I know that we are so focused on the here and now, and that is extremely important, but we also need to spend some time on the future and think ahead a little. Right now you may be focused on a business or being successful in your chosen career. Living for those weekends and vacation time and enjoying life. However, we never really know when this is going to come to an end, and we all have plans to at some stage decide to retire and take things a little slower.
But what happens then? We can all be a little too focused on bringing in the big bucks now, but when the career ends, or the business has sold or moved on, how will you enjoy your life? What will you do and more importantly how will you fund it? This is why it is important for you to have a plan in place that will help you ensure that you can continue to live the lifestyle you have become acquainted to. I thought I would share with you what some of them are.
Long term savings options
You could consider saving for a long term investment. This is something where you tend to save your money in an account or fixed bond, which means that you don’t necessarily get the instant access you may have been used to with other savings. But what it can do is give you a better return and rate when it comes to how much you gain from the savings. Things like Viderium Bond could be something to consider, and could help you make your hard earned savings work that little bit harder for you. It is definitely worth a consideration if there are lump sums of money you intend to use in the future, and don’t need the access to right now.
Think about the property valuations
One of the best ways to build up capital for the retirement years is through your property. Getting on the property ladder as early as possible is only going to be a good thing for you. It will help you build up over time as property valuations increase. You could make home improvements to build up the profit or simply move on to bigger properties worth more as you build up your career and income. Once you get to the point where retirement is on the cards, you can then use your property in different ways. You could sell and downsize, cashing in on the profits and reducing your outlay in terms of bills. Or you could consider staying in the property and using equity release schemes to benefit from the value and money tied up in your home.
Will you be ready to stop?
The one question you are going to have to ask yourself is whether or not you will be able to stop. Retirement for some means the end of a huge part of their life. A routine that they have gotten used to, a lifestyle they enjoyed living, and so stopping completely may not necessarily be the right move for you. But, of course, as time moves on, you do need to be in a position where you can slow down. So you may want to think about what your options will be once you get to this point in your life. Could you freelance? Could you start up a small business now that you could then work on later on in life, or maybe perhaps start a hobby in the hope of monetising and moving it forward later on in life? There are options, it just needs you to think about what your plans may be.
Pensions
Pensions are a great way to fund your retirement period. If you are in a job right now, the chances are you are already contributing in some way to a pension, which is greatly, but what you have to understand and work out is whether or not this will sustain the lifestyle you have grown accustomed to? It might be worth taking some time to work out how much you may be owed when you do decide to rewrite, and maybe invest in some private plans to help bridge the gap. Some private pensions pay out advances which can really help.
Short term smaller savings
Finally, you could consider saving in the short term for the future. A small amount each week may not be missed to you, but over time could really add up to help with your retirement fund.
I hope that some of these ideas have given you something to think about when it comes to your retirement.
