Retirement is terrific, and the lifelong goal of many people in life. But sometimes when retirement is reached, many retirees surprise themselves with feelings of boredom.
With work no longer around to challenge you and preoccupy the mind, it’s time to pick up a hobby or learn something new. And with the kids all grown up, you might be getting the empty nest syndrome.
Maybe traveling is something that you will do, but flying all year can get pricey and tiring. Sometimes, you just want to be at home to relax.
Luckily in the age we live in, there are ways to make money and solve these common problems of boredom in retirement. You can use the extra earned money to travel and live the retirement of your dreams.
Airbnb your property Airbnb has converted millions of homeowners into business owners. As a retiree, you are a perfect candidate as part of this new wave of business owners. With the kids moved out, you might have a big empty house with lots of space and extra rooms. So why not rent out one of them?
You get to meet interesting people from around the world and make money at the same time. Since you have lived in your city for a long time, you’re an expert at the fun things to do around the city also and can show your guests a good time. You can get the satisfaction of being a great host.
If you’re concerned about the safety of renting to strangers, there are ways you can safeguard yourself. You don’t have to accept every guest that applies.
You can set your Airbnb to have to approve every booking, and only allow it from guests that have been highly rated by other property owners.
Also, you can block off dates if you don’t want people to stay at certain times. If you don’t want to learn how to use Airbnb, there are plenty of companies that will set everything up for you, but it might be fun to learn how to take pictures and market your property also.
Learn about investing If you don’t know too much about investing, don’t spend your whole nest egg on stocks. An excellent place to start learning is dividend stocks. Get to know a good dividend stock, but be careful that it isn’t too risky, and that the dividends have been reliable over time.
BCE Inc. (TSX:BCE)(NYSE:BCE), better known as Bell, is one of these companies. One of Canada’s premier telecom companies, Bell has a vibrant history and has been incorporated for 139 years. One year after incorporation, BCE started paying a dividend to investors.
Had you invested $10,000 in Bell 20 years ago, it’d be worth a staggering $83,777 today with dividends reinvested. Now that’s what I call a good return on investment.
BCE’s dividend yield today is a hefty 4.99%. BCE has not missed a dividend payment since the very first one. The constant reliability of dividend payments is a good indicator that BCE is a healthy and robust company.
These are the kinds of stocks you want to be invested in, blue chip performers that have been around for ages, paying consistent dividends, and are well-established brands.
Final thoughts Retiring doesn’t mean you have to stop making money. And making money doesn’t have to be boring or a chore. You can learn new skills, and meet new people all while earning extra money.
Fool contributor Christopher Liew has no position in any of the stocks mentioned.
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