In April the phones in benefits offices at all UC locations ring much more frequently as employees begin to prepare for the annual July spike in retirements. Typically, more employees retire in July than any other month.  About 4,200 employees retired in 2007, and more than 1,500 of them did so in July.  With almost 35,000 UC faculty and staff eligible to retire (age 50 or older with at least five years of UCRP service credit), the July spike is likely to continue.  When the time comes, will you be ready?

Whether you are planning to retire this year or merely daydreaming about your retirement, there are a number of things you can do to be sure you’re ready,  according to Theron Lyon, Benefits Manager at UC Riverside, and Dorothy Ong, Benefits Specialist at UC Irvine Medical Center.  The following are tips they often give to the UC employees they counsel to help them prepare for the process.

Gather Important Papers
Regardless of your age, says Lyon, who is also a certified financial planner, the first thing you should do is put all your important financial papers in one place and make sure someone else knows about them.  “When a professor here at Riverside died unexpectedly, it took several months to figure out his estate because he had never collected his papers or discussed his retirement benefits with his wife,” Lyon recalls. You also may need a birth certificate for your spouse or domestic partner and either a copy of your marriage certificate or evidence of your domestic partnership (a copy of the registration form filed with the California Secretary of State or UC’s Declaration of Domestic Partnership).

Calculate Retirement Living Expenses
Calculating your living expenses in retirement is another important step in preparing for retirement, says Ong.  “Many people know what their retirement benefit will be,” she says, “but they don’t know if it’s enough to live on.”  Fidelity Retirement Services (formerly FITSCo), UC’s record keeper for the Retirement Savings Program, has a calculator on its website (netbenefits.com) that can help you estimate your expenses in retirement.

 “Most experts say you need 70 to 80 percent of your final salary in retirement,” says Lyon.  “You need to work at UC for 30 years to have a monthly retirement benefit equal to 75 percent of your salary, so contributing to UC’s 403(b) and 457(b) retirement savings plans is another way to ensure that you have enough money in retirement.”

Consider UCRP Payment Options
For those nearing retirement who have a spouse, domestic partner or other dependent, thinking about and discussing the various alternate payment options for UCRP’s monthly retirement benefit is also important, say both Ong and Lyon. “I find that many people haven’t calculated the options or don’t even know that we offer them,” says Ong.

The alternate payment options allow a retiree to take a reduced monthly benefit now in order for the retiree’s spouse, partner or any other person the retiree names to continue to receive a benefit after the retiree dies. Option A, which is the most popular, allows the named survivor to continue to receive the same monthly benefit you were receiving.  However, says Lyon, “If a surviving spouse or partner has other income or assets or if you have life insurance on yourself, then the other options (which provide the survivor two-thirds or one-half of the monthly retirement benefit) can be good choices.”  You can estimate your monthly retirement benefit, including the alternate payment options, using the Retirement Plan Benefit Estimator on the At Your Service website under “Quick Links.”

There are many other things you can do to be better prepared for retirement.  Most UC Benefits Offices sponsor retirement-planning workshops or host workshops sponsored by Fidelity Retirement Services where you can learn more. Check the At Your Service website for more information about workshops at your location and for other important information about UC’s retirement plan and the retirement process.