Reasons To Stay Put During Retirement | CluelessMBA

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.

Downsizing
Even if retirees are planning on staying put, some may be interested in downsizing. Moving into a smaller home nearby may be a smart move financially, but can also greatly reduce the amount of time, money and effort that is spent on routine household maintenance and inevitable repairs. In addition, an important part of downsizing is that it often involves moving to a single story ranch-style home or condominium (condominium buildings are often several ? or dozens ? of stories high, but each floor can be accessed by elevators). Eliminating stairs from the home may be a matter of convenience or need.

Condominiums are especially attractive to retirees because they eliminate many of the chores that accompany homeownership, such as raking leaves, mowing the lawn, cleaning the gutters and sealing the driveway. While the owner is responsible for the maintenance within his or her individual condominium unit, the condominium association is responsible for the maintenance and repairs for all common areas, including basements, elevators, halls, lobbies, HVAC systems, community facilities and land on which the building stands. In addition, condominiums often provide a sense of community and services that cater specifically to retirees and seniors.

SEE: Downsize Your Home To Downsize Expenses

Remodeling
Having a functional, comfortable place to call home is as important during retirement years as it was the working years, perhaps even more so. Retirees and their families may make the following considerations when turning a home into an ?age in place? setting:

• Evaluate needs
• Determine what home modifications are needed to allow staying put during retirement
• Identify care resources (including family, friends or paid services) to provide assistance, if and when necessary
• Determine the costs of modifications and care resources

Home modifications may include:

• Turning a downstairs room, such as a den, into a bedroom
• Installing a stair glide to assist with getting from one level to another
• Installing ramps to enter/exit the home
• Widening doors and hallways to accommodate wheelchairs
• Remodeling bathrooms to include grab bars and specialized tubs for bathing
• Assistive technology, such as a Personal Emergency Response System (PERS)

The Bottom Line
Despite the fact that many people still dream about retiring in an exotic location, aging in place ? or staying put during retirement ? has many benefits and is an increasingly popular retirement approach. Being able to maintain relationships that were developed over decades ? including professional, social and service networks ? and staying close to family are important considerations when deciding to stay put during retirement.

SEE: How To Budget Your Retirement Funds And Still Have Fun

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Article source: http://finance.yahoo.com/news/reasons-stay-put-during-retirement-170533883.html

Source: http://cluelessmba.com/2012/08/04/reasons-to-stay-put-during-retirement/

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Badminton legends check out with classic

Olympic badminton is saying goodbye to four modern greats at the London Games, but two of them -- Lin Dan and Lee Chong Wei -- look set to sign off with a classic final.

With Lin and Lee, as well as 2004 champion Taufik Hidayat and former world number one Peter Gade, eyeing retirement, it's all-change at the top of one of Asia's most popular sports.

And on Sunday, China's "Super Dan" and Lee, his fiercest rival, can end the era in style.

Lin, bearded and tattooed at 28, is often labelled the greatest of all time -- yet it is Lee who was number one for 199 consecutive weeks, until injury forced him to take two months off in May.

The Malaysian has been a model of consistency for almost four years, but Lin has barred his way to the two trophies he most wants, the world and the Olympic titles.

When they met in the world final a year ago, also in Wembley Arena, it was billed as an Olympic test.

But the encounter developed such colour and drama that it became more than a warm-up, and entered the pantheon as one of the greatest matches of all time.

Lee has been aching for atonement ever since producing a performance of such beauty -- and still having Lin prevent him from converting his two match points.

Lin now no longer says that he wants to beat Lee -- though he surely does -- but that he "hopes that both players can achieve their level and that my opponent is also able to achieve his dreams".

Even allowing for a mixture of politeness and philosophising, it seems that these do represent Lin's personal feelings about Lee.

After all, Lin has won all the most important titles -- not only the Olympics and the world championships, but the Super Series Masters finals, the All England Open, the Asian Games, and the Asia Championships too.

Their rematch gains extra poignancy because both will soon be gone. It is certainly their last Olympics, and might have been their last tournament, except that both now seek suitable epilogues.

Lin has been persuaded to play a little longer because he is so essential to the marketing of the sport, and Lee would like one more try for the world title that has somehow eluded him.

Lin is favourite, because Lee's preparation has been hampered by injury. But a great match and an enduring memory is still possible.

Denmark's Gade, 35, lost in the quarter-finals, in what will be the final act in more than a decade-and-a-half among badminton's elite.

