Clothing
When it comes to business wear, we all know what they say: You dress for success. Fortunately, once you’ve retired, you can take a break from wearing stiff suits and high heels and trade in your work wardrobe for more comfortable pants and T-shirts.
The average household led by someone who is 65 or older spends $1,070 a year on clothing, compared to $2,028 a year spent by the average working household. The money you’ll get to save on dry cleaning (around $1,000 a year in certain urban areas) is also something to consider.
While it’s true that retired people don’t spend as much on clothing and related services as working people, according to Marguerita Cheng, the chief executive officer at Blue Ocean Global Wealth, during the first few years of retirement, some retirees might still feel the need to refresh and update their wardrobe.
Food
Many future retirees dream of retiring and making the most of their newfound time by cooking more of their favorite foods or going out to their favorite restaurants. Given that you’ll have 25 percent fewer costs on the food you consume in and out of your house during your golden years, you have every chance of fulfilling those dreams. According to Erik Hurst and Mark Aguiar, professors from the University of Chicago and Princeton University, there’s a simple reason behind all this: when you’re retired, you have fewer mouths to feed (many retirees are empty-nesters) and more time to shop around.
When you’re no longer in such a rush to get to your next destination, you have more time to compare prices, use coupons and plan your meals in advance. This helps you save more from dining out, with spending dropping by as much as 35%. When you’re on a 9 to 5 schedule, much of your dining out consists of lunches on the go or expensive coffees on your way to the office.
