How Couples Can Retire in Harmony

A 2015 Fidelity study of couples showed that half of baby boomers (people ages 52 to 70) don't even discuss a post-career plan, much less agree on it. Couples also have trouble expressing their expectations for each other in retirement, especially if one spouse retires first, says Dorian Mintzer, a retirement-transition coach in Boston and coauthor of The Couple's Retirement Puzzle: 10 Must-Have Conversations for Creating an Amazing New Life Together (Sourcebooks). The working spouse, for instance, might expect the at-home spouse to do more of the household chores, whereas the at-home spouse -- let's just say it's the husband -- has no clue that's on the agenda. The first logical step in avoiding a marital disconnect is to discuss up front how and where you want to spend your retirement, expressing your views as "this is what I'm interested in doing" rather than taking aim at the other person's ideas, says Mintzer.