Whether retirement seems a long way off or it’s just around the corner, it’s never too early (or too late) to start planning. In fact, planning your retirement is a sensible move to make even if you’re not thinking of retiring at all; it’s good to have a plan in place just in case you change your mind or your circumstances change.
If you do want to retire, you are going to need to have some financial plans in place to ensure you can enjoy your retirement and do all the things you want to do. If not, you’ll find you have to keep working, which you may not want or physically be able to do, and life will be much harder than it needs to be. Being ready for retirement is the key; if you know what you want to do, you can put things in place in plenty of time. Read on for more information.
Your Retirement Income
Firstly, and most importantly, you are going to need to consider your retirement income. Although you won’t be working, you will still need money for day to day living, and if you still have a mortgage to pay or you’re renting your home, you will need more than someone who has paid off their mortgage. Once you make the relevant calculations of what is going to be required each year when you retire, you will know how much you need to save for it.
This could be done through actual savings, putting a little aside each month, for example, or you might pay into a private pension fund. There could be a pension at work, too, so don’t forget to add all your income sources together.
Another good way to access funds for retirement if you own a property is to sell it and find a smaller, less expensive one through the Ghana Property Centre. Ideally, you will be able to pay for this outright using the funds from your previous property, and still have money left over for living expenses.
What Will You Do?
Once your retirement income is dealt with, you’ll need to know exactly what you’re going to be doing during your retirement. This is the time to finally carry out all those dreams that work and other responsibilities we’re not allowing time for. Many people choose to do nothing at all for a short while, just enjoying the fact that they no longer have to go to work and can, if they want, do anything at all.
However, over time this will become boring, and it’s not good for you, either physically or mentally. Therefore, why not make a list of the things you think retirement will allow you to do, depending on your budget? It might be, for example:
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- A world cruise
- Taking up a new hobby such as painting, photography, or learning a new language
- Doing more exercise
- Gardening
- Seeing more of your family and friends
- Going back to school
- Starting a new part time job
- Starting a business
Whatever you choose will depend on how much time you want to fill. Clearly, starting your own business is going to take a lot of time compared to some of the other options, but if this is what you want to do, retirement could be exactly the right time to do it.