Couples nearing retirement have to make key decisions about where and how to live, as well as how to ensure that any pension or annuity payments go to the survivor -- often the wife -- and how to maximize Social Security for both of you when one spouse -- often the husband -- is the high earner.

If you anticipate a retirement-income shortfall, working longer is often the best solution, not only because it bolsters your savings but also because it helps you delay taking Social Security. You'll get an 8-percent boost in benefits for every year you delay past full retirement age, until age 70. And Social Security benefits adjust with inflation. Trying to buy an annuity with similar benefits in today's marketplace would be "extremely expensive," says Diane Oakley, executive director of the National Institute on Retirement Security.

If you're planning to work longer anyway, try to switch to a job with a pension, advises Oakley. Rare in the private sector, traditional defined-benefit plans are still common at jobs in health care, education and public administration, and many vest after five years. Adding that income to other resources will go a lot further than trying to catch up on savings when you're close to retirement, says Oakley.

Your house is also a great resource if you can tap the equity through a reverse mortgage or continue to live there after paying off the mortgage. Kathryn Siebert, 59, has a more creative idea. She loves her job at a nonprofit in Portland, Ore., and has no plans to retire soon, but she also has to repair her finances after a divorce. She kept the family home -- a Craftsman-style house -- and, for now, rents out a room to help cover monthly costs. When she retires, she will either sell the house and reap the considerable profit or invite her sons, Emil, 26, and Austin, 22, to move in. "My boys can't afford to live in this town, but they could afford to live in the house and take over the mortgage while I travel the world," says Siebert. Ultimately, she'd like to come back home and enjoy a multigenerational household, as she did growing up.

(Sandra Block is a senior associate editor and Jane Bennett Clark is a senior editor at Kiplinger's Personal Finance magazine. Send your questions and comments to moneypower@kiplinger.com. And for more on this and similar money topics, visit Kiplinger.com.)