It's never too early to start planning for retirement. But even if you're in your fifties or sixties, there are still ways to ensure that you will have enough to retire comfortably and live the life you've always planned to.
AMP can show you how.
A useful first step - are you on track for a great retirement?
In thinking about your retirement, a number of questions come to mind:
- How much can I spend in retirement?
- How long will my super savings last?
- What can I do to improve my retirement lifestyle?
My retirement simulator will give you a good understanding of your current financial situation and lets you test different scenarios to plan for the future.
Make the most of your time before retirement
If you've only got a few years until retirement, there's still time to maximise your super through smart strategies like salary sacrifice and building for retirement (transition to retirement). You'd be surprised at just how much money you can inject into your super in your final years of work.
Changed jobs during your career? Hunt down any lost super that you may be entitled to - with $8.2 billion of lost super currently at the Australian Taxation Office, chances are that some of it's yours.
And if you have a number of super accounts, it may pay to consolidate them to reduce both fees and paperwork .
Free up your wealth
If you have assets outside of the superannuation system, it pays to know how to make these assets work harder for you as you prepare for retirement.
For example, you might want to investigate ways to draw on the equity of an investment property to help fund your retirement. Or you may want to look at avoiding the marginal tax rates that many assets attract, by transferring your assets into a super environment.
A financial planner has the expertise and knowledge to help you free up the wealth in your hard-earned assets.
Making the most of your retirement income
As you approach retirement, think about how you're going to receive an income from your super. A financial planner can show you how to maximise your retirement income, plus squeeze the most from government entitlements .
No doubt you're wondering how much you'll be able to spend each month, as well as how long it will last.
Protect yourself and your family
If you've accumulated assets throughout your career, it's important to protect them now - for your sake and for future generations.
We recommend that you speak to your financial planner about creating or updating your will, as well as identifying which life insurance products would suit you in this stage of your life.