Key Points

• Retirement is something you and your spouse should work toward together.

• Have a shared vision for what you want your senior years to look like.

• Get comfortable with each other’s investing preferences and coordinate your Social Security claims.

• The $23,760 Social Security bonus most retirees completely overlook ›

Being married isn’t always easy. While it’s nice to have a life partner to spend time with, being part of a couple means having to cater to somebody’s needs other than just your own. And that can get tricky when there are finances involved.

It’s also important to work with your spouse when it comes to retirement planning. Retirement can be a strange period of life to adjust to. And being on the same page could make an otherwise rough transition much smoother. To do that, though, it’s important to avoid these retirement planning mistakes couples risk making.

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1. Not sharing your vision of what retirement looks like

Just because you and your spouse have similar lifestyle preferences during your working years does not guarantee that you have the same vision for retirement. It’s important to discuss what you want your senior years to look like and make sure you’re saving for a lifestyle you’ll both be content with.

It may be, for example, that you want to do a lot of travel in retirement while your spouse would rather spend the money on a lake house you retreat to several times a year. With enough savings and planning, it may be possible to achieve both goals. Or you may need to compromise. But it’s important to have those discussions ahead of time.

2. Not syncing up on an investment strategy

The more income your portfolio is able to generate for you in retirement, the more financial flexibility you might have. But it’s important to invest in a manner you’re both comfortable with so that neither of you loses sleep or ends up unhappy with your approach.

It’s one thing to take on risk in your portfolio while you’re in the process of building up wealth. It’s another thing to take on risk during retirement when you don’t have time to ride out market volatility.

Most financial experts recommend having some risk in a retirement portfolio, albeit a lower level than during your working years. But if you and your spouse have different risk tolerance levels, it’s important to work that out ahead of time and come up with a strategy you can both get on board with.

If you’re the risk-averse one, you don’t want your spouse harboring resentment that your too-conservative portfolio is holding you back. But you also don’t want to spend your days in retirement stressed over what the market is doing.

3. Failing to coordinate on Social Security

Even if you bring a nice amount of savings into retirement, there’s a good chance Social Security will be an important income source for you and your spouse. It’s important to coordinate a Social Security filing strategy so you can make the most of your benefits.

In a couple where both members are eligible for Social Security, a common strategy is to have the higher earner file at a later age while the lower earner signs up for benefits sooner. But there are many claiming scenarios you can look at.

Think about your income needs and run the numbers to see what you have to gain or lose by claiming Social Security at different ages. And, if needed, consult a financial advisor for guidance on filing for benefits so that income can support your household and lend to your joint retirement goals.

It’s important to do plenty of advanced planning for retirement, whether you’re married or solo. But if you’re married, you don’t want the above mistakes to serve as a source of conflict or stress. So do what you can to avoid them at all costs.

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