Most Couples Disagree on Retirement Timing; Lawyer Consults Coach, Decides on Charity Work
California family law attorney Deborah Ewing doesn’t want her software programmer husband to retire until their kids graduate from college. And Boston lawyer David Slade’s plans to retire were opposed by his wife, who was concerned about the two of them being home together.
They are among the majority of couples who disagree on the timing of retirement, the Wall Street Journal reports. “The days when a husband automatically retires at 65 with a corporate pension and his wife dutifully follows him to a golf course in Florida are officially over,” the newspaper says.
The story cites a study by Fidelity Investments that found 62 percent of couples disagree on the timing of their retirements. Only about half of couples retire within two years of each other, leading to disagreements, especially when there are large age differences between husband and wife.
David Slade and his wife, Judy, participated in a couples’ discussion group led by retirement coaches. Judy Slade’s concern was that her husband needed a plan so that he would have an activity that interested him in retirement. Now he is considering volunteer work, including working with orphans in Nepal, the story says.
