(MoneyWatch) The classic image of new retirees making a bee-line to Florida or the Sun Belt to live out their lives is sun-drenched comfort is increasingly a thing of the past.

Among U.S. workers age 55 and older, almost two-thirds -- 62 percent -- think that when they retire they will continue to live in their current state of residence, according to a survey by the Pulte Group, parent of Del Webb, a builder of adult retirement communities. That's up 20 percent from a similar survey taken just two years ago.

One important reason for this shift is the redefinition of retirement, as more and more Americans move away from the traditional definition of "all play and no work" during their retirement years to start second careers or continuing to work in some manner. In fact, 50 percent of the respondents to Del Webb's survey report that they work part-time or are starting new businesses or careers. As a result, the builder is establishing more communities outside the Sun Belt states and close to metropolitan areas such as Chicago, Detroit, and parts of the Northeast.

The survey also shows that 43 percent of respondents plan to retire and stay in the same city where they currently live; only 35 percent plan to retire and move to a different state. Just 32 percent want to live within 20 miles of their children or grandchildren upon retirement, again underlining many retirees' interest in continuing to work.

How to choose the best place to retire Calculate retirement costs with a new online tool Retirement planning outside the box: Move out of the suburbs

"In looking at our previous studies, we found that there's a group who do not want to leave their family, friends, and all the familiar surroundings," says Deborah Meyer, senior vice president of Pulte Group.

When you visualize a new Del Webb community, forget about the image of people golfing and playing tennis in Arizona. Instead, think of retirees taking classes on such diverse topics as computers or yoga, and enjoying healthy living habits, travel, and group activities with friends.

All of this makes sense to me. My wife and I now live in a townhouse community that's located one county north of Los Angeles, although it doesn't specifically target the age 55-plus crowd. The cost of living is less than metropolitan L.A., due to reduced property and sales taxes, lower car and homeowner insurance costs, and the reduced cost of goods and services. We're still close to family, friends, and our professional connections in the cities where we lived and worked for many years, but now we have a lap pool and a gym, along with participating in a neighborhood emergency preparedness group, a book club, and many other social activities. When we travel, we just lock the doors and drive away. (And as I write this, I can hear somebody else mowing the lawn outside my house!)

The one concern I have with this type of community is what happens when we all get a lot older. Our community -- and the Del Webb communities -- target the active adult crowd. But once we get into our 80s and 90s, we may not be able to fully use and appreciate the recreational facilities; in fact, my wife and I have noticed that neighbors tend to move away when they reach these older ages. And will there be enough younger active adults who are willing to buy our homes when we want to move?

This concern isn't holding us back from enjoying ourselves now, but it's something I'll keep my eyes on in the years to come.

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Boomer retirement housing preferences shifting

retirement

To say the least, retirement planning is becoming a tricky -- even sticky -- situation. The economy is teetering on the edge of financial instability, and low returns are making it tough on the savings of would-be retirees. Those who are seeking financial peace might have to try and take another piece of the pie.

To get a better idea of where retirees stand, we asked Sharon A. DeVaney, Ph.D. and professor emeritus at Purdue University, for her insight. DeVaney taught undergraduate classes in the financial planning program, and graduate courses in family economics and consumer behavior at Purdue University. Retired, she is now the editor of the Family and Consumer Sciences Research Journal for Wiley.

Is it financially smart to set a retirement date when retirement planning?

It is all right to set a target date, but a person should be flexible. For example, your health or job situation might change, and you should adjust accordingly. Also, you should investigate what working longer and delaying retirement will mean in terms of your Social Security benefits. I recommend working until your normal retirement age (67 or later) or until age 70. The latter will allow you to collect the maximum Social Security benefit that will be available to you.

What is the ideal amount needed to retire presently?

It depends on how long you expect to live, what lifestyle you have in mind and your resources. What do you think the amount needed will be in 25 years? The same answer applies for retirement 25 years from now.

Do you have any tips for the retiree who wants to travel during retirement and still remain financially stable?

Establish a budget, carefully research the places you want to visit, learn about health care in other countries, and make a plan for how you will manage your health care. Learn about home exchanges, etc. Perhaps there are part-time jobs that you could do in other countries.

