{"id":938,"date":"2020-06-30T12:14:00","date_gmt":"2020-06-30T18:14:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.bellvest.ca\/family-wealth-calgary\/resources\/retirement-expense-cheatsheet\/"},"modified":"2025-09-24T13:38:11","modified_gmt":"2025-09-24T19:38:11","slug":"retirement-expense-cheatsheet","status":"publish","type":"resources","link":"https:\/\/www.bellvest.ca\/family-wealth-calgary\/resources\/retirement-expense-cheatsheet\/","title":{"rendered":"Retirement expense cheatsheet for investors"},"content":{"rendered":"

It can be a daunting task to get a full picture of your retirement expenses. Use this cheatsheet as a way to prepare to complete a more comprehensive retirement expense calculator or retirement expense worksheet. That way, when you sit down to do the math, you aren\u2019t having to get up every 30 seconds to dig through your files.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

 <\/h3>\n

WHY BOTHER WITH A RETIREMENT EXPENSE LIST?<\/h3>\n

Understanding your expenses is an important step in retirement planning. In fact, it\u2019s the only way you can know whether your retirement income\u2014which may be largely generated from your investments and pensions\u2014is enough each year to cover both your non-discretionary (required) and discretionary (optional) expenses. Once you’re confident in your numbers, you can take a look at the big-picture retirement strategies<\/a><\/span> needed to get you there.<\/p>\n

 <\/h3>\n

THE ‘RETIREMENT SMILE”<\/h3>\n

It\u2019s important to say that retirement expenses often change as we get older. At the beginning of retirement, we may be on-the-go. This flurry of activity likely slows as we age, with a drop in related expenses, only to probably increase again in our 80s and 90s when we require more health support and personal care. This retirement spending curve is sometimes known as the \u201cretirement smile.\u201d<\/p>\n

It\u2019s a good idea to revisit your retirement expenses regularly to take into account any change in total expenses, whether that\u2019s an increase or decrease. That way you have an up-to-date picture of your retirement income needs and can plan to address any windfall or shortfall.<\/p>\n

 <\/h3>\n

BREAKING IT ALL DOWN<\/h3>\n

Most retirement expense worksheets and calculators will ask for your numbers by month. If the amount varies by month\u2014for example, your home heating bill\u2014take the annual amount and divide it by 12.<\/p>\n

THE KEY EXPENSES YOU SHOULD CONSIDER IN RETIREMENT ARE:<\/strong><\/p>\n

\u2022 Accommodation
\u2022 Transportation
\u2022 Living expenses
\u2022 Insurance
\u2022 Debt repayment
\u2022 Savings allocation
\u2022 Fees
\u2022 Taxes
\u2022 Professional expenses
\u2022 Entertainment
\u2022 Hobbies
\u2022 Gifts
\u2022 Large one-time expenses (e.g. downsizing)<\/p>\n

 <\/h3>\n

ASSEMBLE THIS DETAILED RETIREMENT EXPENSE INFORMATION BEFORE USING A RETIREMENT CALCULATOR:<\/strong><\/p>\n

\u2022 Mortgage payments
\u2022 Monthly rent
\u2022 Utilities (e.g. heat, electricity, water, sewer)
\u2022 Condo fees
\u2022 Property taxes
\u2022 Home repairs and renovations
\u2022 Home insurance
\u2022 Services (e.g. cleaners, pool, lawn care)
\u2022 Storage fees
\u2022 Communications (e.g. phone, cable, internet, streaming services)
\u2022 Income taxes
\u2022 Groceries
\u2022 Gas
\u2022 Vehicle loan\/lease payments
\u2022 Vehicle repairs
\u2022 Vehicle insurance
\u2022 Vehicle registration
\u2022 Public transit
\u2022 Personal loans
\u2022 Credit card payments
\u2022 Life insurance
\u2022 Disability insurance
\u2022 Health insurance
\u2022 Emergency fund contributions
\u2022 Savings contributions (e.g. RRSP, TFSA, non-registered accounts)
\u2022 Financial fees (e.g. bank, advisor)
\u2022 Entertainment (e.g. restaurant meals, movies)
\u2022 Hobbies
\u2022 Travel
\u2022 Education
\u2022 Professional expenses (e.g. memberships, software, equipment)
\u2022 Subscriptions (e.g. newspaper, magazine)
\u2022 Recreation
\u2022 Personal care (e.g. toiletries, hair cuts)
\u2022 Clothing
\u2022 Medical
\u2022 Dental
\u2022 Pet costs (e.g. food, vet visits, insurance, boarding, grooming, medication)
\u2022 Gifts (regular and one-time gifts to family and friends)
\u2022 Donations<\/p>\n

Whew. That\u2019s an exhaustive list, so set aside some time to find the information. Then plug your numbers into a retirement expense calculator or worksheet. Once you have your total expenses, you can determine if your income will be sufficient to meet your needs. Wondering if you can afford to retire? Try our retirement calculator<\/span><\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"featured_media":2212,"template":"","resources-categories":[24],"resources-type":[7],"class_list":["post-938","resources","type-resources","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","resources-categories-retirement-planning","resources-type-blog-post"],"yoast_head":"\nRetirement expense cheatsheet for investors - Calgary Family Wealth<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.bellvest.ca\/family-wealth-calgary\/resources\/retirement-expense-cheatsheet\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Retirement expense cheatsheet for investors\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"It can be a daunting task to get a full picture of your retirement expenses. 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