Financial Answer Center

You've finally made it—six months before retirement. This is a critical period. You'll need to take care of last-minute details to ensure a smooth transition into retirement. You should develop a retirement budget (see the section Discovering Your Retirement Lifestyle) and reevaluate your life insurance coverage (see the section Bridging the Retirement Insurance Gap).

If you are leaving a company, it is the best time to make sure you have all of the information and paperwork in place so that you can start receiving company retirement benefits.

If you plan ahead, you can start receiving Social Security and Medicare Benefits in the month that you retire. Review your investments and taxes and make adjustments to reflect your new situation. And if you decide to move, there are some things to look into to evaluate the financial impact your move could have.