When pre-retirement expense planning, what are a few ways to lessen your monthly costs and save more money for your retirement?

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Retirement planning for financial peace

MINNEAPOLIS--(BUSINESS WIRE)--

New disclosure requirements by the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) have pulled back the curtain on fees paid to service providers by retirement plans.

The level of detail in these disclosures is giving many retirement plans a Wizard of Oz moment similar to Dorothys dog pulling back the Wizards curtain to reveal some surprising truths, said Dan Esch Managing Director of DCAdvisors, a Minneapolis-based retirement plan consulting firm.

What plan sponsors and their retirement committees do with these new insights will be carefully watched by the DOL. An inadequate response could lead to financial penalties or even threaten the qualified status of the retirement plan itself.

In a white paper entitled New Disclosure Requirements Pull Back the Curtain on Retirement Plan Fees, DCAdvisors argues the new service provider fee disclosures give retirement plans a valuable tool to match fee structure and service provider relationships to industry best practices while benchmarking fees to determine reasonableness. The paper also describes a methodical five-step approach retirement plan committees can follow and mitigate fiduciary risk:

Under DOL Reg 408(b)(2) service providers, including investment managers, recordkeepers, advisors, trustees and consultants are required to disclose an unprecedented level of detail in what they charge directly as well as indirect revenue received from revenue sharing arrangements.

The stakes are huge. An estimated sixty million workers and retirees hold retirement savings across more than 460,000 employer sponsored 401(k) plans with approximately $3.4 trillion in assets. At the same time, the U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO) has determined that more than half of all 401(k) plan sponsors were either unaware or misinformed about the fees they or their plan participants were paying on this massive asset pool.

About DCAdvisors:

Since inception in 1994, DCAdvisors has focused on the retirement plan industry. Acting as a fiduciary partner to plan sponsors and retirement committees, we provide strategic advice and expertise related to plan design, investment selection, and plan governance.

To find out more, please visit http://www.DCAdvisors.com

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Retirement Plans Respond to Their “Wizard of Oz” Moment as New Disclosure Requirement Pulls Back the Curtain on Fees

I find it depressing to look at the balances in my retirement savings plans, as I did the other day. For all the years of socking away money in my nest egg, there doesn't seem to be much to show for it.

But I'm in good company. The median balance in 401(k)s and IRAs for households approaching retirement is $120,000, according to an analysis by Alicia Munnell, director of the Center for Retirement Research at Boston College, of the Federal Reserve's recently released 2010 Survey of Consumer Finances. That's roughly the same amount as in 2007, and it would provide a mere $575 in monthly income, assuming a couple purchase a joint-and-survivor annuity.

Retirement savers probably won't have much to cheer about anytime soon, not with economic growth decelerating in the U.S. and Europe mired in a seemingly endless debt crisis. Little wonder boomers are realizing that they need to focus on practical ways to earn a paycheck well into the traditional retirement years. Even part-time earnings will allow them to postpone tapping savings and let the money compound longer.

[More from Kiplinger.com: 5 Great U.S. Cities for Retirees]

Still, I think the spending side of the retirement equation, a critical part of any savvy retirement plan, gets short shrift. With the day of retirement reckoning not all that far off, fiftysomethings need to realistically review their spending habits.

The financial reward of spending less is striking. Steven Sass, associate director at the Center for Retirement Research at Boston College, offers this example: Say you're 55 years old, and you plan on retiring in ten years. If you save an extra $1,000 a year, you'll have $10,000 plus investment earnings(in today's dollars). So, if your savings earned 4% above inflation -- you'd have about $12,500 (in today's dollars) at retirement. You could then withdraw about $500 a year in retirement, assuming you choose to spend 4% a year above inflation.

Here's the thing: The real return from this strategy comes from cutting spending to enable the extra savings. When you retire, you'll have actually improved your household finances by $1,500 a year: $1,000 in additional accumulated savings plus $500 in income. "As you approach retirement, and it's clearly too late to significantly add to your retirement savings by saving more, moving to a more sustainable standard of living has a much greater effect," says Sass. "The two effects of saving more and spending less could significantly improve your finances."

