You plan for retirement your entire life, possibly starting with your teenage years and your very first salary. You set away money. Your finance. You stay within your means and downsize as necessary. Are you actually, genuinely prepared to retire now?

Depends, really.

Even after years of saving and planning, unexpected expenses are likely to arise during your first year of retirement.

Here are four strategies retirees and those about to make the leap should put in place before the unexpected happens.

The adjustment period

There is still an adjustment phase after leaving the workforce where much less money comes in and much more goes out, even if you have a wise retirement plan. And let's face it, it might be challenging to adjust pre-retirement routines and beliefs.

Prior to retiring, not after, make sure to review your spending plan. What do you spend money on and where? What is the anticipated cash inflow?

It's a good idea to meet with a financial advisor and assess your circumstances because crunching these statistics could feel overwhelming, especially if it appears that you'll need to make significant changes to your lifestyle.

If you don't already have one, finding one quickly can be difficult if you have to do a lot of searching and calling several advisers.

Set spending priorities.

Wish to journey? Even while it's a delectable luxury, the cost of food, hotel, flights, and frequent travel makes it prohibitively expensive. Want to buy a beach retreat or remodel your house? These days, first and second-mortgage interest rates are at an all-time high.

Get a feel of your "nice to haves" versus your "need to haves" before you open the wallet and live it up. You can also take measures to reduce the price of those "need to haves" so that you have more money for enjoyable activities.

You might be able to save more than $1,000 a year, for instance, by comparing insurance rates.

In 2023, the average cost of car insurance in the country will be $2,118 annually, or $176.5 monthly, according to statistics from Forbes.

However, some insurers may provide you insurance for as little as $22 per month, depending on your state of residence, driving record, and the make and model of your vehicle.

Continue to increase your savings

When it comes to retirement, many people abandon their savings plans in favor of a cruise or a dream house. That's the wrong course of action. Saving not only provides a cushion but also a way to enable the achievement of even higher objectives.

Aim for 10% of each Social Security check if you used to set aside 10% of each income. Even 5% is preferable to nothing, particularly if you spend it carefully.

Although the stock market may be unstable right now, there are other ways to invest for the future besides simply plowing all of your savings into equities.

One excellent example is commercial real estate. Over a 25-year period, it has outperformed the S&P 500 as an asset class. And while you might think that investing in real estate requires having millions of dollars to spare, that isn't the case anymore.

And with Masterworks, you won't need millions to acquire a piece of a Picasso*; therefore, you won't need to put up thousands of dollars to enter the world of art investing.

Develop a social security plan.

According to the Social Security Administration (SSA), if you begin receiving Social Security benefits at age 62, you'll forfeit additional benefits that you'd receive at a later retirement age.

The SSA estimates that you would receive $1,000 rather than $750 if you waited until you were 66. Furthermore, if you wait until the full retirement age, which is 70, you may be eligible for delayed retirement credits.

Deferment may not always be available if you manage your finances properly, but you may be able to reduce some of your debt by consolidating all of your loans into one with a reduced interest rate.

Utilize the free online tool Credible to quickly compare loan rates and choose the one that will save you the most money.

Consolidating your loans could ultimately save you thousands of dollars in interest payments, depending on how much you presently owe.

（Writer：Ganny）