5 Essential Tips to Help You Prepare for Retirement
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It’s never too early to prepare for retirement, and this is a crucial step in ensuring that you are comfortable and financially secure when you finish work.
Whether you’re currently a few decades away from retirement or your life as a retiree just around the corner, taking proactive steps can make a huge difference to your lifestyle when you retire.
So, if you’re looking to ensure you have a happy retirement, here are just five essential tips that will help to set you on the path to success.
Understand Your State Pension
When planning for retirement, it’s important to determine when you’ll be eligible to receive the State Pension, as this undergoes frequent changes. You can find out the current age that you’ll be able to draw on your state pension with the government’s age calculator, and this can give you a better idea of when you’ll be able to retire.
It’s also a good idea to keep an eye on your pension forecast, as this will give you a better understanding on whether your pension will cover your living costs, or if you’ll need to supplement this with other sources.
Invest in Your Property Future
Property investment can be a great option when preparing for retirement. Not only does the rent that you’ll receive give you a continued source of income, you may choose to invest in a second property that is more suitable to your needs as you age.
The sooner you purchase your investment property, the greater use it will give you, particularly if you initially have to use the rental income to pay off a mortgage on it.
Of course, if you win the cash for your second property in a competition, such as those run by Raffle House, you can put your rental income into savings in preparation for your life as a retiree.
Plan for Healthcare Costs
The NHS covers many of our health care needs. However, not only may some treatments not be covered, but waiting times can be long. Private medical insurance might be an option that is worth exploring to cover costs of any issues that aren’t met by the NHS.
It’s also important to factor in the potential need for a care home in the future, the cost of these can be significant, so ensuring that you have money saved up will give you maximum choice over where you spend your twilight years.
Manage and Reduce Your Debt
Debt can be an incredibly stressful thing, and not something you want to have to contend with when trying to enjoy your retirement. Try to pay off any credit cards or loans that you might have before you reach retirement age.
You should also do your best to pay off your mortgage before this time too, as it can significantly reduce your monthly outgoings.
Consider Phased Retirement
Rather than entirely stopping work, you could consider reducing your hours or shifting to part-time work as you approach retirement, as this will help you maintain your income for longer.
You may even find yourself bored once you retire, if so, there’s no reason you can’t look to platforms such as Indeed to find part time work.
Photo by Colin Watts on Unsplash
