 Absolutely. You have to be prepared for those types of things. Now, another retirement phase that many people fail to properly prepare for is utilities. Thankfully, as the article explains, a lot of retirees see lower monthly utility bills. And that's because in retirement, you probably no longer have kids leaving lights on all night and making frozen pizzas three times a day and all of that stuff. But many retirees also secure a smaller home not long after they leave their career, which means less heating and air conditioning costs.