How to build a big enough pension pot in retirement: The three ‘S’s
Personal finances are always troublesome, aren’t they? They’re confusing, convoluted, and a little cumbersome as well. It’s difficult to understand why we need to start saving early, as in our 20’s or sooner, instead of putting it off until we think we actually can afford to start saving for retirement. And after all, retirement is just so far away, isn’t it? Well, not in the grand scheme of things. Retirement comes up sooner than we anticipate and you can be stuck in a bit of a rut if you haven’t prepared adequately.
The pensions landscape has in fact changed dramatically over the past year and for consumers of all ages it is still a difficult area of personal finances to break down and understand how to make your money go further for retirement.
So where do you start when there’s just so much information out there to muddle through.
Find top tips on how to build a big enough pension pot in retirement, below from Andy Cumming Head of Advice at Close Brothers Asset Management. Try starting with the ‘Three S’s’.
1. Save More:
The first s is to save more. Because unfortunately, social security and retirement packages just aren’t what they used to be. We need to start diverting more money than we think is necessary to ensure we can continue having the same standard of living we’re accustomed to leading up to retirement. Consider adding a percentage of each pay-check into your savings account, increasing slightly as time goes on and you’re able to adequately budget for each increase.
2. Save Young:
The next is save young. Going off the previous point, sometimes you need to ramp up a bit before you can actually start saving more of your paycheck. Your best bet is to start saving young so you have enough time to prepare and see your pension pot grow more and more. Just try to refrain from using it for anything besides absolute emergencies. Additionally, if you start young, you’re able to take advantage of government bonds that have a certain time length they need to vest before they’re fully matured and you’re able to receive the full value. This means you have a better chance of meeting your goals. Also, diversifying and starting young helps account for market fluctuations and changing interest rates. The worst thing would be thinking you have enough to retire on and the year you think you’re able to, the market crashes and disintegrates. But simply saving young won’t make sure you
3. Saving Smart:
And the final s is saving smart. Taking some risks while saving may sound anything but smart but it can actually really pay off. Putting savings into some stocks or another form of investments is a great way to lock into major opportunity. While you’re young, it’s easier to take a higher risk approach as you have more time to bounce back. After all, bigger risk means more reward and can really set you up for your future. It also gives your savings more opportunity to grow and get you closer to the life you want during retirement. Just don’t get too crazy with your risk taking. Do so within reason. This also ties into diversifying your savings and start ira investing, seeing which is not only the most lucrative but what also makes the most sense for your budget, lifestyle, and goals.
These all sound terribly intimidating on paper, and they can be if you don’t have a game plan. But I promise with practice and putting these guidelines into practice sooner rather than later, padding your pension pot and savings account will get easier. Also, it becomes a lot more fun as you see more zeroes being added as well a few more commas in the right direction. And we all want to be the fun people in retirement who go on cruises monthly instead of feeling like we need to work until our last day. So get to saving and put these s’s to work for you!
