It seems I have longevity in my genes – all of my grandparents lived well beyond 80, with my maternal grandmother living to 98! That’s good and bad news for me. Good because it’s nice to know that I may have another 30 years to live – just imagine how much more I could see and do! Bad because I’m forced to ask myself whether or not I can afford another three decades.

My dilemma is a common one faced by many seniors who may have saved diligently through retirement funds, but find themselves having to ask whether 40 years of retirement savings is sufficient to fund a 30-year retirement with inflation?

In a previous blog, I outlined the importance of looking after your health and working beyond 65 so that your retirement funds continue accumulating before your earning capacity ends and you start the process of decumulation.

Once the latter begins, it would be wise to seek the advice of an independent financial advisor to ensure that your funds continue to grow in safe investments and that you don’t deplete these resources too quickly. Remember too that your post retirement budget for living expenses is also likely to differ from your working days. An astute financial advisor will guide you in hedging against your longevity risk.

An important aspect of your financial considerations must be where you plan to live. Will you stay in the family home or scale down to a residential estate or retirement village? Whichever route you opt for, make sure that you have easy access to your friends, support network, shops, entertainment and care when you need it. And ensure that the solution won’t require another move down the line – the cost and trauma of a move when you’re much older should be avoided. 

One option worth considering is a Life Right retirement village. At Evergreen, our partnership for life promise includes looking after your physical security and delivering financial peace of mind and continuous care in villages with a great sense of community. So how does a Life Right mitigate against longevity risk? Here are some of the reasons:

• Flexible purchase pricing allows you to liberate capital for investment.
• Security of tenure for life is protected by an act of parliament.
• Access to emergency funds e.g. for healthcare.
• Continuous care in place, if and when you need it.
• Maintenance of your home and the common property.
• Transparent and affordable levies.

If you’d like to know more about Evergreen Lifestyle, call Sharon on 087 808 7000 and ask about our Partnership for Life promise.