Here’s how you can start your Retirement Planning even at 50

Planning for your retirement right from an early age is crucial as it helps to build an adequate corpus overtime. However, there are many who are about to reach their retirement age and are yet to start financial planning for the latter years of their lives. Let’s find out how you can plan for retirement even at the age of 50.

Often in a rush to plan for short or long-term goals, we tend to ignore saving or investing for our retirement. If you dream of leading a peaceful and comfortable life post-retirement, it is crucial to plan effectively considering your liabilities, income, financial plans and family commitments. Early retirement planning is a necessity. If you haven’t thought about it even until your 50s, here are some reasons why it is essential now:

• It will ensure your income security for the next 20 to 30 years

• It will help you manage unexpected expenses – be it during emergencies or any other short-term commitment

• It will protect the financial future of your family.

It is never too late to develop a comprehensive financial plan. Even at 50, you can build a retirement corpus that will help you lead a peaceful life.

• Analyse your financial status: The first step towards making a retirement plan is analysing your financial status right from reviewing your income flow, expenditure and other liabilities. While choosing a retirement investment plan, you should be realistic and not compromise on your lifestyle choices.

• Set your goals: When planning for retirement, the next step is to set your financial goals – be it short-term or long-term. For instance, you may want to renovate your house or create an emergency fund to manage unexpected expenses. It is necessary to take these into consideration while planning for the future.

• Pay-off debts: If you have taken any Home Loan, Car Loan, have unpaid Credit Card dues or any other liability, make sure you pay-off these debts. This will let you allocate funds towards your retirement goals. You can invest in financial instruments till the time you retire.

• Determine your monthly expenses: Before you start planning, it is also imperative to evaluate the monthly expenditure that you will incur as a family. This will give you a fair idea of how much monthly income you should be incorporating into your retirement plan.

• Stay invested: You will need a mix of investments that are aggressive enough to help you reach your goal over time. Investing regularly will allow you to purchase stocks at a lower price and gain better returns when they become expensive.

• Work as long as you can: Gone are the days when people used to retire at the age of 60 years. You can still continue to work and earn an income that will help to secure your future. The accumulated savings will pay for your retirement.

The retirement phase can be peaceful if you are financially independent. The significance of retirement planning should be realised early in life. Yet, if you are in your 50’s and haven’t planned for the second innings of your life, you can still build a sizeable corpus by following the above tips. ICICI Bank offers various retirement savings plans such as the National Pension Scheme (NPS), Public Provident Fund (PPF) and Senior Citizens Savings Schemes, among others.