirees. Implementing them will help you efficiently manage the money you make monthly and avoid being broke.
What is money management?
It is the art of managing efficiently your financial resources which include expenses, income, debt, and investment to achieve financial stability. It’s all about making informed decisions on how to spend, save, and invest your money to remain financially secure.
Here are money management tips that can help you remain financially stable as a senior citizen or retiree.
1. Create A Budget
Start by outlining the money you make and your expenses monthly to have a clear understanding of your financial situation.
Beginning by thoroughly examining different ways through which you make money monthly. This can include investment in real estate, retirement benefits, social security, dividends, or even money you make from part-time jobs you do from home as a senior citizen. List your monthly expenses beginning with the basic ones like feeding, gas, electricity, water, health insurance, rent, and taxes.
After listing your source of income and expenditure, have a way of tracking them no matter how small they are. You can buy an account book and write it down, use personal accounting software, or hire a finance assistant to help you with this.
2. Cut Expenses That Aren’t Necessary
When you are trying to manage your money, especially to make do with the little you make monthly, it’s important you cut unnecessary expenses that eat up your money. By unnecessary expenses, I mean items and services you can do without.
Let’s assume you travel abroad 3 times a year to visit interesting locations like Disneyland in France, and beaches in Rio De Janeiro, you can cut it to once a year. You could also be spending more on monthly TV subscriptions. While it is okay to entertain yourself as a senior citizen, you can subscribe to lower packages that cost less.
Avoid impulse buying which sees you make purchases on things you didn’t plan to buy. A way to overcome this is to stick to your shopping budget and keep in mind that you want to avoid wasting money on things you don’t need.
Other unnecessary expenses you should cut down on are buying expensive cars that require more money to maintain, renovating your home when there isn’t a pressing need for it, and going for designer brands that are pricey.
3. Prioritize Health Insurance
It isn’t a bad wish but people of 60 years and above frequently have a need for medical care. That’s normal because as you grow old, your body system requires more attention for you to live long. According to Keystone Health, many senior citizens in America battle diabetes, kidney diseases, cancer, arthritis, stroke and Parkinson’s disease.
These diseases are life-threatening and require money to manage.
So to save cost and ensure you get appropriate medical attention all the time, prioritize health insurance. There are many established health insurance companies in America and Canada you can sign up with, pay monthly or yearly fees, and have them cover any expenses related to your health as a senior citizen.
4. Seek Discounts
As a senior citizen, brands you patronize are willing to give you discounts. In America, it’s common to offer discounts to senior citizens especially veterans who served the country during their active years. So the next time you purchase senior citizen products on Amazon, Walmart, or any other popular store, ask for a discount.
In fact, some sellers on Amazon offer discounts in the form of coupon codes. It’s up to you to copy and apply the coupon code during checkout to get the discount. For example, you can save 10% on a product of $500 on Amazon. That’s a discount of $50.
You can even try Cash-back apps like Fetch Reward and Retail Me Not.
When you sign up, link your credit card, and use these apps to make purchases, especially groceries, you get a few bucks back.
Imagine you shopped 50 times a year using these apps and each time you spend $1000 on shopping, you get $20 back. That’s $1000. This money can pay your electricity and water bill for a month.
5. Manage Debt
Debt management is a crucial aspect of money management, you can make up to $10,000 monthly as a senior citizen only to realize that avoidable debts you owe have taken a huge chunk of it. Avoid taking unnecessary loans that will land you into more debt while you work on repayment.
For example, you don’t need a car loan when you have a car that’s still in good condition. Also, you don’t need to live in a duplex on a mortgage when the apartment you bought some years ago is still manageable. Talk to your financial advisor about how to manage your debt, negotiate with creditors, and sell off unneeded assets to repay your debt in the shortest possible time and avoid serving them every month.
Final thought on money management tips for seniors
Remaining financially stable and avoiding going broke in your older age depends on how you manage your income and expenses. Remember that you’re less productive in your old age and would need efficient money management tips to meet up with your financial obligations. I have shown you many of them there, and it’s up to you to digest and start implementing in your everyday financial dealings.
