'Too late?’: I'm 52 and recently separated with only $60K in a 401(k) and no other savings — what steps can I take to secure my retirement?

According to Forbes, the median cost of divorce in the U.S. is $7,000 — however, the average is $15,000 to $20,000, indicating that a small number of far pricier, contested divorces are skewing the numbers.

For someone in their early 50s with minimal savings, ensuring a happy, financially secure retirement may already seem like a pipe dream, even without the additional strain of a divorce into the mix. Luckily, not all hope is lost.

Here's what to do if you've had a major life change with retirement on the horizon.

Reevaluate your fixed expenses

A survey from investing firm Schroders showed that 46% of Americans who participate in a workplace retirement plan expect to have less than $500,000 saved by the time they retire. One the other hand, these same participants believe it takes $1.2 million to retire comfortably.

Often when people panic about their retirement savings, they start looking for little ways they can make cuts to their monthly expenses.

One of the best ways to downsize your fixed expenses is by shopping around for a better rate on your home and car insurance.

With BestMoney, it’s easy to compare home insurance rates in just a few clicks. Their easy-to-use platform helps you find the best home insurance rates in your area.

Their simple process makes shopping for home coverage fast, easy, and affordable. All you have to do is answer a few quick questions about yourself and your home, and you’ll see a list of quotes tailored for your needs.

With OfficialCarInsurance, you can also ensure that you’re cutting your car insurance costs down to size, and keeping them within the scope of your fixed income.

Getting started with a quote is easy: When you enter your age, your home state, the type of vehicle you drive and your driving record, OfficialCarInsurance will sort through the leading insurance companies in your area, and give you the best deals from top providers like Progressive, Allstate and GEICO.

The process is 100% free and won't affect your credit score — guaranteed.

Maximize retirement contributions

Whether you do it by downgrading on fixed expenses or creating a strict budget, you need to start by making retirement savings your first priority.

If you're 52 with $60,000 in savings and you want to retire at 65, you'd need to stash away roughly $2,700 per month over the next 13 years to end up with a $1-million nest egg, assuming a 10% average annual return.

One easy way to add to your nest egg is with Acorns, an automated investing app that makes building savings and investments simpler than you thought.

All you have to do is link your bank account, and spend as you normally would. The app will automatically round up the total cost of your purchases and invest the difference in a portfolio of exchange-traded funds (ETFs). So all it takes to help strengthen your portfolio and save for retirement is to make your everyday purchases and watch your money grow.

If you sign up today, you can get a $20 bonus to get you started.

If you haven’t already, start contributing to tax-advantaged retirement accounts. Luckily, you’re past age 50, which means the  IRS allows you to make catch-up contributions.