The 6 biggest mistakes of retirement and 1 defense

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One of the biggest mistakes you can make in retirement is not doing what you do not know.

I regularly hear people close or retired who misunderstand the functioning of Social Security, significantly underestimate their life expectancy or do not plan for large expenses, such as long-term care or taxes.

They are not people seeking advice. They have already made their decision and want to discuss precepts in financial planning, such as when to take Social Security or the likely cost of a retirement. But what they think they know is not the case.

In fact, most people do not get good, objective financial advice before they retire, says actuary Steve Vernon, consulting researcher at Stanford Center on Longevity. Many people just speak up, thinking that if they have a social security check and a little savings, everything will be fine.

Unfortunately, retirement is complicated and your decisions can have irreversible consequences. Talking to a professional – ideally a paid financial planner – can save you a costly mistake, including any of the following.

1. THINK YOU MISS YOUNG (OR LESS EARLY)

If you die early in your retirement, your concerns about the need to pay are over. Live longer, however, and you could easily survive your money. This creates an advantage with regard to Social Security waiting because every year, if you put it back from age 62 to age 70, your benefit increases by around 7% to 8%. It is a guaranteed return on a revenue stream that you can not survive or lose in the event of a stock market downturn.

Plus, you can live longer than you think. The average life expectancy in the United States is slightly less than 79 years, but it is from birth. If you reach the age of 65, you can expect to live for another 20 years or so. According to the Society of Actuaries, half of women currently aged about 50 will live to age 90, as will one in three men. People with healthy lifestyles and higher education tend to live longer than average.

2. Ignore your spouse

About Social Security: When one of the spouses dies, one of the couple's two social security checks disappears. The survivor has to cope with the larger of the two checks. It is important to maximize these survivor benefits by ensuring that the wealthiest taxpayers file their claim for social security as long as possible. In addition, married persons who will receive a pension should seriously consider a "spouse and survivor" option allowing payments to continue during both lives.

3. TRANSPORT DEBT TO RETIREMENT

If you are rich, having a debt may not be a big problem – you have a lot of income to make payments and your investments can earn more than you pay in interest. If you are not wealthy, you may be putting too much of your savings to pay off the debt. This could increase your chances of running out of money. Large withdrawals from retirement funds could also push you toward a higher tax bracket and increase your Medicare premium. Give yourself options by planning to pay off your debts at retirement, but consult a financial planner before using your retirement accounts to pay off large debts, such as a mortgage.

4. MISSING PLANNING LONG-TERM CARE

If people want to think less than death, it's decrepitude. Yet a person who turns 65 today has a 70% chance of needing help with everyday tasks such as washing, eating or getting dressed. Family and friends will help some, but about half of them will incur costs for long-term care – and 15% costs $ 250,000 or more. Long-term care insurance can be a solution or you can reserve some investments or have it from your home.

5. ASSUME THAT YOU CAN WORK LONGER

About half of retirees report leaving the job market earlier than expected. Some are lucky, thanks to the windfall or the strength of the stock markets. Many others retire because they lose their jobs and can not find replacements or because of health problems (theirs or those of a loved one). Working longer can help you save less, but it's not an option you can count on.

6. CLOSE RETIREMENT TOO LONG

With all this gloom, I now tell you to hurry up. This tip is for my ants comrades living in a grasshopper world: Sometimes grasshoppers are right. Time, good health and energy are finite resources. Spend a few hundred dollars of your hard earned savings on a paid financial planner and find out when it is time to start living the future for which you have saved.

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This column was provided to The Associated Press by the NerdWallet Personal Finance website. Liz Weston is a columnist for NerdWallet, Certified Financial Planner and author of "Your Credit Score". Email: [email protected]. Twitter: @lizweston.