An emphasis on greater thrift doesn't have to mean living cheaply -- far from it. Instead, thrift or frugality should push us to match our money with our values. In History of the Thrift Movement in America, a 1920 book by Simon William Straus, Straus argues that thrift includes both saving and spending wisely.

"It is the thrift that recognizes the that finer things of life must be encouraged," he writes. "The skilled workman, the artist, the musician, the landscape gardener, the designer of beautiful furniture, the members of the professions -- all those, in fact, who, through the devotion of their abilities, contribute to the real betterment of mankind, must be given support through our judicious expenditures."

[More from Kiplinger.com: 6 Great Part-Time Jobs for Retirees]

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Want More Money in Retirement? Spend Less

Many pre-retirees sensibly devote a good deal of attention to forecasting how much they'll spend in retirement, thinking through their basic living expenses as well as how much they'll spend on extras like dining out and travel. They anticipate when they'll need to replace their roofs, when it will be time for a new car, and how their medical expenses are likely to trend up as they age.

But it's simply not possible to forecast each and every expense with precision. In a recent Investing During Retirement Discuss forum thread on Morningstar.com, I asked our retired readers to share which retirement expenses had caught them off guard. Health-care-related expenditures topped many retired readers' lists, with dental work most frequently cited as an unpleasant source of additional costs. Other readers noted that happy aspects of retirement--new grandchildren, travel, and hobbies--had bumped up their in-retirement expenses. To read the complete thread or share your own expense surprise during retirement, click here.

'An Unanticipated Dental Event'One of the most striking aspects of the discussion was just how many posters mentioned dental expenses as a cost they had underrated prior to retirement. Although many employed people are covered under their companies' plans, retirees can't typically purchase insurance, and costs for significant dental work can be exorbitant.

LFremont summed it up as follows: "The one cost area that is uncontrollable and hard to anticipate is dental. I don't think there is any decent insurance to protect you, and the cost can be really substantial."

And in contrast with other expenses, such as home and car maintenance, dental costs can be lumpy, making budgeting difficult. Orygunduck wrote, "Dental expenses are tough to predict, as a couple of crowns can run up costs, quickly! I liken it to having to have major work done on your car's engine and transmission at least once a year."

Posters Jkimel44 advised that the best defense against rising dental costs is to set aside a fund to defray them as they occur. "Put a little extra money aside each year to cover an unanticipated dental event."

'Health Insurance Is Also a Growing Burden'Although dental care received a large number of mentions, many readers cited health-care insurance premiums, as well as additional medical expenses not covered by Medicare, as a source of unanticipated costs during retirement.

Health-care insurance is a particularly large and unwelcome expense for retired people who aren't yet eligible to obtain coverage under Medicare. Gizmo25 shared, "Health-care insurance was expected to be expensive, but the actual amount was a shock. I retired at 57, my wife at 53. Over one third of our living expense is for health care, and Medicare is still a couple of years away."

Reddog is facing down a similar situation. "My wife is pre-Medicare, and insurance is a whopping $4,000 a year, even with my company's plan. Yikes, pretty outrageous."

The rapidity with which health-care premiums have risen caught Gyer12 off guard. "Health-care insurance premiums went up 100% after the first year of retirement and 30% last year."

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What Unexpected Expenses Crop Up in Retirement?

LONDON The final swim of Michael Phelps' incomparable career was a victory lap, a coronation and a mere formality.

Phelps' butterfly leg in the 400-meter individual medley helped propel the United States to an emphatic victory and sent Phelps into retirement with his 22nd career Olympic medal a staggering 18 of them gold. Both totals are records and it will take a long time before those totals are even challenged, much less broken.

Phelps was joined on the winning relay by backstroker Matt Grevers, breaststroker Brendan Hansen and freestyler Nathan Adrian. The U.S. has never lost an Olympic 400 medley relay, and this one was never in doubt after Phelps regained the lead on the third leg. The Americans won with a time of 3:29.35. Japan (3:31.26) took the silver medal and Australia (3:31.58). captured the bronze.

