Baby Boomers Contemplate Retirement

This year the oldest of the so-called "baby boomers" are turning 65. In Snellville, some 16 percent of the 18,000 people who call this city home are 65 and older, according to recent Census information. 

Across the nation, there are 76 million Americans in the baby boomer era, born between 1946 to 1964. Some have already retired, but those reaching retirement age now are making decisions based on the country's current economy.

Snellville resident, Chris Roberts, 63, and his wife, Susan, who plan to “down size” this year following their youngest daughter’s wedding, have developed a business called Launching Out, Inc. The business has a mission to encourage and provide resources for those 50 and older to “live out their lives with purpose, passion and a clear sense of calling.”

Roberts explained that the “wisdom, knowledge and experience gained through our five decades plus of living has come often at great personal cost."

"Finding ways to pass on our life experiences to others who are early on the journey brings purpose and meaning to the investment that has been required of us,” he added about Launching Out. 

Free Birds, a program developed by Roberts at Grace Fellowship Church in Snellville about 18 months ago and part of the Launching Out program, has attracted about 200 people 50 and older. (In Snellville, 37 percent of the population is older than 50, according to recent 2010 Census data.) The idea, Roberts explained, is to build a sense of community.

“If you put a bunch of baby boomers in the same room, 95 percent of them are dealing with one or more of the same issues – the economy and finances, the responsibility of elderly parents, the need to be healthy and have the highest quality of living possible, grown children and grandchildren issues,” Chris Roberts said.

He explained that the Free Birds” program offers “an unbelievable amount of support for people that have felt disconnected.” He added, “once you experience community, you’re never satisfied until you have it again.”

Snellville resident Kathryn Buffington, 60, a former banker and financial planner, and her husband, Mike, 63, an engineer, planned their retirement years to the “T". Buffington said their plan “turned out a little different than what we expected” because of health issues which forced her to retire early at age 56.

Diagnosed with a rare disease called pulmonary hypertension, or high blood pressure of the lungs, Buffington's condition changed the course of retirement planning. The condition is similar to coronary artery disease, except the veins and arteries of the lungs are too small for effective treatments other than intravenous medicine. The medicine is pumped into her heart throughout the day to open her blood vessels back up. The annual cost of the drugs is nearly $450,000 with insurance paying all but $30,000 per year. Buffington noted that when she is eligible for Medicare, her out of pocket expenses are expected to jump.

Buffington said that “it’s really, really tough for any retiree to know where they’re going to stand." Her husband, who plans to retire next year, postponed his retirement and now works 30 hours a week to make up for the loss of income after his wife stopped working four years ago.

Buffington recommends the services of a financial planner, "unless they feel like they can handle it on their own." A professional planner, she added, will talk to retiring baby boomers and help them decide what is is they need and how to plan.

"I was a financial advisor myself, but it's like being a lawyer and trying to defend yourself,"  she said. "Our advisors recommended that we continue working." In fact, "baby boomers may have to work a little longer than they planned to," she said.

Buffington offered some tips based on her experience. One significant bit of advice is to reduce large debts, such as mortgages.

“You learn to make good decisions through experience and you get experience by making bad decisions,” she said, laughing.

In addition, she recommended that people in their 60s “think like an old person and try to be in a place convenient to good healthcare...we used to think that we wanted to be off in the woods,” she said, but is happy that the grocery store, medical facilities, family members and good neighbors are close by.

 Buffington offered the following tips to those still in the work force:

• Always get a full company match in your 401K and invest aggressively when you’re young.
• Try your best to keep your debts down and live within your means – when you aren’t covered in debt, you have choices with what you can do with your life.
• Get as much education as you can and work in a good field, being sure that you love your job.
• Spend some money through the years to do things while you’re healthy enough and young enough to appreciate them.
• Take more time to be with your family as the time goes by so quickly.