If you’ve got dreams of permanently clocking out of the workforce sometime in 2012, now is the time to start plotting out your escape into retirement. Before you begin the transition, you’ll need to take an inventory of your assets and planned income, set some goals and put together a budget.

MSN Money offers a pre-retirement checklist to get you started:

* Survey your savings. You may have spent decades squirreling money in various retirement accounts and earning pensions, and now it’s time to start pulling the funds back out.

* Consolidate and reassign your investments. Once you’ve got a sense of your assets, you’ll need to separate them into a few different classes so you can get a more clear idea of what you’re working with. Consider setting aside a chunk of money for the long-term that will continue to grow as you age, and liquid, easily-accessible funds you can pull out on short notice.

* Recalculate your fluctuating expenses. Some expenses will drop, such as those related to your profession and commute, but others — such as health expenses and prescriptions — may increase, depending on your coverage. If your income and savings don’t match up, you’ll probably want to put retirement off.

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