60 Years Old and No Retirement Savings? - Top 7 Recommendations

Hey look, are you over 55 and have little or nothing saved for retirement? That can feel pretty terrifying. I mean, you feel like the clock's ticking and the future seems uncertain. But here's the truth. You're not alone. And more importantly, it's not too late to take action. I saw a recent study that showed the median retirement savings for 55 year olds is only $50,000 and even worse, just one in five have more than $447,000 saved. Half of Gen Xers say it would take a miracle for them to retire. Hoping for a miracle isn't a retirement plan. Having a real strategy is. My name is Keith Wilson and I'm a financial advisor helping folks just like you mapping out their retirement plans. And in this video, I'm sharing seven strategies you could start using today to regain control of your financial future, even if you're starting from zero. All right, the first thing you need to do is get a clear picture of your current situation. Ask yourself, how many more years do I realistically want to work? Is it five years? Is it 10 years? And be honest about what's realistic based on your health, your energy, and your lifestyle. You should also take a look at your recent social security statement to have an idea of what your future monthly benefit will be. Now, I think they stopped mailing those things some years ago, but you can retrieve that by going to ssa.gov. This statement will let you know what benefits you would receive at different ages. So, full retirement age is 67 for most people. If you wait until age 70, there is an increased amount. More on that later. Next, take a full inventory of your finances. Look at what's coming in. Look at your job income, any pensions, any side income, and compare it to what's going out. That includes your mortgage, credit cards, subscriptions, groceries, gas, you know, everything. Now, take a look at your assets and debt. Do you have any savings or any retirement accounts currently? Do you own your home or have home equity? What debts are still hanging around? Now, once you have that full picture, now you're no longer guessing. You're making informed decisions. If, for example, you found you'll need an extra $200,000 to retire comfortably and you have 10 years to go, you can reverse engineer this thing. And just to show you how much you'll need to save or invest each month to get there. This is your foundation. And every solid plan needs a solid foundation. Now, before we move on, you may wanna subscribe to the channel as I post a lot of content about retirement planning while you're at it. Why don't you give this video a thumbs up? It really helps me more than you know. Okay, now that you've taken inventory, it's time to start tracking your spending and really get to know your numbers. Now, most people think they know what they spend until they track it. Then they're shocked at how much is going to, you know, things like eating out, random Amazon purchases, guilty, or forgotten subscriptions. So tracking isn't about restriction. It's about clarity. It gives you the power to identify where your money's going and redirect it toward what really matters. Now, you don't need a fancy budgeting app or, you know, fancy software. A notebook or a simple spreadsheet works just fine. What matters is consistency. When you know where every dollar is going, you can start making, you know, smart changes like cutting $3 in monthly spending and putting that money to work for your future instead. Okay, next step is keep more of what you make. Sounds pretty simple. Here's where the real shift happens. Building wealth isn't just about how much you earn. It's about how much you keep. You've heard that before. Look, you could earn $150,000 a year and still be broke. And if you're spending it all, living paycheck to paycheck, but someone earning $50,000 a year and saving $10,000 is actually winning the game. The goal is to create a gap between what you bring in and what you spend and then invest that difference. This doesn't mean cutting out everything you love, but maybe it's eating at home more often, canceling subscriptions you don't use, or resisting lifestyle inflation when you get a raise. Keeping more of what you earn gives you options. It gives you breathing room. And over time, those small changes compound into something meaningful. Okay, once you've got your finances in order and you've freed up some excess cash flow, it's time to invest and do it aggressively. At this stage, just saving a loan won't be enough. Your dollars need to grow, and that means investing. Yes, I know, time is tighter now, but you still have powerful tools. Compound growth may not work as long in your favor, but you can make up for that with consistency and focus. So if you've freed up extra money by tracking your spending and creating that income gap, now it's time to put that money to work. You could contribute more to your 401k or in a brokerage account. Just don't let your cash sit idle. Even if you only have five to 10 years left, investing now wisely and consistently may significantly shift your future trajectory. Next, let's talk about working longer but smarter. So retirement doesn't have to be an on-off switch. It can be more of like a dimmer, you know, easing into it slowly. Now, working longer, even part-time, can give your retirement savings more time to grow, you know? Reduce the need to dip into your investments early and help your overall plan feel more manageable. Now, the work you do in this stage doesn't have to be what you've always done. You could, you know, downshift into a less demanding job, you know, pursue something more fulfilling, or start, I don't know, a side hustle, something you can enjoy. Earning even $1,000 or $2,000 per month during these years, hey, that can make a huge difference because it buys you flexibility and it preserves your long-term savings. So the goal isn't to work forever, don't worry. It's to create a smoother, more flexible transition into retirement. All right, next, let's talk about why you may wanna consider delaying Social Security benefits. Look, for every year you wait beyond your full retirement age, up to age 70, your benefit increases by about 8% per year. And that's a 24% increase if you wait from age 67 to age 70. Now, that increase lasts for the rest of your life and it helps protect against inflation, market volatility, and outliving your money. But in order to delay, you need income from somewhere else. And that's where continuing to work, even part-time, becomes so valuable. It bridges the gap so you can let your Social Security grow in the background. And if you're earning more now than you did earlier in life, those higher-earning years can replace lower ones in your benefit calculation, meaning an even higher Social Security check when you finally do claim it. All right, finally, and perhaps most importantly, you have to believe that this is still possible. If you don't believe you can turn things around, you won't stick with it. You'll doubt yourself, second-guess every move, and eventually you'll stop trying. Look, you've already done hard things in your life. You've overcome challenges in your life. You've figured out things that felt impossible at the time. This is just another one of those moments. So you're not starting over, you're starting from experience and that experience matters. And if you stay focused, take small steps, consistently, and keep showing up, things will change. Hey, this isn't about perfection. It's about progress, small wins that add up over time. If you're over 55 and you're starting from scratch, it's easy to feel overwhelmed, I get it. But you don't need a miracle, you need a plan, and you need to work that plan. So take inventory, track your spending, create an income gap, invest with focus, consider working longer, but on your terms, delay Social Security if you can, and above all, believe in your ability to change your future. You can still retire with confidence, but only if you take action today. And if you need help creating that game plan, reach out. My contact info is in the description below. I'd be happy to help you map out these next steps and start building your future with clarity and confidence. If you like what you're seeing so far, check out this next video. Subscribe to the channel, Lord willing, we'll see you next time.