We may retire earlier than we think we will. Some of us envision leaving the workforce at “full” retirement age (66 or 67) so that we can receive “full” monthly Social Security benefits rather than slightly reduced monthly payments. Will that happen? It might not, according to data released this spring by the respected Employee Benefit Research Institute.

In EBRI’s most recent Retirement Confidence Survey, 21% of the respondents thought they would retire at age 65. Another 26% expected to retire at age 70 or later.

These expectations may not correspond with reality. In surveying current retirees, EBRI found that only 6% had worked into their seventies. Only 9% had retired at age 65. Sixty-five percent of the respondents had left work before age 65, up from 61% in EBRI’s 2010 survey.

We may see retirement as an extension of the present rather than the future. This is only natural, as we live in the present – but the present will not go on forever. Things change, and the costs we have to shoulder five or ten years from now may be greater than the expenses we face at the start of retirement. As many of us will likely be retired for 20 or 30 years, it becomes essential to take a long-term view of the retirement experience – which is why retirees may want to consider growth investing and long term care coverage.

Beyond that basic question, we need to think about insurance from a couple of other angles. Will we need long term care coverage? It seems to get more expensive each year, but as medicine and health care continue to advance and evolve, the possibility of a gradual rather than sudden death may increase. The wealthy may have the assets to contend with long term care costs, but the middle class rarely does. In Genworth’s 2015 Cost of Care Survey, the median annual cost for a semi-private room in a nursing home is $80,300. In California, it is $89,396; in Florida, $87,600.

Disability insurance and long term care coverage may prove more essential to retirement planning than many of us realize.

Age may catch up to us sooner rather than later. Generationally speaking, are we healthier than our parents and grandparents were? Anecdotally, it would seem so: we see people running 10Ks in their eighties, climbing mountains in their seventies, and so forth. Then again, we have diabetes and obesity plaguing American health.

We may be alone sooner than we assume. Many couples retire with a reasonable assumption that they will be together for some time – but something may happen to leave one spouse alone. As anyone who has ever lived alone realizes, a single person does not simply live on 50% of the income of a couple. Keeping up a house – or even a condo – could be arduous for an eighty-year-old man or woman. Driving is a concern. All this means that we may need someone or some group of people to care for us when our spouse is gone. Is that kind of support currently available? Could it be available twenty years from now? If not, what will take its place?

These are some of the blindspots that can surprise us in retirement. They may quickly affect our money and our quality of life. If we age with an awareness of them and recognize them in our retirement and estate planning, then we may be betterprepared when or if they emerge.

You will always receive the amount of the highest benefit for which you qualify—not the benefits added together. The good news is that a divorced woman can receive Social Security benefits without filing any special papers at the time of divorce, and it doesn’t matter if her ex-husband has remarried.

A divorced woman must meet certain criteria to collect benefits based on her ex-husband’s work record:

• You must have been married for 10 years or longer.
• You must not be currently married.
• If you re-married and your second spouse is deceased, you qualify to claim benefits from either your first or your second husband as long as each marriage lasted at least 10 years.
• You will receive whichever benefit amount is higher.
• You must be age 62 or older.
• If your former husband is deceased, you may collect benefits as early as age 60 as a surviving divorced spouse.
• If he is deceased and you are disabled, you can collect as early as age 50.

If your ex-husband can qualify for benefits and is age 62 or older, you can start receiving benefits when you have been divorced for two or more years. In general, you will receive one-half of his retirement benefit. If he should die before you, you will receive his full retirement benefit. Your full retirement age will also affect the benefit amount you receive.

The age for full retirement has been gradually increasing from 65 to 67 based on a person’s birth year. To find out your full retirement age, go to http://www.ssa.gov.

You can apply for some benefits on-line by going to http://www.ssa.gov. To apply for benefits on your ex-husband’s work record, you will need to know his Social Security number. If you don’t’ know it, you can provide his date and place of birth and his parents’ names. And he does not even have to know.  Your benefit does not impact what he receives in any way.

This is a very complex issue, with several options.  Consult with your Certified Divorce Financial Analyst for up-to-date information about your specific situation before filing.

We looked at her portfolio – she’s not the best I’ve seen at savings, but she’s done rather decently for herself.  She still has one mortgage – but that will be paid off within the next six years.  She still has kids to put through college – and she needs to consider long term care coverage. Her question, as with most of us, was “When can I safely retire?”

My most important advice to her – wait to file for Social Security. Why? Her benefits will double if she waits and files at age 70 vs. age 62.

If she still wants to retire before age 70 – we can make that happen. We can draw more from her investments and savings to offset what Social Security would have provided. Then, when Social Security benefits come in – she can draw less from her savings. It’s all a balancing act.

Her questions then revolved around how long her savings and investments would last. Here’s a good rule of thumb to follow when considering drawing from your investments to fund your retirement. This rough calculation is based on a balanced portfolio of stocks, bonds and cash, and assumes the withdrawal percentage is based on your portfolio’s starting balance:

• Withdraw 3% per year = 50+ years funding source
• Withdraw 4% = 33 year funding source
• Withdraw 5% = 20 year funding source
• Withdraw 8% = 12 year funding source
• Withdraw 10% = 10 year funding source

All in all, after sitting and calculating and probably most importantly – planning for what her financial needs will be in retirement that will provide her with the lifestyle she has worked so hard to retain – she is waiting until she is 70!

Now she has a plan. Do you?