Just finished Mike Piper’s book titled More Than Enough which touches on many other retirement life blog themes- challenges in switching from saving to spending, living with purpose, giving while still alive, and other related topics.
The author highlights the trend where so many retirees go the extra mile to ensure they have enough resources to retire, then soon realize after retiring that they have way more than enough to live comfortably in retirement. He goes on to point out that many retirees in this situation default to the philosophy that they’ll just leave this larger-than-necessary retirement nest egg to their kids, grandkids, or charities without putting much thought into it.
There’s nothing wrong with having more than enough, and there are certainly less negative consequences to it than the alternative of not having enough. Piper brings out several considerations for retirees to think through, depending on their family situations, current level of satisfaction in retired life, interest in supporting charities/causes, investing, etc. Reading the book was a great mental stretch exercise. Some considerations:
- There are several valid instances where retirees might not want to distribute the final nest egg and belongings evenly among children. Whether distributed evenly or not, Piper strongly suggests having family discussions about the nest egg distribution intentions while parents are still alive. These may not be the most comfortable discussions to have, but at least it allows time/opportunity to potentially change behavior, resolve misunderstandings and set expectations.
- Giving resources to non-family members. If a significant part of the nest egg is to be given to non-family members (most likely charities), the family members should hear about those intentions from the parents while they’re alive. Conveying intentions for giving while the nest egg owners are still alive is also advised.
- Piper emphasizes the importance of knowing what the purpose(s) are for charitable giving, and how people can most effectively donate (If you want an eye-opening education on considerations for charitable giving, just Google “Purposeful Giving” and read on).
- Situations where one spouse passes away and the surviving spouse remarries brings all sorts of considerations requiring careful thought for how the nest egg(s) will be distributed, and why.
Piper also addresses the challenge many of us have when we make the switch from saving in those pre-retirement years to spending in retirement (see posts 80 and 82).
The last half of the book goes over various financial “tactics” for retirees to consider for end-of-life. I gained some excellent insight from the section on tax efficient steps to consider.
But the most meaningful quote for me was, “Relatively modest (monetary) gifts received early in life are often more impactful than larger inheritances received later in life.” That’s where we are headed.
The book is an easy read…and it’s a whole $5 on Amazon Kindle.