"I could probably sum it up in a couple of words and just say, 'I did it.'" Phelps said of his career. "Through the ups and downs, I've still been able to do everything that I've ever wanted to accomplish. I've been able to do things nobody's ever done and that's what I've always wanted to do."

"The memories I have for this week will never go away," he added.

This victory gives Phelps four gold medals and two silver for the London Olympics an impressive haul for a 27-year-old and especially impressive after his shaky start here.

Phelps shockingly missed the podium in his first event, the 400 individual medley, then regrouped by winning the 100 butterfly and 200 IM and swimming strong legs on the gold medal-winning 800 freestyle relay. His silver medals were in the 400 free relay and 200 butterfly.

His final three swims all ended with him on the top step of the podium, listening to the "Star-Spangled Banner." Phelps was more emotional on the podium than he had been in Olympics past, as the emotional weight of his career's end sunk in.

After receiving his final gold medal, Phelps got a lifetime achievement award from FINA, the sport's swimming federation. The trophy boasted the words "greatest Olympian of all time," a title he only took partial credit for.

"I've been able to become the best swimmer of all time and we got here together," Phelps said of his longtime coach Bob Bowman.

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Michael Phelps swims into retirement with 18th Olympic gold on U.S. 400 medley relay team

With more than 50% of its current population under 25 years of age, India's great "demographic dividend" needs to change a few habits--immediately--or it might be too late.

India is on its way to becoming the most populous nation in the world by 2025, surpassing China. By 2050, the number of Indians older than 65 will cross 200 million from about 80 million currently, while the number of Indians older than 80 will be at 43 million, second only to China.

According to a survey by HSBC titled, "The Future of Retirement--It's Time to Prepare," by 2050 India's elderly will equal the number of its children for the first time ever. Furthermore, a United Nations study points out that, in line with the global trend of increased life expectancies and declining fertility rates, old-age dependency ratios will increase, particularly in developing countries like India.

Quite clearly, greater resources will need to be set aside for the elderly. There is a "significant requirement for retirement planning, both at the individual level and for the Indian population as a whole," says Canara HSBC OBC Life Insurance's appointed actuary Chirag Rathod. "This requires increased awareness as a society about the need for proper retirement planning and the real threat of outliving your savings."

Given the sheer scale of this impending demographic shift, India's plan--or the lack of one--to take care of its elderly deserves a closer look.

Current Retirement AccountsIndia doesn't currently have a broad Social Security plan like the United States, but policymakers have created some retirement-focused savings vehicles.

Established in the 1950s, the Employees Provident Fund is most similar to the U.S. Social Security program, but its coverage is much more limited. Participation is compulsory only for employers with 20 or more workers and for workers who have a basic salary of more than INR 6,291 per month. Both employee and employer contribute an equal amount (either 12% of basic salary or INR 780) to the individual's EPF account, on which participants get a fixed interest rate. The EPF falls under the purview of the Employees Provident Fund Organisation, which has traditionally given the responsibility of managing these funds to state-owned or government-backed lenders.

The EPF is not without its problems. The first is reach: It covers only the organized, formally employed segment of the working population, while the vast majority of Indians--including entrepreneurs, self-employed businessmen, the agricultural labor force, and others--work in the so-called unorganized sector. In addition, even though the government offered a high interest rate in the early years of the plan, yields have since come down. Although the EFP's automatic contributions instill investing discipline on workers, participants can withdraw their savings after leaving their current job in lieu of transferring their account to their next employer, in the process dealing a big blow to their retirement savings potential.

In a move away from the defined benefit EPF, the Indian government established the National Pension Scheme in 2009 in an attempt to create a defined-contribution plan along the lines of the 401(k) in the United States. However, unlike the 401(k), which is offered through employers in the U.S., any Indian citizen between 18 and 60 years of age can invest in the NPS, which is administered to individuals through point-of-presence service provider outlets, which act as collection points.

