I'm 61 and scared to retire. I have $650,000 saved but wish I had more — I should've gotten into real estate sooner.

Dan Steven Erickson built a $650,000 retirement fund from a career of mainly teaching. He also leveraged real estate investments and employer-matched retirement plans to grow his savings. Despite financial growth, he feels insecure about retirement and wishes he had invested earlier. I got my first job at 17 and worked mainly dead-end jobs at restaurants, in construction, and at mini-marts. I was a late bloomer and started college in 1993 at 30. I graduated with a bachelor's and a master's degree ...