When it comes to planning for your retirement, you need to account for more than just your regular monthly expenses to be covered. Life happens, even after you've retired, and you need to make sure your financial plan allows you to take care of emergency expenses, whether it be car repairs or making major repairs to your home. Here are a few things you should discuss with your financial planner to ensure you have everything covered when you are set to retire.

Home Improvements

If you own your own home, there will likely be improvements you want to make during your retirement. This might include simply painting the walls a new color, or it might involve replacing a water heater or other major appliance. Talk to your financial planner about having a set amount of money set aside for home improvements, property taxes, and other miscellaneous home-related repairs. You might want to consider placing the funds in an interest-bearing account that is not connected to your primary savings or checking accounts. This will help to ensure you don't overspend and dip into your home improvement fund.

Medical Expenses

Medical expenses can be difficult to predict, and you may find that some expenses are more than you can afford even with insurance coverage. One option to consider is enrolling in a health savings account, and put money into it every month leading up to your retirement. The money in the account rolls over every month, and you may be able to set up an account that accrues interest. You can use the money that rolls over from year to year as a safety net for your medical costs, but be sure to account for monthly medical expenses in your retirement budget as well.

Travel

Part of the goal of retirement is to enjoy life, so don't forget to plan for travel and other entertainment related expenses. It's a good idea to list the places you want to go and the things you want to do so you can come up with an estimated cost for each activity. Once you have the approximate costs for the big things you want to do, you can work them into your retirement budget. Remember that you'll also want to allow some leave some money in your budget every month for small activities, such as going to the movies or out to dinner, as well.

Discuss your goals with your financial planner, and be sure to talk about any concerns you have regarding your current or future financial situation. With the right planning, you can enjoy your retirement years without having to worry so much about money.