NPS participants can exercise some control over how their contributions are invested. The government has defined three asset classes: 1) E--high return/high risk, which invests in predominantly equity market instruments; 2) C--medium return/medium risk, which invests in predominantly fixed-income instruments; and 3) G--low return/low risk, which invests in purely fixed-income instruments. Participants can choose to invest their entire amount in the C or G asset classes, but only up to a maximum of 50% in equity (class E). In case participants are unwilling or unable to exercise a choice regarding their investment strategy, funds are invested in accordance with an auto-choice option across the asset classes in percentage allocations prescribed by the Pension Fund Regulatory Development Authority depending on the participant's age.

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For India, Time for Retirement Planning Is Now

Dreams of retirement have traditionally included moving hundreds or even thousands of miles away to exotic locations, golf courses and endless summer days. The reality, however, is that more Americans are staying put during retirement out of necessity or the desire to remain in a familiar environment. According to an analysis of U.S. Census Bureau data by Richard W. Johnson, Director of the Urban Institute's Program on Retirement Policy, only 1.6% of retirees between the ages of 55 and 65 moved across state lines in 2010. The remaining 98.4 percent either stayed in their existing homes or made in-state moves.

SEE: Retirement Planning

The decades following World War II saw plummeting poverty rates in the aging population because of the introduction of Social Security and Medicare, and due to the abundance of employer defined-benefit pension plans. This influx of retirement money made it possible and normal for people to move to sunny spots during retirement. Current economic conditions, as well as changing views on the definition of a successful retirement, are leading more people to stay put during retirement.

Why Stay? There are many reasons to stay put or "age in place" during retirement, some of which are due to necessity while others can be attributed to choice. The 2008 financial and falling real estate prices have made it challenging for some to sell their existing homes, limiting alternatives during retirement. Many pre-retirees who counted on selling a home and using the proceeds to purchase a smaller home or condominium during retirement have been left with a tough choice: sell the home for much less than anticipated, or stay put.

Retirees also remain in the existing homes, or at least the area, out of choice. Established professional, social and family networks may be difficult to give up. Professional connections may help retirees secure part-time or less stressful full-time work during the retirement years. Social networks provide important opportunities for people to remain active in both physical and mental terms. An established circle of friends is, for many, an invaluable component of a successful and happy retirement. And family, of course, is also a consideration. It is often difficult to move away with children, grand-children and great-grand-kids in the area. While it is enjoyable to spend time with family and spoil the grand-kids, children often move into an important and active role in the care of aging parents.

By the time the retirement years roll around, many people also have an established and trusted group of service providers from local doctors and hospitals, to car mechanics and salon professionals. In certain situations, these providers may cross into the "staying put out of necessity" category, particularly doctors of chronic medical conditions. By staying put during retirement, all of the necessary and important relationships professional, social and service are in place and familiar.

SEE: Journey Through The 6 Stages Of Retirement

Considerations When Staying Put While "planning for retirement" often refers to saving financially for the golden years making investments, balancing portfolios and the like planning also needs to involve taking care of the human side of retirement.

Health Maintaining or adapting a healthy lifestyle is an important and often overlooked part of retirement planning. The old adage "use it or lose it" is especially relevant to physical and mental activity. A study published by Oxford University Press 2009 on behalf of The Gerontological Society of America found that people who are nearing retirement age show the highest rates of weight gain and obesity . S tudies also have shown that mental decline is not inevitable as we age: keeping the brain active through mental stimulation improves memory and other brain functions.

Being proactive about health by eating well, getting physical activity, and seeking mental stimulation can lead to happier retirement years. Like most plans, it is best to write down realistic goals and determine an approach for meeting the goals and share the goals with friends and family. Without a written plan, it is easy for things like healthy eating and exercise to fall to the way side.

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Reasons To Stay Put During Retirement

If youre like most people, you probably own a few IRAs, a 401(k), and a Roth IRA. And, if youre like most people you might have a wee bit of trouble keeping track of all the key dates associated with those and other retirement accounts.

Yes, Uncle Sam didnt make it easy on those of you saving for and living in retirement. IRAs have numerous deadlines that people need to be aware of, said Jeffrey Levine, an IRA technical consultant with Ed Slott and Co. Most of the time, missing a key deadline is an irrevocable and irreparable mistake. Even in the rare cases when a deadline mistake can be fixed, the solution tends to be costly and time consuming.

