Oftentimes, people overlook just how close their retirement is, leading to them having insufficient funds to put themselves through 10-20 years of retirement without having to look for an additional source of income.
In order to make life easier for our nation’s oldest generation, the federal government created a number of assistance programs that target the elderly, allowing them to have access to benefits that can make a great change in their lives.
Aging is difficult, and anyone who’s been part of the workforce for long enough can tell you that the years pile on in what feels like seconds, and a lot of people get caught off guard.
Sometimes they take on far too much debt for their finances to handle, whereas others simply didn’t start saving for retirement on time.
Either way, we’re all in the same boat, and if you’re having a hard time keeping up with your expenses as a retiree, it may be time to look into federal assistance.
Social security
The first thing that comes to mind when you retire is the money you’ll be receiving for all those social security tax payments you’ve been making throughout your career.
However, with SSI alone, you’ll only be able to fend off the growing inflation for a short while, and eventually, you’ll have to resort to other solutions.
Cost of living adjustments to the benefits offered by the Social Security Administration reached a historic 5.
9% increase at the very start of 2022, meaning that anyone who’s yet to receive SSA benefits will be looking at a slightly larger amount when the time comes.
Unfortunately, the 5.9% boost only equates to around $92 to the average Social Security beneficiary’s check, totaling out to $1657, although compensation may vary based on when you began receiving the benefits as well as your social security tax payments.
Help is still out there
While Social Security doesn’t exactly make life much easier for the elderly, a number of organizations across the US have devoted themselves to aiding retirees dealing with financial struggles.
NGOs like Volunteers of America and AmeriCorps Seniors are only some of the organizations that can help seniors through their retirement years, turning what would otherwise be years of hardships into a smooth ride.
The most important thing is knowing where to start your search, and with the help of the NCOA’s official website BenefitsCheckUp, you can find a number of different opportunities for impoverished seniors looking to retire or already in retirement.
One thing to remember is that asking for help isn’t something to be ashamed of, and anyone could easily find themselves in the same situation you’re in right now, and if you reach out for a helping hand, someone’s bound to help you out.
Government programs
Even though NGOs offer SOME level of financial security to financially burdened seniors, the federal government has created a vast amount of programs to provide this demographic with the help they need.
From housing to healthcare, all sorts of assistance are available to you, and your circumstances will help you determine what kind of program to look out for.
Medicaid is a great example of a federal program geared toward retirees, as it allows them to spend much less on healthcare, which usually amounts to at least 16% of their monthly budget.
Without this burden, a retiree can focus on the more important things in life without having to worry whether they’ll be able to afford that medical procedure that they’ve been putting off for months on end.
Jobs for the elderly
As bad as it sounds, any form of income can come in handy, and sometimes, elderly people will be forced to reintegrate themselves into the workforce in order to secure the income necessary to feed their family and keep the lights on at home.
Thankfully, this doesn’t mean that they’ll be doing physically or mentally taxing work, and contributing to the workforce has become easier than ever in the past few years due to the widespread support for remote work.
That being said, finding a job that fits your skillset and your abilities at an old age can be difficult, so you’ll want to carefully weigh your options before committing to some work that you won’t be able to do in a year’s time.
The best way to go about this is to find a job that you like, and only then start looking for work that will offer satisfactory pay.
Bottom line
Even after you’ve retired, you’ll need some source of income to survive, and while retirees usually tap into their savings at this time, some either didn’t start setting aside some money early enough or simply don’t have the funds to feed their family.
With the help of NGOs and government programs, the life of a retired person can become much easier, and if you find the right program, you may even be able to work towards financial independence and security once more.