Indonesia's Hidayat, 30, is also soon to end a colourful and brilliant career highlighted by his 2004 Olympic win, when he wept freely, wearing laurel leaves, on the victory podium.

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/badminton-legends-check-classic-014200184.html

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Rules Can Keep Your Family Business and ... - MS Estate Planning

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Can you imagine spending half of your working life in a family business, beside your mother, father, and brother, and all getting along? And then spending the next half of your work life with your brother, your spouse, your four sons and three nephews, and still all getting along? I pinch myself. We have been able to create an environment of mutual respect and trust, one where we can function as a team that shares the emotional and intellectual challenges of business along with its financial rewards.

How do you successfully transfer your family business within your family? It can be a tricky situation. One successful trick that CNNMoney recently highlighted is the power of rules.

The article, titled "Family business: How to pass the baton," is a story about the Mitchell family and the rules they developed to keep their family, as well as their business, intact. As the article illustrates, rules are a way of promising to yourself and future generations that you'll maintain a strong shareholder's agreement, operating agreement, or other founding document of the business itself.

So, what guidelines will help keep your family together and in business at the same time? For some practical ideas, consult the original article for the "Mitchell" rules and consider how they might work for you family business.

Reference: CNNMoney (July 9, 2012) "Family business: How to pass the baton"

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Annan quits Syria role, blasts UN Security Council

GENEVA (AP) ? Frustrated by Syria's escalating civil war, Kofi Annan announced Thursday that he will quit his high-profile role as special envoy to the country at the end of the month, giving reasons that amounted to scathing criticism of world powers' failure to unite to stop the chaos in the Arab state.

He also asserted that Syrian President Bashar Assad must leave office for the good of his country.

Annan told reporters that when he accepted the job, "which some called 'Mission Impossible,'" he wanted to help the international community, led by the U.N. Security Council, find a peaceful solution to the crisis. The goal was to stop the killings of civilians and human rights abuses, as well as to place Syria on a path toward political transition.

"The severity of the humanitarian costs of the conflict, and the exceptional threats posed by this crisis to international peace and security, justified the attempts to secure a peaceful transition to a political settlement, however daunting the challenge," Annan said.

But the former U.N. secretary-general told reporters that he cannot go on when the New York-based, 15-nation Security Council doesn't fully back him, particularly because of the stalemate between its five veto-wielding members: Russia and China on one side, the United States, Britain and France on the other.

"Things fell apart in New York," he summed up. "The increasing militarization on the ground (in Syria) and the clear lack of unity in the Security Council have fundamentally changed the circumstances for the effective exercise of my role."

Annan was named the U.N.-Arab League envoy to Syria in February, overseeing a small staff in a secretive office accessible through a makeshift elevator entrance in the sprawling Palais des Nations, the U.N.'s European headquarters in Geneva. He came up with a six-point peace plan to resolve Syria's crisis, including a cease-fire that was supposed to take effect in mid-April.

But, despite the presence of hundreds of U.N. observers on the ground, the cease-fire never took hold and the violence in Syria has morphed into a civil war. Rights activists say that more than 19,000 people have died since the popular uprising against Assad began in March 2011.

Annan notified U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon and the Secretary-General of the League of Arab States, Nabil El Araby, that he would leave office when his appointment expires Aug. 31.

"The bloodshed continues, most of all because of the Syrian government's intransigence, and continuing refusal to implement the six-point plan, and also because of the escalating military campaign of the opposition ? all of which is compounded by the disunity of the international community," Annan said.

"At a time when we need ? when the Syrian people desperately need action ? there continues to be finger-pointing and name-calling in the Security Council."

On June 30, Annan succeeded in getting the major powers on the council ? including stalwart Syria allies Russia and China ? to agree on a broad framework for a political transition in Syria, one that he said "meant President Assad would have to leave sooner or later." But the Security Council never formally endorsed the plan or acted on it, something that sorely disappointed the envoy and, he said, undermined his efforts.

Without international unity, including the cooperation of regional powers, he concluded: "it is impossible for me, or anyone, to compel the Syrian government in the first place, and also the opposition, to take the steps necessary to begin a political process. You have to understand: as an envoy, I can't want peace more than the protagonists, more than the Security Council or the international community for that matter," he told reporters at an impromptu press conference in Geneva.

Annan did not single out any member of the Security Council by name for criticism during the press conference. But in an op-ed column published by the Financial Times on Thursday, he urged several countries to look beyond their national interests and rivalries to solve the Syrian crisis.

