15 Moves You Must Make the Year Before You Retire

Being on the cusp of retirement is exciting, but it's important to make sure you're truly ready to take that leap. With that in mind, here are some essential moves you must make as retirement looms.

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Will you have enough money to cover your living costs in retirement? You won't know until you do a review of your savings. Specifically, play around with different withdrawals rates so you can see how much annual income your IRA or 401(k) plan balance will allow for.

You may have money in a brokerage account earmarked for retirement. See what your balance looks like, as that could be a nice supplement to the money in your IRA or 401(k) and your Social Security benefits.

If you've been funding a health savings account (HSA), it's time to see how well your efforts have paid off. That could give you a sense of how much of your IRA or 401(k) will be needed to cover healthcare expenses.

ALSO READ: Americans Are Sorely Underestimating This Key Retirement Expense

It's a good idea to have at least a year's worth of living expenses in the bank if you're about to retire. Make sure your savings account is set up for that, and if not, you may want to move some assets around.

Once you retire, money could get tight. Before you end your career, set up a retirement budget so you can see what your various bills will cost you -- and make sure your different income sources can cover them.

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If you'll be retiring at age 65 or later, you should have the option to enroll in Medicare. But if you're looking at early retirement, Medicare may not be an option just yet. Do some research to make sure you'll have an affordable means of securing health coverage.

ALSO READ: 3 Strategies to Make the Most of Medicare

As retirement nears, it's a good idea to shift toward more conservative investments. This isn't to say that you should get rid of all of the stocks in your portfolio. Rather, you may want to make some small changes to ensure that you're protected against wild swings in the market.

The state and city you retire in could have a huge impact on your retirement finances. Now's the time to narrow down your choices and see what they mean in terms of cost of living.

You may not need as large a home once you enter retirement, especially if you're an empty nester at that point. It pays to put some thought into downsizing -- especially now, since the housing market is booming and home prices are up.

ALSO READ: How to Know When It's Time to Downsize Your Home

If you're disappointed by the numbers you see in your IRA or 401(k), it's not too late to boost your savings if you're still spending a little more time in the workforce. In that case, now's the time to start cutting expenses so you can give your nest egg a nice bump.

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It's important to know what monthly benefit Social Security will pay you in retirement. To that end, you'll want to check your latest earnings statement to get an estimate of that number. If you're 60 or older, that statement should come in the mail. Otherwise, you can access it on the Social Security Administration's website.

The age at which you file for Social Security will dictate whether you get your full monthly benefit, less, or more. It's a good idea to land on a filing age a little bit ahead of retirement so you know what amount of income to expect.

ALSO READ: 3 Reasons You Could Get Stuck With a Smaller Social Security Benefit

Working in some capacity in retirement is a great way to supplement your income, not to mention keep yourself nice and busy. Think about what a part-time job might look like for you, and how that extra income might impact other decisions, such as whether to downsize or not.

Retirement can be a huge shock for people who don't ease into it, but rather go from full-time work to no work at all. That's why it's important to figure out how you'll spend your days. You may decide to keep busy with a combination of hobbies and volunteer work, for example. That's a reasonable approach, especially if it aligns with your budget.

You may be entitled to a pension or other retirement benefits from your employer. Find out what those are so you can factor them into your plans. And if you're not eligible for such benefits, it's better that you know that now.

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Presented by Motley Fool Stock Advisor
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The financial moves you make leading up to retirement could make your golden years more enjoyable. Be sure to check all of these off your list as your time in the workforce wraps up.

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