The 4 expenses retirees most underestimate, and how advisers can help

Published 2 Min Read

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Marianne Nolte knew that caring for her mother-in-law would be expensive, especially after the 94-year-old moved into an assisted living center. But there was one expense that caught Nolte’s family off guard.

“One of the things that’s just killing us is she’s incontinent,” said Nolte, a certified financial planner and the CEO of Imagine Financial Services in Fallbrook, California. “She changes her diapers five, six, eight times a day. And that’s not covered by insurance, so it’s out of pocket, and it’s a real expense that people don’t even think about.” 

The things seniors spend money on tend to evolve over the course of their retirement. Two expenses that tend to be much higher at the beginning, for example, are travel and restaurants.

“It is important to understand there will be various stages to retirement,” Nolte said. “During the early retirement years, retirees are excited to get out and have adventures now that leisure time is available.”

Nathan Place
National Reporter

Nathan Place is a national reporter at American Banker. A native of New York City, he has worked for more than a decade in both print and video journalism. He got his start in Beijing, where he … Read full bio


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