Retirement planning – Don’t put it off

Retirement can often seem a long way off – but the choices you make before you stop working can have an enormous impact on the kind of life you enjoy when you finally call time on the nine to five. Our trusted and highly-skilled team of advisers are on hand to give you the best possible advice, making a potentially stressful process far easier.

There are several considerations you need to take into account as part of that planning process. So, we’ve put together a quick checklist to make sure that the decisions you make now, stand you in the best possible stead when you retire.

How much will I need?

At a time when final salary pension schemes are rare, the chances are you’ll have to get accustomed to a different pattern of income and expenditure in retirement.  That can be a daunting prospect, but like anything in life, planning ahead can help make a potentially bumpy path, far smoother. Splitting your expenditure into two distinct categories – essential spending, and discretionary spending – you can work out a plan that best suits your finances. Once you know how much you’re likely to spend in retirement, you can plan accordingly.

How much will I have?

It’s always a good idea to work out how much of a retirement pot you’re likely to enjoy well before you finish your working life. And there are a number of ways to make that as simple as possible.

Firstly, you can get a State Pension forecast. This will give you an estimate of how much of a state pension you will receive, based on your National Insurance contributions. You can do this by visiting GOV.UK.

If you also have a defined benefit pension, or a defined contribution pension pot, you can ask your pension provider to provide you with a retirement quote or information on your retirement options.

You can also boost that final pension pot by tallying up your savings and investments. And finally, it’s always a good idea to try and trace any lost pensions through the Government’s free Pension Tracing Service site.

Assess your income options

Depending on the type of pension you have, you may need to decide how you take your money in retirement.

If you have a defined benefit pension, for example, you will often be paid a guaranteed income from your normal retirement age. If you have a defined contribution pension, then you’ll have a pot of money which you can begin drawing down from the age of 55.

You might also have other sources of income that you can draw on in retirement. This might be derived from property, savings or part-time work.

Now draw up that plan

Once you have all the information at your fingertips, you can begin planning. And looking forward to a future that is stress-free and secure.

The value of investments and any income from them can fall as well as rise and you may not get back the original amount invested.

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