http://www.jacksonsun.com/article/20120405/BUSINESS/304050008

The Jackson Sun: April 4th, 2012

While people may be planning for retirement, most are not planning for unforeseen events that can keep them from that goal.

That’s the conclusion of a study by the MetLife Mature Market Institute, a division of MetLife, which is the holding company for the institute and the 140-year-old Metropolitan Life Insurance Co.

The study shows most people who plan for retirement do not consider adding funds for unexpected, unexplained and unwanted expenses. Some of those scenarios include being laid off, unexpected health issues, having to retire early, long-term care costs or stock market losses.

“Unexpected expenses for health care, housing, family support or other emergencies,” the study states, “can be a one-time or ongoing expense for six months or longer. They can cost anywhere from $6,700 to $8,300 for each occurrence.”

To help people better plan for retirement, MetLife Mature Market Institute is offering a free eight-page Retirement Readiness Workbook and the 54-page guide titled “Best-Case Strategies for a Flexible Retirement: The MetLife Study of Thinking About Retirement in Uncertain Times.”

The guide breaks retirement planners into 10 different categories, such as: “Snoozers who don’t think about future risks; Active Resisters who choose to ignore information about future risks; Plan B-ers who hold on to a contingency plan as a protection against trouble ahead,” and others.

“Ultimately, the capacity to withstand the unexpected is dependent on the ability of people to imagine, anticipate and prepare for the circumstances that are often beyond their control,” wrote Sandra Timmermann, director of the MetLife Mature Market Institute.

To find the free eight-page study guide, go online to maturemarketinstitute.com. Look in the third column from the left titled: Popular Content: Most Downloaded. The booklet is the second from the top.

To find the entire study, type Best-Case Strategies for a Flexible Retirement in the search box.

Or, click the “Research” tab at the top of the page. Then click on “2011” near the bottom left side. The study will be the second title from the top in the 2011 section.

You also can request a copy of the study guide and the entire study by e-mail at MatureMarketInstitute@MetLife.com or by calling (203) 221-6580.

Conference is next week

The 17th annual Rural Development Conference is April 11-12 at Tennessee Tech University in Cookeville. Scheduled speakers include Pete Nelson, of BioDimensions; Josh Bays, of Site Selection Group; Valecia Crisafulli, of the National Trust for Historic Preservation; Michael Burcham, of the Nashville Entrepreneur Center, and others.

Some of the workshops at the two-day program are Business Retention and Expansion; Site Selection Trends in Today’s Marketplace; Downtown Planning for Small Communities; and Nurturing Entrepreneurs in Your Community.

For more information, call USDA Rural Development at (615) 783-1300.

Send an e-mail to ra.tnrdstatedirector@tn.usda.gov, or visit www.rurdev.usda.gov/tn