People have different ideas about what makes a great retirement. Some want to travel the world, some want to golf every day, some just want to live close to their grandchildren and spend all their days spoiling them.

None of those are wrong answers — a great retirement is in the eye of the beholder. But to end up with the retirement that you want, you need to first decide what that is. Then you can make a plan to get there.

Travel

Do you want to travel during your retirement? Where? How often?

If you want to make frequent trips which require airplane flights, you might want to plan on living somewhere reasonably close to a nice airport. If you plan on international flights, then you should probably locate fairly near an international airport to minimize all the transfers and extra costs.

Think about the costs of flights, lodging, meals, etc. in the places you want to visit. Those all need to go in your retirement budget.

Or maybe your idea of great retirement travel is living in an RV and driving all over the United States. You need to cover the cost of the RV, of course, but also gasoline, maintenance, insurance, campground hookups, etc. Nothing wrong with any of that, but you need to research all the expenses involved so you can plan them into your projected retirement budget — and not be surprised to discover you aren’t prepared to cover the costs of the retirement you really want.

Golf

Do you dream of being able to spend every sunny day on the golf course?

You might want to budget for living somewhere with lots of those sunny days.

You probably also want to make sure there are sufficient golf courses in an area before you decide to live there during retirement. And plan on covering membership dues, greens fees and other necessary charges in your budget. Maybe you should plan on buying a house with a separate golf cart mini-garage attached to the main garage – or plan for the expense of adding one to an existing home. And how often do you think you’ll want to buy a new club— or a new set of clubs? Will you need to purchase a golf cart? Sure, you can walk the entire course fine now, but what about as you continue to age?

Or maybe you want to live right on the edge of a specific golf course. You need to make plans to cover the costs of living there — not only purchasing a house, but also any HOA fees, etc.

Grandkids

Nothing wrong with spoiling the grandkids — that’s sort of a grandparental responsibility, right?

If you want to center your retirement years around time spent with your grandchildren, where will they be living? Can you afford to live nearby? Is it an area with a high cost of living or not? Do you expect they’ll need to move as their parents change jobs or rise within their companies? How much will it cost you to follow them?

What’s your backup plan if you move to be near them and they suddenly need to relocate?

Maybe you want to live in a vacation destination area, so your kids and grandkids will want to come visit you – and frequently. The costs of living in an area like that need to be figured into your retirement budget.

Our Dreams at Texas Financial and Retirement

We asked our staff to give us an idea of their dream retirement, and here’s what everyone had to say:

James

“I never plan to retire. I have the world’s best clients and I live vicariously through them. I have a sit-down job in air conditioning! Willie Nelson will be 85 and still tours. President Trump is expected to run for re-election. If he wins, he will be 78 at the end of his second term. Warren Buffet is in his upper eighties and goes to work every day, and has not yet named his replacement. The pope is in his upper eighties with no plans to retire. I could go on and on.”

Scheli

“I hope that when I retire, James will take some time off so that we can travel some. I want to spend lots of time with family – especially the grandchildren. I plan to enjoy fishing and taking care of the cows. I love being at home and want to have time to work in my yard and on my craft projects. Most importantly, I want to have more time to spend with the love of my life – James Holloway.”

Linda

“My dreams for retirement include spending time with family and friends (especially my new granddaughter). I’d like to travel and fish with my husband. I want to have more time to spend tending to my flowers, garden and home. Maybe some more cooking and reading, too.”

Cindy

“My retirement is many years away. My ideal retirement would include spending more time at our cabin in the woods. I’d like to spend time taking care of my (future) grandbabies and doing some volunteer work.”

Jackie

“My retirement dream is NOT to sit around waiting to ‘expire/retire,’ but to enjoy everything from retirement age forward. I’d like to live a simpler ‘less is more,’ fun-filled, happy lifestyle with family and friends. I want to have the time to do things I can’t do while working full time. Volunteering and working a few hours a week in one of the areas I’m interested in from my ‘things I would like to do’ list would be great. I’m still filling up my bucket list – not emptying it, yet! I want to enjoy the days God has numbered for me – and be a part of my grandkids’ lives as they grow through each new phase.”

Any retirement can be a dream as long as it’s your dream. But we rarely stumble into dreamy situations — we usually need to plan and work to get there. If you have a dream for your retirement, you need a workable plan to follow to achieve it. That’s what James Holloway Sr. and the team at Texas Financial and Retirement do. We help people plan for making their dreams come true.

Contact us at bestclients@texasfinancialandretirement.com or 903-534-5477 to apply for a free initial consultation. We’ll analyze your financial position and listen to your dream, then assist you with creating a plan to get retirement right — your way.