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Tuesday, January 13, 2009

Baby Boomer Retirement Plan

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By Matt Hellstrom

There is a popular ad on TV recently showing people carrying around a big orange number - apparently to represent the amount of money that particular person has to have saved in order to retire with the same kind of lifestyle that they lead currently. I found myself getting angrier and angrier every time I saw that ad, and I really didn't know why.

Then I came up with the reason. I was feeling depressed and anxious, not exactly mad. Which is probably why they created the ad campaign in the first place. Research has shown that the best kind of advertising is that which makes you feel desperate and stressed. Negative advertising. Needless to say, it worked for me. But when they did give their solution, it didn't really work for me.

What this company wants is for you to sign up with them as financial advisors, and they'll help you reach your number. While this might be a solution for some people, especially younger ones, I just don't feel it applies to someone like me that's in their fifties. I have put a little money away, but I don't feel there is any way for me to save more than a million dollars by the time I'm 65! That's the minimum amount of most of the numbers under the people's arms.

What are people my age supposed to do? I've decided that I'm going to generate multiple streams of income coming into my bank account every month for the rest of my life. Furthermore, I think this is a great solution for most baby boomers. How do we really know what that number is, anyway, with the rising cost of gas and the decreasing value of real estate. These are uncertain times. So how do we generate those multiple streams? Here are a few ideas.

1. Get a reverse mortgage on your house. If you've got substantial equity in your home, you can refinance it with a reverse mortgage and take out a lump sum or monthly payments until the day you die.

2. Get a part-time job. If you have a pension and social security, maybe just a little extra will enable you to make ends meet. This might be accomplished by working part-time.

3. A franchise might be an option. There are many different business plans available for those that have a little money saved up. These businesses range from restaurants to auto-repair facilities, and there is also a huge variety in start-up costs, too. This might be something you want to look in to.

4. Start a home-based traditional business. If you've got hidden talents, this could be a great option for you. Maybe you know how to work with wood, and you can build birdhouses, or furniture, or guitars. Then, you can sell them on Ebay.

5. Look into a home-based online business. There is a lot of money to be made doing affiliate marketing, where you promote other peoples products and earn commissions based on sales that are made because of your recommendation. This is pretty cool, because it can be a residual type of income, where the money keeps coming in month after month, which leads to time freedom.

6. You could start a network marketing business.I really like this idea because it offers two types of income - residual and leveraged. By residual income I mean income that comes in every month, whether you work or not. Most network marketing companies have consummable products that the customer buys every month. Leveraged income comes when you sign up a distributor underneath you. Then every time that person makes a sale, you get a piece of their pie.

These are a few ideas. Everyone is different: you'll have to discover what works for you. But do something, it's never too late!

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