Financial Tips for Seniors Living on a Fixed Income

Updated on June 18, 2020

With the Baby Boomer generation aging and entering into their retirement years, the amount of people living on a fixed income is suddenly becoming quite large. For seniors who are new to the fixed income style of living, there can be a bit of an adjustment period as you get used to being without that weekly or bi-weekly pay check coming in. For most of your adult life you have probably had that steady influx of cash, and now times have changed.

So, how can you ensure that your retirement years are comfortable financially, and that you have enough money to cover all your bills? These tips can certainly help.

Create a Realistic Budget

The first place to start is in creating a realistic budget. This budget should reflect all your fixed and variable expenses, as well as whatever pension income you have. Typically, seniors (women above the age of 65 and above the age of 68 for men) qualify for a state pension. Also, you may have your own private pension that you will be drawing from.

The key in creating your budget is to ensure that it balances, meaning your bills and expenses don’t exceed your income.

Track Your Expenses

If your budget is particularly tight, without much money to spare each month, then it would also be wise to track your expenses. This will help you to keep track of everything you’re spending in the month, and rein things in if you get out of hand. Everything should be tracked from your monthly bills to your eating out expenses, clothing you have bought, home repairs, and so forth.

Start an Emergency Savings Fund

Any financial expert will tell you that it’s also wise to set up an emergency savings fund. This is a savings account that you put money into that is meant to pay for those unexpected expenses. No-one wants to think about these sorts of things happening, but the reality is that they do occur and usually when you least expect.

What to Do When an Emergency Expense Pops Up

So, what happens if one of these surprise emergency expenses pops up and you don’t have a savings fund to draw upon? How will you be able to come up with the cash in a timely manner?

Where many people used to turn to Wonga for a quick pay day style loan, they are no longer lending, so it’s not an option. Instead you can use LoanPig, which is a Wonga loan alternative. With LoanPig you can borrow between £50-£1500 which you can pay back between one and 12 months. Note that this is meant to be a short-term option rather than a long-term solution.

You May Want to Consider Downsizing

If you’ve incorporated all of these tips into your lifestyle and you’re still having a hard time finding enough cash each month, it may be time to consider downsizing. This could mean downsizing your car, your home, and even your lifestyle. The last thing you want to be faced with is money woes and stress when you are in your golden years and are supposed to be enjoying the fruits of your labour.

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