Mailbag: Should I Sell my Rental Property for More Liquidity?

Today’s Prep:

Time for some questions from the mailbag! Are you making wise financial decisions when it comes to generating retirement income? Hear what Eric has to say on today’s show.

Equipping Points:

On today’s episode of the podcast, Eric answers three questions from the mailbag all related to income in retirement. Do you know how your monthly income will be covered in retirement?

Ray in Altoona owns four rental properties. All of them are paid off and currently being rented, which makes it a great monthly income. That said, he does not have a lot of liquid assets. Should he sell one or more of these properties to invest that money in something more liquid? Eric says to look at diversifying some of your investments. Right now, the real estate market is particularly strong, but we don’t know what the market is going to do. What kind of liquidity do you need?

Lisa in Ames retired at the end of 2021 and planned to start Social Security in a few months when she turns 65. Since then, she’s picked up a handful of consulting gigs and might not need Social Security soon. Should she defer it? Eric talks about the income limits when claiming Social Security to keep in mind. Depending on how much the consulting work brings in, it might be worth waiting on Social Security.

Roger in Marshalltown has determined that they need $12k a month to live the way they’d like to in retirement. Pensions and Social Security benefits will get them about $8k, so how can they generate the other $4k per month from their investments? Eric explains the four percent rule and how to do the math to determine how much you need. What kind of probability of success do you want? Having a plan and knowing your budget is key.

Listen to the entire episode or skip ahead using the timestamps below.

0:47 – Mailbag: Should I sell my rental property for more liquidity?

4:11 – Mailbag: Should I defer my Social Security until later?

6:44 – Mailbag: How much do I need to save to support my lifestyle in retirement?

 

Today’s Takeaway:

What kind of probability of success do you want? Do you want a 50% probability, do you want a 75%, a 90%? Or maybe you want 99% probability like most people do.”

-Eric Peterson

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