"Can I afford to retire?" Almost every day for the past 28 years in my financial planning practice, I have been asked that question by a client or a caller to my radio and TV program - and the answer usually is, "It depends." That's because there is no one "right" answer to that question, and there are many different variables that will also come into play when figuring it out. It's likely that you've seen or read various retirement planning "rules" in the media. Some of these will tell you that you should have a certain dollar amount saved in order to retire. Others will tell you that you need at least 70% of your pre-retirement earnings coming in so that you can live comfortably after your employer's paycheck stops. You may have also heard that you have to wait until you are 65, 70, or even older in order to be financially independent, retired, and living life the way you want to be living it and doing what you want to do. But the truth is that every situation is different, and it really is dependent upon how much you will spend in retirement, where you decide to live, what income sources you will have available, the future rate of inflation, and when you opt to take that step into the next phase of your life.
