Happily Ever After and Financially Fit MERGING MONEY AFTER 50
Are you tying the knot after 50? (Congratulations!) For older couples getting ready to walk down the aisle, there are unique financial considerations to take into account. Merging finances at this exciting stage involves retirement plans, adult children from previous relationships, and different priorities for the future. Get ready for the honeymoon phase as we explore how to merge marital finances in your 50s and beyond.
UNDERSTANDING YOUR SIGNIFICANT OTHER’S SPENDING At this point in your life, your financial habits and values are well established compared to 20-somethings still finding their financial footing. Being transparent about your income, savings, and spending with your partner is essential. You may even want to review each other’s credit reports. Discuss your hopes for retirement and what it will take to get there. You may be more set in your money mannerisms, so it will take planning to reach your shared lifetime goals. COMBINING ACCOUNTS Newlyweds who are 50-plus must decide if they will merge their accounts fully or maintain separate ones. At this age, you likely have more assets to consider. Maybe you’ll keep individual bank accounts and create a joint account for shared expenses like bills. Reviewing your estate plans together is essential to ensure your wishes for wealth distribution to heirs are clear. Embarking on this new chapter means more than just sharing a life — it’s about blending finances in a way that makes sense for both of you. Communicating about your finances and shared goals ensures your golden years together are filled with financial harmony and peace of mind.
WHAT WOULD BE THE PERFECT CONVENIENCE STORE LOCATION?
One of the first rules of real estate is that real estate is all about location, location, location. If this is the No. 1 rule in the real estate business, then the No. 2 rule is competition, which is just as important, if not more. Before we discuss what the perfect location for a convenience store would be, let’s first begin with YOU. What is it you want to accomplish? Are you an owner-operator who has a couple of stores and are looking to grow your base of business? Or are you someone who already owns multiple stores and you are planning on growing into the 10–20-plus store range or beyond? Is your plan to build or buy wherever you can and resell the store, or is your plan to grow the family business? It makes a difference. The criteria for finding the perfect location are the same, but the outcome is different because of the cost involved.
where they are looking 25–50 years in the future. They can do this because they have the infrastructure and financial capability to keep the business going for a long time, and they are not dependent on family members to continue the growth, which enables them to develop stores across the country where the people are migrating. If you are a regional player with 10 or more stores, then you generally won’t have the infrastructure to jump 1,000 miles across the country and acquire some stores or build a group of stores without jeopardizing your entire operation. Therefore, you are restricted to finding a location that is considered an “A” location with minimal competition, which may mean buying an older store and razing and rebuilding it within your region. An owner-operator with only a few stores is limited in their growth opportunities and would be best suited to acquire a competitor who has a good location but is not a good operator.
I have seen hundreds of convenience store operators who think they are good at operating their stores, but in reality, they are mediocre operators who have an excellent real estate location with the real estate location carrying the business, not their ability as an operator. So, the perfect location can be different things for different people, but the basics of the perfect location are, first, going to where the people are. You can do a quick demographic search of the area you intend to operate in or with the assistance of a commercial real estate company with access to demographic information. Of course, the location you select must have easy access, and a right-hand turn into the location is always preferable, especially coming off a major highway or expressway. Competition is the next factor that will make you or break you. Is there already a competitor close by? If so, then how much new business do you expect to acquire from
Most of the larger chains of convenience store operators have a long-term vision
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