Over 55, Unemployed and Running Out of Options
According to the U.
S.
Labor Department, statistics show that among the 14.
9 million unemployed, more than 2.
2 million are 55 or older, and almost half of those have been unemployed six months or longer.
The unemployment rate in the 55+ age group is a record high 7.
3%.
As the months with no income drag on many of these forced early retirees are draining their personal savings accounts and 401(k) retirement accounts, and borrowing heavily from family members.
Regular medical health plans are being dropped for catastrophic plans which cover only medical emergencies.
Vacation travel is out of the question.
Even important extended family events like weddings and funerals are being avoided if air travel and hotel stays are involved.
With Social Security benefits still years away many Boomers are running out of options to continue to pay their mortgages and health care expenses, or to help their kids and grand-kids, some of whom may also be out of work, with living and college expenses.
If you find yourself in this boat and if borrowing from your 401(k) is necessary to keep the boat afloat, the experts suggest that you learn about the ways to minimize the tax hit and penalties, which run at 10%.
The rules for withdrawal are complicated and they come with a host of seen and unforeseen consequences so it will be well worth your time to investigate.
One other thing worth investigating is how you can turn your work and life experience, your hobby, or your special interest into an online business.
Almost everybody is an expert about something.
People from around the globe search the world wide web everyday for specialized information, and they are willing to pay for it too.
We all tend to undervalue our knowledge but think back.
Wouldn't you have paid to leapfrog your knowledge about your own special interest - if you could get the benefit of somebody else's years of experience? This is not a wild-eyed or impractical idea.
It will cost you nothing to do the preliminary investigation to gauge the marketability of your special knowledge.
And if you determine that your knowledge is marketable the cost of putting your new business online, top to bottom, can be measured in a few hundred dollars and not the thousands it would take to get started with a conventional brick and mortar or office kind of business.
An online business doesn't just have to be about information either.
People buy everything online - from shoes to suits of armor.
You can earn commissions selling hard goods and tangible products individually or in a niche store.
Almost all the major manufacturers, and loads of smaller ones too, offer what are called affiliate programs, that you can join for free.
You get paid a commission on every sale from your website.
All the bookkeeping and back-office stuff is done for you.
You don't physically handle any products and you don't store or ship anything.
The sites that offer the consumer unique and useful information about the products they want to buy tend to do well, even in the most competitive fields.
There is a world of opportunity to replace a lost income with an online business.
The cost of entry is low enough to make it feasible for almost everybody.
With some brain work, a little motivation, and the right mentoring starting an online business can become the early retirement problem solver.
S.
Labor Department, statistics show that among the 14.
9 million unemployed, more than 2.
2 million are 55 or older, and almost half of those have been unemployed six months or longer.
The unemployment rate in the 55+ age group is a record high 7.
3%.
As the months with no income drag on many of these forced early retirees are draining their personal savings accounts and 401(k) retirement accounts, and borrowing heavily from family members.
Regular medical health plans are being dropped for catastrophic plans which cover only medical emergencies.
Vacation travel is out of the question.
Even important extended family events like weddings and funerals are being avoided if air travel and hotel stays are involved.
With Social Security benefits still years away many Boomers are running out of options to continue to pay their mortgages and health care expenses, or to help their kids and grand-kids, some of whom may also be out of work, with living and college expenses.
If you find yourself in this boat and if borrowing from your 401(k) is necessary to keep the boat afloat, the experts suggest that you learn about the ways to minimize the tax hit and penalties, which run at 10%.
The rules for withdrawal are complicated and they come with a host of seen and unforeseen consequences so it will be well worth your time to investigate.
One other thing worth investigating is how you can turn your work and life experience, your hobby, or your special interest into an online business.
Almost everybody is an expert about something.
People from around the globe search the world wide web everyday for specialized information, and they are willing to pay for it too.
We all tend to undervalue our knowledge but think back.
Wouldn't you have paid to leapfrog your knowledge about your own special interest - if you could get the benefit of somebody else's years of experience? This is not a wild-eyed or impractical idea.
It will cost you nothing to do the preliminary investigation to gauge the marketability of your special knowledge.
And if you determine that your knowledge is marketable the cost of putting your new business online, top to bottom, can be measured in a few hundred dollars and not the thousands it would take to get started with a conventional brick and mortar or office kind of business.
An online business doesn't just have to be about information either.
People buy everything online - from shoes to suits of armor.
You can earn commissions selling hard goods and tangible products individually or in a niche store.
Almost all the major manufacturers, and loads of smaller ones too, offer what are called affiliate programs, that you can join for free.
You get paid a commission on every sale from your website.
All the bookkeeping and back-office stuff is done for you.
You don't physically handle any products and you don't store or ship anything.
The sites that offer the consumer unique and useful information about the products they want to buy tend to do well, even in the most competitive fields.
There is a world of opportunity to replace a lost income with an online business.
The cost of entry is low enough to make it feasible for almost everybody.
With some brain work, a little motivation, and the right mentoring starting an online business can become the early retirement problem solver.
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