5 unconventional ways to fund retirement

1. An encore career

Starting another career near retirement age is not an uncommon thing anymore as people are living longer. You have decades of experience in your field and there are those out there that can benefit greatly from your knowledge, or perhaps you might enjoy something in a new field. If you aren’t too keen on the idea of a nine to five again, consulting and freelance work are both great ways to keep a nice cash flow on your own schedule.

2. Monetize a hobby

Everyone has something that they love doing, and now that you are retiring you’ll have even more time to do it. With all that time, suddenly you are making too much food, or growing too many vegetables and flowers, or perhaps you have made too many custom pieces in your workshop. There is no reason you couldn’t sell off the excess for a little extra money. Never let the fact that you enjoy something make you feel like you can’t earn some cash on the side for doing it, and never let the money make you stop loving it.

3. Sell off assets

One of the best things that you can do when you retire is downsize. Whether you plan to travel less or a lot more, chances are that you have a bunch of goods laying around that you aren’t going to need anymore. You may have thousands of dollars in collectibles or a second vehicle that you aren’t going to need. They aren’t serving a purpose in their material state, so why not sell them and turn them into cash?

4. Buying and renting property

The United States real estate market has been an extremely safe investment given the current overall uncertain climate globally. Real Estate has always been a rather safe investment and if you have the existing capital it can be a great way to supplement retirement income. Buying a rental property for retirement income is not completely without risk, but it can pay off for many.

5. Take a hard look at your investments

This isn’t very unconventional and shouldn’t just be done by retirees but is worth mention as too many get comfortable with their investments. Take some time to review all of your savings and investments and make adjustments as needed. You spent your whole life making money and saving, now you have to make sure your savings are making you money. Look at your investment portfolio for any poorly performing investments and reinvest them elsewhere.