"For Russia, China and Iran this means they must take concerted efforts to persuade Syria's leadership to change course and embrace a political transition, realizing the current government has lost all legitimacy," Annan wrote, adding: "For the U.S., U.K., France, Turkey, Saudi Arabia and Qatar this means pressing the opposition to embrace a fully inclusive political process ? that will include communities and institutions currently associated with the government."

Annan also had harsh words for the Syrian government and what he called its "intransigence." In what was his strongest statement to date about the Syrian leader, Annan wrote, "It is clear that President Bashar al-Assad must leave office."

Annan's announcement coincided with Arab countries dropping a demand that Assad resign in the latest draft of a symbolic U.N. General Assembly resolution that faces a Friday vote in New York. The watered-down resolution further illustrated the international struggle to build an effective diplomatic approach to Syria's civil war.

The draft resolution was resisted by countries such as Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa who had problems with calling for regime change or sanctions. Russia and China have vetoed stronger proposals on Syria in the Security Council, which, as the most powerful arm of the U.N., can adopt enforceable resolutions and impose sanctions.

In the U.S., White House press secretary Jay Carney said Annan's resignation highlighted the failure of Russia and China to support action against Assad. In Britain, Prime Minister David Cameron said Annan's departure was evidence that the current approach has failed ? and that the U.N. needs to get tougher with Syria.

"We've got this appalling bloodshed. I think what we need to do is to ramp things up," Cameron told Sky News television.

Ban, the U.N. secretary-general, said he is discussing possible successors with the Arab League. "I remain convinced that yet more bloodshed is not the answer; each day of it will only make the solution more difficult while bringing deeper suffering to the country and greater peril to the region," Ban said.

Russian President Vladimir Putin called the events in Syria a "tragedy."

"Kofi Annan is an honorable man and a brilliant diplomat, so I regret that very much," he said. "But I hope that the international community will continue efforts to end violence."

Alexei Pushkov, the head of the foreign affairs committee in the lower house of the Russian parliament, blamed the failure of Annan's plan on the West.

"Regrettably, the so-called Friends of Syria led by the United States have encouraged the opposition and sought to put pressure only on the Syrian government. That became the reason behind the failure of Annan's plan," Pushkov said, according to RIA Novosti.

China's Foreign Ministry expressed "regret" on Annan's leaving, saying in a statement on its web site, "We understand the difficulties in Annan's mediation work and respect his decision."

It is unclear how Annan's departure will affect his legacy.

Annan, the grandson of Ghanaian tribal chiefs, joined the United Nations in 1962 as an administrative and budget officer for the World Health Organization in Geneva.

He rose to become its secretary-general from 1997 to 2006, helping to ease the transition to civilian rule in Nigeria in 1998 and visiting Iraq to defuse an impasse between Saddam Hussein and the U.N. In 1999, he was deeply involved in helping East Timor gain independence from Indonesia.

But he also has been strongly associated with the criticism over some of the U.N.'s biggest failures.

He headed U.N. peacekeeping at a time when the U.N. has been accused of ignoring evidence that genocide was planned in Rwanda and of abandoning the Rwandan people when it was under way in 1994. The U.N. was also blamed for failing to help save thousands of Bosnian Muslims from the 1995 Serb mass murder in the town of Srebrenica, which had been declared a U.N. safe haven.

Asked Thursday about the idea of someone else being appointed to succeed him as envoy to Syria, Annan said, "The world is full of crazy people like me, so don't be surprised if someone else decides to take it on."

___

Associated Press writers Vladimir Isachenkov in Moscow and Peter Spielmann in New York contributed to this report.

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/annan-quits-syria-role-blasts-un-security-council-170424654.html

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A Day That Will Live in Infamy! (talking-points-memo)

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What If being 'Crazy' wasn't necessarily a bad thing? What if it meant you were gifted beyond the normal human being?

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'Skyfall' trailer has gadgets, villain, Bond girl

By Gael Fashingbauer Cooper, NBC News

Warning: Possible spoilers for "Skyfall" follow. If seeing James Bond jump out of a helicopter alongside the Queen of England during the Olympic opening ceremonies whetted your appetite for a little more 007, get ready to tuck in, because?two nice juicy full trailers for "Skyfall" have just landed (one for domestic release, one for international).

The?action begins with M (Judi Dench) perusing Bond's obituary, as if for one minute the British spy could have been killed off. Sure enough, he's?soon back in action,?ready for another round of beautiful women, exotic destinations and danger.

