The march towards retirement is not one that most people take casually. IN fact, for most of your adult life, you have probably been doing things to prepare yourself financially for the realities of retirement. This has likely led you to collecting a wide range of assets that have maintained or grown their value over time to give you greater wealth than saving could have ever done. But if these assets are illiquid, meaning they are not easy to exchange, then it can be hard to enjoy that earned value. Here are three illiquid assets that you should cash out before retirement for easier access to your hard-earned money.
Real estate
The first illiquid asset that you should cash out before retirement is your real estate. While real estate, especially investment real estate, can be a great source of rental income during your retirement, it can also be a pain having so much value stored in a property without access to it all when you're retired. If you want to enjoy the return-on-investment from owning your property, you should seriously consider selling it before your retirement. This way you can enjoy the full lump sum rather than monthly payments.
A Business
Another illiquid asset type that you should cash out of before your retirement is any businesses you may. While owning and running a business is one of the most common and popular ways available to the average person to grow their wealth, they can be difficult to operate and maintain in retirement. Retirement is a great reason to cash out and sell your business. Selling your business can take a few months, so make sure that you have the time to put into the sale before going down this road. Selling your business can net you as much as ten times your expected annual profit.
Art
The final illiquid assets that you should cash out before your retirement are art pieces and sculptures. While not all art and sculptures are valuable, if you have invested in fine art and sculpture as a method of wealth growth, then it can be a good idea to sell them off before your retirement. Owning priceless artwork can be wonderful, but you can also get a great return on investment from selling your famous art if you own any.
Having assets of any type is great, but during retirement you especially want liquid assets. For many retirees the best plan is to liquify their illiquid assets before retiring. If you own these three asset types, you should consider cashing out before retiring too.
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