Last Updated on Oct 20, 2020 by James W
Poverty in retirement is a real concern these days. As more jobs don’t provide adequate pension schemes or even a scheme at all, now more than ever, it’s the responsibility of the individual to ensure their retirement planning is in order. Don’t be one of the ones who end up in this state and follow this 5 step guide to help you avoid poverty in retirement.
Plan Ahead
This may sound obvious but planning ahead is key to be in good financial health in old age. You may well have a workplace pension, but as we discussed above it may not be enough in itself to provide for your retirement, look into a private pension as well as other methods of saving or investing, it would be wise to enlist the services of a wealth management firm to give you the best advice.
Have A Diverse Financial Portfolio
Although we mention taking on the services of the wealth management consultant above it’s important to understand as much as possible yourself about diversifying your financial portfolio as the advisor only gives you options, it’s your decision at the end of the day. So be aware of investment options such as company stock, property investment, investing in businesses, either directly or through peer to peer lending options, even buying up property with buy to let mortgages.
Think About How To Use Your Property
Speaking of property, you need to know how to use your property to benefit you positively. It’s often the biggest single asset we will own so why have it just sit there doing nothing? You could sell up and down-size, realizing the capital and using it to fund enjoying your retirement but you may not want to give up the family home as you would then not be able to host the kids and grandkids to stay over. But you can release funds from the property through AMF Equity Loans to give you a lump sum without giving up your home.
Ensure You Are Claiming Any State Benefits
So far we have talked about using the wealth you have accumulated and how to use it. But we are not all that fortunate and through no fault of our own, we may not have been able to save as much as we would have liked. For those of us in this situation, it’s important to ensure that you are claiming the correct state benefits including state pension and any housing benefits.
Consider Part-Time Work
Also if you are still struggling after all this advice or even would just like a top-up to your income as well as having something to do then why not consider part-time work? Many stores and other work-places see workers of retirement age as an advantage, customers like them and they get a whole lifetimes worth of work-experience to draw upon, and the fact that it’s only part-time gives you plenty of time to still enjoy retirement.