Bond gadget guy Q returns in this film, and he's gotten younger, as he's now played by Ben Whishaw. It's a big role to step into, but Whishaw nails it, with a slightly nerdy, still classy take on the gadgetmaster. One of the coolest things in the trailer is when he explains that Bond's Walther PPK has been coded to the spy's own palmprint, so no one else can fire it. Oh yeah, that's going to play in to the plot in a neat way.

Javier Bardem gets yet another bad hairdo as villain Raoul Silva, and B?r?nice Marlohe?is a lovely Bond girl (is there any other kind?) with a chilling warning for Bond about Silva's powers. And we're looking forward to figuring out just how M managed to lose a hard drive full of secret agent details, and how she and M16 will deal with the consequences.

"Skyfall" opens in the U.S. on Nov. 9. And as TODAY's Matt Lauer told viewers Monday, the spy franchise turns 50 this year. Daniel Craig, the current Bond, notes in the clip that he's happy to maintain the character, and hopes that plenty of other actors will play 007 after him and carry on the tradition. Take your time, Mr. Craig -- we're not so eager for you to hang up your tuxedo jacket.

Will you see "Skyfall"? Who's your favorite James Bond actor? Tell us?on Facebook.?

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Food cost, trade "double whammy" could hit Africa

JOHANNESBURG (Reuters) - Rising food prices could hit commodity producers in Africa with a dangerous "double whammy" when combined with an economic slowdown in Europe and China reducing African exports of oil and raw materials, a leading African economist said on Tuesday.

Mthuli Ncube, Chief Economist and Vice President of the African Development Bank (AfDB), saw the threat of a food price spike casting a shadow over an otherwise positive growth outlook for Africa that will outpace much of the rest of the world.

"Certainly, there is a lot of reason to worry," Ncube told Reuters, recalling a food and fuel prices squeeze in 2008 that touched off social unrest and food riots in several African nations and also directly affected the continent's growth.

The 2012 African Economic Outlook produced by the AfDB with other international institutions foresees Africa's growth accelerating to 4.5 percent in 2012 from 3.4 percent in 2011 in a display of healthy resilience in tough global conditions.

But the World Bank warned on Monday that a worrying broad-based rise in grain prices fuelled by a severe drought in the U.S. Midwest would hurt the world's poor, including those in the world's least developed continent, Africa.

"It is a threat ... if they (the food prices) keep rising, again we will have social upheaval that will threaten economic growth in Africa," Ncube said in an interview on the sidelines of a youth employment promotion event in Johannesburg.

Another global food price spike would squeeze both net food importers in Africa and combine with the euro zone crisis in Europe and a slowdown in China's growth to negatively impact African exporters of oil and other commodities.

"That then becomes a dangerous 'double whammy'," Ncube said.

It was estimated that a one percent drop in Europe's GDP for example would shave half a percent off Africa's growth.

Ncube added however that the looming food price squeeze could be less severe than in 2008, when it was accompanied by a damaging parallel rise in oil and fuel prices, growing use of biofuels and bad weather.

This sparked violent food riots in African states like Egypt and Cameroon, as well as elsewhere.

Ncube believed too that governments and global institutions were now more aware and better prepared to deal with a fresh food prices crisis. "The world knows what could happen ... there is a better crisis response preparedness," he said.

The AfDB, for example, would be ready to swing into action to financially support governments struggling to cope with sharply higher food import bills and budget crunches.

"PAINFUL SLOG" TO DIVERSIFY

Despite Africa's comparatively strong economic expansion rates, the continent was experiencing "jobless growth", particularly in relation to its huge reservoir of unemployed youth, Ncube said.

Youth represented 60 percent of Africa's unemployed, and despite recording world-topping growth rates between 2000 and 2008, the continent was failing to create the number of jobs necessary to absorb the 10-12 million young and increasingly educated people entering the labor market each year.

Ncube said a major obstacle to more job creation was the persistence of what he called "one-sided economies" in Africa that exported oil and raw materials instead of moving decisively to diversify into job-multiplying manufacturing, commercial agriculture or agro-processing.

"It's a painful slog to diversify," he said.

"We need entrepreneurs to do it. We need to spend the time to build that business culture, the entrepreneurs," he added.

Ncube identified efficient commercial farming in particular as a "missed opportunity" in Africa where, despite an abundance of fertile land, complex social and political issues of land ownership and title were still hampering farming development.

"Africa hasn't cracked this yet," he said.

(Reporting By Pascal Fletcher; editing by Ron Askew)

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/food-cost-trade-double-whammy-could-hit-africa-114004026.html

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