I Was Retired, but Wasted Money on This 1 Thing and Had To Go Back To Work
Written by
Josephine Nesbit
Edited by
Molly Sullivan
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Retirement is supposed to be the reward after decades of hard work, but sometimes the hardest work is figuring out the best saving habits and investment strategies. This holds especially true now as rising costs at the grocery store, unexpected expenses at the car dealership and a few poor spending choices can quickly drain any nest egg.
If you do run out of retirement savings, you might find yourself once again heading back into the workforce. Unfortunately, this situation is becoming more common as retirees navigate longer lifespans and higher living expenses. Many retirees admit they made costly retirement mistakes they didn’t see coming or lifestyle creep purchases that seemed reasonable at the time but quietly wrecked their budgets. If you are wanting to avoid a similar fate, here three retirees share the things they wasted money on in their golden years that ultimately made them have to go back to work.
Supporting Adult Children
The phenomenon of returning to work after retirement, dubbed “unretirement,” is becoming increasingly common. More and more baby boomers are supporting their millennial and Gen Z children well into adulthood, but it’s costing them their retirements.
Mark Lacy, a Seattle-based 65-year-old, has been financially supporting his two sons since they graduated from high school, resulting in a $400,000 loss in his retirement funds, he explained to Fortune. Both of his children are in their thirties, with expenses ranging from college tuition to plane tickets.
Maintaining a Larger Home
Gregory Boulware was a truck driver for 30 years before he retired in 2008 but went back to work in 2020 after he and his wife bought a house, NBC News reported.
“When we lived in an apartment, we were doing fine because we could easily afford it, but every year the rent would go up,” Boulware said.
The couple purchased their home with their life’s savings, which led them to fear losing the house. Every mortgage payment was a challenge, and they sometimes pulled from other expenses such as food and gas to make ends meet. As a result, Boulware enrolled in a job training program for low-income adults and was hired into a clerical job.
Unplanned Cost-of-Living Increases
This item is one many retirees might deal with and should plan for. Those entering their retirement years are the first to rely primarily on 401(k) plans rather than traditional pensions, making them more dependent on their individual savings and market performance for security in retirement.
Joyce Fleming, a 70-year-old nurse who retired in 2019, went back to work over budget concerns. The costs of groceries, housing, owning a car and insurance skyrocketed over the past several years, and many retirees never accounted for the dramatic cost-of-living increases.
After caring for her grandchildren during the pandemic, Fleming told WSJ that she took a job handling ticket sales and complaints at an amusement park call center. Now she’s looking for a higher-paying nursing job closer to home to help cover travel and home improvement costs.
Caitlyn Moorhead contributed to the reporting for this article.
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