Marijuana entrepreneurs are usually so busy with their dreams and goals, not to mention the day-to-day details of nurturing a startup to full maturity, that they neglect to give adequate thought and planning to that day — maybe far in the future — when they retire. It’s a challenge for entrepreneurs to really plan for their own retirement because their salary and income is as up and down as a roller coaster.

Social Security

Entrepreneurs need to make sure that their personal tax status allows for the deduction of Social Security taxes. While the media is full of dire warnings of its imminent failure, Social Security is still one of the foundations for steady retirement income.

Medicare

Budget for this, starting today. Medicare is not free — it will cost anywhere from 700 to 1300 dollars per month, depending on lifetime earnings average. Right now the government takes it directly out of Social Security, but that could change at any time — making each person responsible for their own payments.

Reverse mortgage

Not a good idea, unless the property is ready to be condemned anyway or there’s no one to inherit it. Read the fine print very carefully — many reverse mortgage agreements specify that the money must be paid back by survivors after death.