Thankfully, however, there are plenty of folks, including Levine, who know the key dates for you to put on the calendar nowbefore the rest of the year gets away from you. (In other words, enjoy August.)

Sept. 30

Anyone who is inheriting an IRA from someone who died in 2011 should pay close attention to the Sept. 30, 2012 cash out date, said Levine. This is the last day to pay offcash outa beneficiary of an account so that they will not be considered when calculating required minimum distributions or RMDs from an inherited IRA.

Yes, Sept. 30 is the deadline by which certain beneficiaries must be removed from inherited IRAs, according to Denise Appleby, editor of IRA News, Views, and Tips.

Generally, if you are one of multiple beneficiaries, you are required to use the life-expectancy of the oldest beneficiary in the group to calculate your RMD amounts, Appleby said. If you are one of the younger beneficiaries, using the life-expectancy of the oldest beneficiary can reduce the amount of time over which you have to distribute your inherited IRA, and can negatively impact income tax and tax planning opportunities.

This issue is compounded if one of the many beneficiaries is whats called a nonperson such as a charity or an estate. That might require the amount to be distributed over an even shorter period, said Appleby.

So, if the IRA owner died in 2011, you can avoid this problem by removing older and nonperson beneficiaries by Sept. 30 of this year, said Appleby. Of note, she said, this removal process requires older and nonperson beneficiaries to take full distributions of their amounts by Sept. 30, 2012, or the older beneficiaries to properly disclaim their portion by Sept. 30, 2012.

Levine offered this example: Lets say a 65-year old died in 2011 and leaves their IRA 50/50 to their only child and the Red Cross, a charity. Since the Red Cross is not a designated beneficiary, if they were not cashed out by Sept. 30, 2012, the entire inherited IRA might have to be withdrawn within five years. On the other hand, if the Red Cross received their entire share of the inherited IRA and were cashed out, the child would be able to use his/her remaining life expectancy (as determined by IRS tables) to calculate their inherited IRA RMDs, allowing for increased tax-deferral and minimizing Uncle Sams bite.

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Don’t Miss These Critical Retirement Deadlines

Many people strive to retire early. But retiring early could reduce your Social Security benefits, which means you have to save even more on your own. Heres how early retirement impacts your Social Security payments, even if you delay receiving benefits until the full retirement age of 67.

Eligibility. You need 40 credits of work in order to receive Social Security benefits. For 2012, you can earn one credit for every $1,130 you earn, up to a maximum of four credits each year. If you worked for at least 10 years and paid Social Security taxes, then you probably will be eligible for Social Security.

Average earnings. Social Security payouts are typically calculated using your average indexed monthly earnings (AIME). This calculation involves adjusting (or indexing) your entire earnings history to reflect changes in wage levels and the standard of living throughout your career. Then your 35 highest earning years will be totaled and averaged out to a monthly earning.

Payouts. Your AIME is then used to calculate your primary insurance amount (PIA), which is the amount you will get if you claim Social Security at your full retirement age. For 2012, your PIA is the sum of:

(a) 90 percent of the first $767 of your AIME, plus

(b) 32 percent of your AIME over $767 and through $4,624, plus

(c) 15 percent of your AIME over $4,624.

However, these amounts may change in future years. And benefit payouts are decreased if you claim before your full retirement age, and can be increased if you delay claiming up until age 70.

Early retirement can impact this formula in a couple of important ways. If you retire significantly early, you will most likely stop working during your peak earning years. This will reduce your average earnings and, consequently, your Social Security benefit. And if you retire with less than 35 earning years, Social Security will average in zeros for those years.

For example, if you retire at age 52 after working for 30 years, your average earnings will be computed with 30 years of earnings plus 5 years of not earning. This will bring down your average earnings and reduce your Social Security benefit. This Social Security online calculator will allow you to see exactly how early retirement will affect your benefit.

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Early Retirement Will Impact Your Social Security Benefit